Elterwater to Skelwith Bridge

This is a linear low-level walk, 1.62 miles / 2.6 km one way from Elterwater to Skelwith Bridge, and about 1 hour at a steady pace. Retrace your steps and you are looking at roughly 3.2 miles / 5.2 km return, or about 1.5 to 2 hours with stops for photos and a look at the falls.

From the gate at the back of the National Trust car park in Elterwater, a wide stone path follows Great Langdale Beck. After about 1 km you reach the shores of Elterwater itself, a quiet lake with small bays and a wooded, reedy edge where you may see mallards, coots and moorhens, with the Langdale Pikes filling the view up-valley. The path continues through woodland and open meadow, climbs a short 1:8 slope to a woodland gate, then crosses Woodburn Bridge high above the beck. A smooth stone path leads on above the drama of Skelwith Force, with Skelwith Bridge about 200 m further on.

Easy, 2 out of 10. Mostly flat with one short slope, so the effort is low. The surface does the talking: broad stone slabs early on are solid but bumpy, and beyond Woodburn Bridge the path narrows and gets rougher and more uneven, which is where most people slow down.

The official classification is accessible for many rather than for everyone. The stone-slab surface is noticeably bumpy for wheelchairs and pushchairs, and the narrower ground past Woodburn Bridge makes suitability depend on your equipment and your confidence with uneven surfaces. Class 2 and 3 mobility scooters are permitted on the route. Many visitors treat the lakeshore section from Elterwater as an out-and-back and turn at the bridge.

Dogs are welcome on this public footpath and bridleway route. Keep them under close control or on a short lead around livestock, wildlife and other path users, especially at gates and near the falls.

• The meadow section holds puddles and shows flood erosion, so waterproof footwear is worth having in wetter months.
• The ground past Woodburn Bridge is rougher underfoot.
• The descent and rocks beside Skelwith Force are slippery, and the water there runs fast and strong after heavy rain. It is not a place to swim or scramble down for a closer shot.

For a longer day on similar low ground, the Elterwater, Little Langdale and Colwith Force circular covers comparable woodland and waterfall scenery at greater distance and with rougher going.