Recently, I posted about my hike on Helvellyn in Lake District during extreme weather. I didn’t get to enjoy great views that day due to dense fog. Luckily, the next day, I was able to enjoy the views of Ullswater lake during a short hike from Pooley Bridge. That’s where I’m taking you today. It was a fantastic walk, I loved exploring the vast open space above the lake. There were by far more sheep than people in sight! Pooley Bridge is accessible by bus from Penrith, making this hike one of the few public transport-friendly hikes in Lake District. Join me on that trip!

Getting to Pooley Bridge from Penrith

I stayed in Penrith that weekend, and got to Pooley Bridge by bus – lines 508 and 509 both go there. The journey time was about 30 minutes, and the ticket price was £3 each way.

Getting lost before the hike even began

I had looked at the maps the day before, so I had a rough idea of where I wanted to go. Well… turns out ‘rough’ isn’t good enough. Check your routes before you go, folks! I got off the bus at Pooley Bridge Inn. There are public toilets there, near the visitor centre – the only ones on this hike.

From the inn, I headed towards the lake. After all, I wanted to get to the hills towering over the lake! I saw a signpost for Ullswater way, which to me, sounded like a trail that would go all around the lake…

The path took me to the waterfront and I was able to enjoy the view of the lake. I continued along the trail which ran along the lake. It crossed a couple of camping sites… and the footpath abruptly ended.

At that point, I was at the foot of the first hill that I wanted to climb. If there was a path connecting the lake with the hills, it would have been perfect. I checked the maps – a few different maps, actually – but I couldn’t see any paths that would take me to my destination. Sigh! There were some farms with open gates, but I had no idea if there would be open gates on the other side of the fields. Slightly annoyed, I headed back to Pooley Bridge. The walk along the lake was nice, but my time was limited that day. I had to catch a train back to London from Penrith later in the afternoon.

Starting the hike (the correct route)

I double checked the maps, and walked from Pooley Bridge Inn towards the church, and then to the start of the Roman Road trail. Part of that walk was along a road with no pavement, but the traffic was low to none. Eventually, the asphalt road ended and turned into a gravel, uphill path.

Exploring the hills by Ullswater lake

There were sheep roaming on the vast open space, and I could feel a sense of freedom of being in the countryside.

I had checked the maps and knew roughly where I was going. It wasn’t hard to find the right way – I just followed the path. At the crossroads, turned right, towards the taller hills. As I gained some elevation, I could see more and more of the lake. I could also see the tall peaks on the horizon hidden in clouds. Somewhere amongst them was Helvellyn, which I climbed the day before in extreme weather.

I walked past a stone circle. A relic of prehistoric times, perhaps? Who knows. I saw a much larger stone circle when I visited Lake District a few years ago. And, speaking of stone circles, I also visited Stonehenge earlier this year!

I didn’t have a specific destination in mind for my hike by Ullswater. I had a strict time constraint, and my plan was to explore the hills until I need to turn back. I saw on the maps that some of the trails ended in the middle of nowhere, so I kept it in mind.

It appears that there was some kind of regatta on Ullswater lake that day, as I could see dozens of sailboats on the lake. It looked pretty cool! As my hike progressed, I could see more and more of the lake. I really enjoyed this mini trip! I reached a few stone piles, one of them with a particularly nice view, overlooking the lake. It seemed like a good place to finish the hike. I sat down for a short moment to have a snack and soak in the views.

The way back

It was time to head back to Pooley Bridge and catch one of the not-so-frequent buses to Penrith. I followed the same route to get back to the town – this time, I didn’t get lost. I waved goodbye to the sheep and the views, and caught my bus.

If I’d had more time, I definitely would have spent more time exploring the hills, and perhaps extended my hike to the next town, Howtown. There are cruise boats on Ullswater, so you could hop on a steamer from Howtown to Pooley Bridge. It sounds really fun – maybe one day I’ll have a chance to do that!

Summary of the hike

My whole hike was 17.7 km long with 450 m elevation gain. It took me 4.5 hours. Those numbers include the start of the walk, when I unnecessarily walked along the lakefront and back – it cost me 50 minutes and added 4 km.

Final thoughts

Overall, I really enjoyed this little hike! I didn’t climb a popular mountain or follow a famous trail – I crafted my own walk, simply knowing that I wanted to enjoy a good view of the lake. Despite making a mistake at the start of the hike, I managed to turn it around. And it definitely taught me to triple check the route beforehand if I have limited time for the trip!

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