Walking with Wordsworth in Grasmere and Rydal
Area: In the valleys
Posted By: graham
The villages of Grasmere and Rydal were home to William Wordsworth forover 50 years of his life. He planted eight of the yew trees in the
churchyard, and one of them marks the grave of Wordsworth and his wife
Mary. Nearby his sister Dorothy, his children Dora, William, Thomas and
Catherine, Mary's sister Sara Hutchinson, and other members of the
family are buried. There is also the grave of Hartley Coleridge, eldest
son of Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Today a village of small cottages and
large hotels, Grasmere has three churches, a village school, a post
office, a doctor's surgery and village halls. There are interesting
shops, and a variety of pubs and restaurants to visit. Clubs and
societies continue to develop serving the local community and visitors
alike. The village is a conservation area with a permanent population
of approximately 700 people.
1. From the Lychgate next to the Grasmere Gingerbread shop walk south along the path towards the church.
2. Follow the path to the 3rd grave on your left.
3. Follow the church path along the river Rothay. Exit the churchyard and
turn left. Walk along Stock Lane to the main A591. At the roundabout,
cross the road with care and take the lane opposite. You will pass the
new Wordsworth Trust building, the Jerwood Centre, and Dove Cottage and
the Wordsworth Museum. Dove Cottage (originally an inn to catch passing
trade) and the Wordsworth Museum, shop, restaurant, and art gallery
take a couple of hours to view. Be sure to reserve some time to enjoy a
visit.
4. Continue up the lane past Dove Cottage. At How Top Farm continue up the road, signposted "Path to Rydal".
5. Continue until the road levels out. At a pair of cottages, where the
track ends, carry straight on ignoring the path down to the right.
Beyond three gates there is a stone seat.
6. Follow the path. Nab Scar below-steep, craggy and forbidding,
provides a nesting site for buzzards, peregrine falcons and ravens.
7. After the T-junction, turn right past Rydal Mount and Gardens. Walk down the steep road.
8. Take the first left. Follow the track to the rear of Rydal Hall, past the tea shop towards the sound of rushing water.
9. Return along the drive way and exit via the gate. Turn left and walk
down the steep hill. On the right, enter church gate.
10. Pass through the churchyard to Dora's Field. In Dora's Field every
spring, one of Wordsworth's legacies blooms and carpets the slopes with
daffodils planted when the much-loved daughter died of tuberculosis at
the age of 42. Dora's grieving parents went down on their hands and
knees, in their 70s, and planted daffodils in her memory.
11. Return to the steep lane and turn right. Proceed down the lane
until you reach the A591. At the main road, cross with care. Turn left
and walk a short distance along the A591.
12. Turn right over Pelter Bridge. Turn right along tarmac lane past
small car park. Climb the lane past houses. Eventually the tarmac lane
changes to a rough lane, passes through woodland and onto the open
fellside.
13. At a fork in the path bear left on the higher path. Continue along
the path for half a mile (about 800m). Views of Rydal Water. At the
next junction of footpaths take the middle route - a ledge above
Grasmere but below Loughrigg Fell. Continue along the path known as
Loughrigg Terrace, just prior to reaching woodlands. Turn right down
the grassy slopes to the lake shore.
14. Turn left and walk along the lake shore. Pass through a gate, keeping edge of the lake on your right.
15. At the road turn right and follow the narrow Red Bank Road for ¾
mile (1.2km) back to Grasmere village and St. Oswald's Church.
Route Grade Easy
Start Point St.Oswald's Church, Grasmere
Finish Point
St.Oswald's Church, Grasmere
Distance 5.4 miles
Approx Time 3 - 4 hours
Parking Grasmere has two Pay & Display car parks
