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Covering some 885 square miles (2,292 sq km)
the Lake District is to many people, the most beautiful place on Earth. In
this corner of Northwest England you'll find spectacular mountain scenery,
wild and lonely moorland, secluded dales, picturesque lakes & rivers,
beautiful areas of woodland, bustling towns and quiet stone built villages;
something to satisfy every ones taste. |
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Select a
list from the Cross Reference Table |
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Full list |
Central |
East |
Far East |
North |
North West |
West |
South |
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Tarns |
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Lakes |
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Landscape |
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Town / Village |
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Churches |
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Passes |
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Buildings |
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Bridges |
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Attractions |
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Historic Sites |
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Recent updates |
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Overview Maps |
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Honister Pass Bridge |
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This is the middle of the three bridges that cross Gatesgarthdale Beck on
the Buttermere side of Honister Pass. It is found at a height of 750ft asl.
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Docker nook
Bridge |
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There are
actually two bridges here, and although it was only the
small clapper bridge which I originally intended to
photograph, I ended up taking pictures of both of them.
The
bridges are found in the south east corner of the Lake
District in the lovely valley of Longsleddale.
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Selside Church |
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St Thomas's
Church, Selside, built 1838 with a tower added in 1894. The
tower is oddly broad, and entirely open to the old nave.
There was a chapel here a hundred years earlier that was
built in a burial ground |
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Smaithwaite Bridge |
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I'm sure this
was once a delightful bridge found in the most unlikely of
places, and although it is definitely a little worse for
wear these days, it's still a nice one to discover.
The actual stone section of the bridge is marooned in the
middle of the St John's beck and linked to the riverbank
only by modern wooden sections. When I first came to this
bridge my initial thought was did the beck used to be much
narrower or did the bridge used to have three arches. |
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Longsleddale church |
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Unfortunately
I don't have any information of this church. |
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Shap Abbey |
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This remote valley was once home to a community of Premonstratensian Canons.
The Premonstratensian order was founded in the 1120's. Like the Cistercians,
they wore white habits and built their monasteries in remote places. Living
a contemplative monastic life, the canons also served as priests in nearby
parishes.
The Abbey
itself was founded in about 1200 by a local baron called
Thomas, son of Gospatric, who granted the canons land beside the River
Lowther.
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Greendale Bridge |
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I dread to think how many cars must cross this bridge every year. No doubt
somewhat quickly, and all because the occupants of the said vehicles are
eager to reach Wast Water or Wasdale Head, which has a greater pull on
people than the tiny hamlet of Greendale and its bridge.
I wouldn't expect anyone to want to drive here just to see the bridge or
to disrupt their journey into Wasdale proper, but surely most people walking
past the bridge on their way to or from the fells behind Greendale must take
a second look at this attractive little spot.
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Uldale Church |
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St James' Church in Uldale dates from about 1150. The nave was
rebuilt somewhere around 1730, and the windows are
typical of the mid 18th Century.
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Rough How Bridge |
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There are
actually two bridges here, an older one which is fenced /
walled off, presumably for our safety, and a newer one built
in 1904 which now forms part of an
extended lay-by since the main road was widened and diverted around this
section. Both bridges are within tripping distance of the main A591, but
sufficiently hidden to be seen from a speeding car.
The older one is the
more appealing of the pair, not least because of its connection to the poet
William Wordsworth and his involvement in a "road traffic accident" as we would now
call it. In 1856 the
Whitehaven - Keswick - Lancaster coach hit the Wordsworth's
gig at Rough How Bridge.
The following was reported in the
Cumberland Pacquet:- |
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Brat's Moss
Stone Circles |
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The
middle of nowhere springs to mind whenever I visit this
place. A wild, lonely spot indeed, and not somewhere the
average person would like to wander into when the cloud
is down.
There are
five stone circles of varying sizes in the area,
although I only have pictures of three of them for the
time being. For anyone wishing to come here to
specifically visit the circles, the easiest route would
be from Boot in Eskdale. Be warned though, they are
easily missed.
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Millennium Bridge Grasmere |
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I suppose the name Millennium Bridge says it all as far as the history of
the bridge goes. The bridge is found on a lovely section of path alongside
the river on the eastern side of Grasmere. |
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Fusedale Clapper Bridge |
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Fusedale is a lovely Lakeland Valley, generally free of people and steadily
gaining height from Howtown more or less to the ruins near Brownthwaite
Crag. The clapper bridge shown here is found near Cote Farm and in itself
makes for a short easy walk. It also marks the spot where you leave the road
and head onto the open fellside of the valley. |
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Waterfalls - Tom Gill |
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The authorities proudly announce that 1 million people visit Tarn Hows every
year. Personally I don't believe it, but whatever the number is, I'm sure
only a fraction of the visitors ever take the short de-tour to look at Tom
Gill Waterfall. Part of the reason could be because people simply don't know
the falls are there or if they know they're there, perhaps they don't
realise how close they are.
Many of the more impressive waterfalls in the
Lake District are definitely out of reach for the none fell walking visitor.
Tom Gill, on the other hand is within easy reach for anyone with the ability
to tackle a short, steep (ish) incline; easily enough to get within a few
feet of the bottom of the falls. |
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Waterfalls - Stanley Force |
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If it were possible to be blindfolded and winched in here from the underside
of a helicopter, you've be forgiven for thinking you'd just entered some
remote jungle in South America or Borneo or some such spot. Despite the
overgrown appearance of this gorge however, the reality is that you're only
a short walk from the beautiful Lake District valley of Eskdale.
To get close to the main fall you must walk along a narrow ledge on the
left hand side of the gorge. When the ground is wet and slippery, the faint
hearted or those with unsuitable footwear would be best advised to view it
from a distance. Anyone with a head for heights can catch a glimpse of the
waterfalls and the gorge from above by heading up to the rock ledge which
acts as a viewpoint. Be warned though, this is a dangerous place with a
150ft sheer drop! |
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Waterfalls - Measand Beck |
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On the day I took these pictures I'd actually set off to follow Measand Beck
up towards High Raise in order to find a truly hidden sheepfold. Even though
I knew I'd pass by Fordingdale Force, the series of waterfalls pictured here
still turned out to be a fantastic bonus of the day.
This is a beautiful stretch of water, but be aware, the further up
Measand Beck you travel the more remote it feels, and the more enclosed you
feel as the fellside on each side of the beck gets closer and closer
together. To come here is to truly explore one of the Lake District's hidden
corners.
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I thought of this idea
purely by accident while I was using a map to make
myself a list of the churches I still needed to visit. I
was thinking to myself, that had they been marked a bit
more distinctly then it would have made the job a much easier. It was
then that I had one of those "penny dropping" moments; if it would would
make this easier for me, then perhaps other people may find it useful as a
tool not only to see at a glance how churches, tarns Etc are distributed
throughout the Lake District, but to open the page for chosen place.
Each entry in the directory
database is marked on the map with a red flag. To open a specific place,
simply click the flag.
For the time being I've only
created overview maps for churches and tarns. As more articles are added to
the other categories I will create additional maps.
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Glossary
of 'church' terms |
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click the picture to open the glossary of church
terms page. |
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Calendar
of updates |
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To
view a greater selection of website updates open the
"Calendar of Updates" page. Not only does this
include additions to the directory, but it has
details of walking updates. |
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