If you would like the details of your Lakeland Way adventure on the list below then please provide your name(s), date and a brief description of your walk including any recommendations, tips or changes you came across along the route. This will be of great benefit to those planning the walk in the future.
No(s): 01
Name(s): John Falcus
Date(s): Sat 22nd July – Sat 29th July 2023
“I walked the whole route over 8 days. I used campsites on four of the days and wild camped 2 nights, and the luxury of a B&B for one night at Seathwaite. I carried all of my gear throughout my journey. I was unfortunate to have rain at some point everyday, ranging from heavy showers to torrential downpours, hence the reason for one night taking the opportunity of a B&B and a chance to dry out all of my stuff. It is very difficult to pick out one highlight of the walk as despite the weather everyday brought a new one. But if I had to it would be the walk from Buttermere and the subsequent climb up Gasgale Gill and down into Braithwaite.”
No(s): 02
Name(s): Richard Jennings
Date(s): Sat 2nd Sep – Wed 13th Sep 2023
“Walked the whole route over 12 days. Mixture of base (8) and wild camping (3). Carried all my gear and used parcel service at Keswick and Ambleside. Glorious weather. Reached 30°C most days. Torrential rain on Day 9 between Elterwater and Coniston. Had blisters early on due to the heat and carrying a heavy pack. Highlight was camping on Dow Bank above Chapel Stile, but it’s difficult to choose which section was my favourite due to each being so varied with beautiful scenery. I wouldn’t recommend starting the LW on a Saturday like I did, because Wasdale Head gets really busy with three-peakers. It was a fantastic experience. I would like to experience this walk in early spring, and wild camp the whole route over ten days totally unsupported; no planning, or booking posh meals, and just pick a good weather window at short notice, and go for it!”
No(s): 03, 04
Name(s): Sharon Howarth, Stevie Howe
Date(s): Wed 19th June – Sun 30th June 2024
“The Lakeland Way was the first long-distance, multi-day walk I’ve attempted unguided, and in the UK, and I was delighted to be accompanied by my daughter. The walk was a fantastic way to see the Lake District in all of its glory, and knowing that a lot of the tracks were old trading routes gave a stark view of how tough life must have been for those not lucky enough to explore them for pleasure. I thought the length was perfect, and although each day had plenty of challenges, we also had time to rest and recuperate to enable us to set off each day refreshed. Still in its infancy the walk doesn’t have its own waymarkers, but I found it very easy to follow by downloading the GPX files on to OS and making each day’s map available offline (I also carried paper versions and a compass but fortunately didn’t need to put my map reading skills to the test).
I loved that the walk was, in many parts, very quiet, giving us whole valleys to ourselves. The main highlight for me though, was getting to the top of some of the mountain passes to see a whole new vista appear before us – for that reason one of my favourite days was Day 4, which started with a picturesque walk along Crummock Water followed by an adventurous and challenging climb up Gasgale Gill, after which we were rewarded with an impressive view down the next valley towards Braithwaite. For the vast majority of our trip we stayed in B&Bs, Hotels etc, and whilst we liked everywhere we stayed by far our most favourite was Crookabeck B&B in Patterdale. Sharon”