With so many people looking to share a getaway with their four-legged friends, it’s essential to find a location as dog-friendly as possible. Not only do you want pet friendly accommodation, but you want to know your dogs are welcome to join you for your days out, too.
Walking is one of the most common things to do that draw people to our beautiful area, so we thought we’d share a few of our favourite walks your dog can join you on which are easily accessible from our dog-friendly cottages in the Lake District.
As the largest and most well-known lake in the Lake District, Windermere has many visitors to its shores throughout the year. Whether people want to get out on the water themselves, discover the place that’s famous for once being home to the creative mind behind Peter Rabbit (Beatrix Potter), or take in the beautiful scenery, the coast of Lake Windermere is a bustling place to be.
With so much around the Lake there are a lot of walks to enjoy whilst staying at our dog-friendly cottages. Here are just some of our favourites.
With so many great routes through Grizedale Forest, it is hard to narrow it down to just one. This Forestry Commission location is dog-friendly throughout, with dog-friendly cafes and lots of places to explore.
The Forest has 10 walking trails, most featuring amazing sculptures to find along the way. Our favourite is the 3-mile Carron Crag Trail. This trail takes you to the highest point in the forest, with amazing views over the fells. You start at the Visitor Centre and head out of the courtyard past the children’s play area to the start of the Red Trail.
To start the trial, you walk up the track to the junction with the forest road and turn right. After this point bear to the left onto a rough path. At each junction you come across there will be a post with a red band marker to keep you on the right route. You and your pooch will cross a number of streams and then reach the furthest point of the walk. Turning left you will climb up slightly to get back onto the forest road, then follow it to the left.
Your next step is to follow the road, going straight over the junction then, when the road turns left, head back onto a rough path to the right. Follow this path through the trees to the crags and you will come to a concrete trig point marking the summit of Carron Crag. Continue over the crags and follow the path on the other side, it drops through a short section of plantation and you will reach the forest.
Your next step is to turn right as you reach the forest road. You will come across another path on the left, dropping down to the outward forest road. Turn right and continue down the junction and then turn to the left to drop down to the round track before the farm. You will go through a gateway to get back to the visitor centre.
The forest is well loved by dog walkers, but the reason we love this particular route is the lack of sheep you encounter, allowing your dog to roam a little more freely than in other parts of the Lake District.
We’ve spoken about the beautiful walk to the peak of Orrest Head previously on our Mill House Cottages blog, it’s such a fantastic spot with your pooch and allows you to take in some stunning views across Lake Windermere, for full walk details head to this blog post.
Ullswater is the second largest lake in the Lake District and with a lot of the lake overlooked by mountains, it makes for a stunning backdrop to any photo of you and your four-legged friend! There are some great fell walks for the more adventurous dog walkers here, but also some great places for those looking for a more relaxing stroll with their dogs.
One of our favourites is Aria Force, a National Trust site that offers amazing waterfalls to explore. Dogs will love going for a splash in the river that runs through this site. Aria Force itself is one waterfall in the centre of the site, but you can also explore High Force and High Cascades too.
The Aria Force circular route is a 2 mile route that takes you from the main car park on the edge of Ullswater, up through the picnic area, to the High Cascades falls, then over the bridge to come back down. Keeping the river on your right you stick to the main paths and get some gorgeous views. You can extend this route to the Gowbarrow Fell Trail if you want a more strenuous walk.
This is a busy trail and there will be a lot of other dog walkers on the route. There is also one area where a path goes out to another car park across a field which has fell ponies. Therefore, you may need to keep dogs on leads for part of the walk.
Many people opt to fully take in the beauty of Ullswater by walking the 20-mile circular route of the lake itself. This route takes you and your dog through Waterfoot Park, and starts at whichever point you find yourself. You can opt to do the full route, or start at Pooley Bridge, do the 10-mile walk to Glenridding then take an Ullswater Streamers boat back to the car! The route is clearly marked with “Ullswater Way’ signposts.
Our 5 star holiday cottages in the Lake District offer the ideal place to relax and rest up after a long day out with the dog fell walking. With the utmost comfort and luxury at your fingertips our cottages provide a home from home.
The calm and quiet environment in our luxury holiday cottages in the Lake District allows you to truly relax as they have been designed with your pet in mind. Each of our dog-friendly cottages has enclosed gardens and ample room for dogs to play. Check availability for your next dog friendly getaway today.
