Tom Gill to Tarn Hows Walk

A circular 1.6 mile (2.56 km) loop that starts and ends at the Glen Mary Bridge car park near Tom Gill. It is short, but it earns its challenging rating: the climb beside the beck includes two rock scrambles, and the footing stays rough for much of the ascent. Plan on 1 to 1.5 hours, with about 1 hour 15 minutes being a realistic estimate for most walkers who stop to look at the falls.

Leave the car park over the wooden bridge and climb through woodland alongside Tom Gill, passing its waterfalls as the beck drops roughly 30 feet (9 m) through the ravine. The path tops out at Tarn Hows, where you follow the route around the water before returning on road and track and along field edges past Tarn Hows Cottage and Yew Tree Farm back down to Glen Mary Bridge. Herdwick sheep are a regular sight on the lower, farmed section.

The payoff here is water and setting rather than a summit view: a wooded ravine with falls, then the open tarn. Tarn Hows is a designed Victorian landscape, created by damming the outflow of Tarn Moss, which is why it feels more composed than a natural fell tarn.

The woodland ascent is steep and uneven, with scrambling over rock and sections of path close to steep drops. Wet weather makes the rock and roots genuinely slippery and raises the risk on the exposed edges. This is not a gentle tarn stroll, and it is not suitable for novice fell walkers or anyone with limited mobility. Wear boots with grip and take your time on the climb.

Dogs are welcome, but must be kept on leads for the whole route. Bear in mind the scrambles and the field section with grazing sheep when deciding whether your dog will enjoy it.

Start from the Glen Mary Bridge National Trust car park near Tom Gill, grid reference SD321998. The National Trust operates it as pay and display, and it is free for members. Begin here rather than at the Tarn Hows car park, since starting at the tarn skips the gill climb that defines this walk.

You get a lot of scenery for a short distance, and that is the main appeal. The costs are a technical opening climb that is harder than the mileage suggests, and a return that mixes a road section with gates, field edges and uneven ground rather than staying on trail. If you want a longer day around the tarn or up onto Tom Heights, that is a different and more substantial outing.