Where Is the Lake District?

28 September 2018

The Lake District is a National Park famous for its lakes, forests and mountains. We have written a lot about the Lakes in the past, about why it is so popular, what you can do there for a weekend break, walks for beginners and why the Lakes is the perfect location for food lovers.

But where exactly is it?

It seems like an absurd question. The Lake District is such a coveted destination in Great Britain, how could anyone not know where it is? Well, believe it or not, a lot of people. Visitors from other countries for one, and, incredibly, plenty of people from Blighty, too. So, we here at Mill House Cottages don’t want to leave anyone in the dark, forever wondering where this wonderous mountainous region is; it just wouldn’t be right.

So, here is our definitive guide to where exactly the Lake District is.

Ullswater in the Lake District

So, Where Is the Lakes?

The Lake District is in a little country called England. England is one of three countries located in the island of Great Britain, which is part of the sovereign state of the United Kingdom. Within England, there are 48 different counties, and the Lake District is contained entirely within one county: Cumbria.

Cumbria is in the North West of England and has a population of just under half a million and is one of the most sparsely populated counties in the United Kingdom. It is the third largest county in England by area, and is bounded to the north by the Scottish council areas of Dumfries and Galloway and Scottish Borders, to the west by the Irish Sea, to the south by Lancashire, to the southeast by North Yorkshire and to the east by County Durham and Northumberland.

without_arrow

 

How Far Away?

If you live anywhere in the North West of England, chances are you won’t be too far from the Lakes. But if you don’t, you’ll probably want to know how far away you are and how long it would take you to get there. Here is a handy guide for estimated drive times to the Lakes from some central points in the UK:

London – 5 hours
Edinburgh – 2 hours 30 minutes
Liverpool – 1 hour 30 minutes
Manchester - 1 hour 20 minutes
Newcastle – 1 hour 40 minutes
Cardiff – 5 hours 10 minutes
Nottingham – 3 hours
Brighton – 6 hours 30 minutes
Exeter – 6 hours 10 minutes
Norwich – 6 hours
Carlisle – 30 minutes
Swansea – 5 hours 30 minutes

Lake District Facts and Stats

  • The Lake District was established in 1951
  • It coves an area of 2,362 square kilometres
  • All land in England higher than 3,000 feet above sea level is in the Lakes
  • The Lake District is home to the highest mountain in England: Scarfell Pike
  • It is also home to the deepest and longest bodies of water in England, Wast Water and Windermere
  • The Lakes has a total of 23 kilometres of coastline
  • There are 281 ancient monuments
  • There are 23 conservation areas
  • The Lake District draws approximately 19.17 million visitors a year
  • Woodland covers 12% of the Lake District, around 28,500 hectares
  • The Lake District was named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2017

Base of Scafell Pike

Lakes in the Lakes

When writing about the Lake District, we couldn’t possibly miss out one key component: the lakes themselves. The Lake District is home to 16 different lakes, the largest being Windermere. Only one of the lakes, Bassenthwaite Lake, is officially a lake by name, the others are meres or waters. The Lake District Lakes are as follows:

  • Windermere - 14.8 square kilometres
  • Ullswater - 8.9 square kilometres
  • Derwentwater - 5.5 square kilometres
  • Bassenthwaite Lake - 5.3 square kilometres
  • Coniston Water - 4.0 square kilometres
  • Haweswater - 3.9 square kilometres
  • Thirlmere - 3.3 square kilometres
  • Ennerdale Water - 3 square kilometres
  • Wastwater - 2.9 square kilometres
  • Crummock Water - 2.5 square kilometres
  • Esthwaite Water - 1 square kilometre
  • Buttermere - 0.9 square kilometres
  • Grasmere - 0.6 square kilometres
  • Loweswater - 0.6 square kilometres
  • Rydal Water - 0.3 square kilometres
  • Brotherswater - 0.2 square kilometres

Lake Windermere
So, now that you have a better idea of where the Lakes is, how to get here and a little bit about what you can find here, we hope to be seeing you very soon. At Mill House Cottages, we have a range of available luxury holiday cottages in the Lake District for your next getaway. Check out our range of cottages available and book online today.

Related Posts

databaseheartenvelopeusersphone-handsetmapsmartphonerocketselectbullhornmagnifiercrossarrow-downlayers