The Brackenrigg sits above the western shore at Watermillock, midway between Pooley Bridge and Aira Force, and it is known for two things: the view down Ullswater, and being noticeably better value than most of what surrounds it. This guide covers the middle stretch of the lake, which most visitors drive along without stopping.
Quick Facts
Watermillock is the stretch where Ullswater is at its widest and gentlest, and staying here means you are committed to neither end — Pooley Bridge and the shops ten minutes north, Glenridding and the mountains fifteen minutes south, and Aira Force essentially on the doorstep. For a first visit to this lake that is arguably the best position of the lot.
The shore road is narrow and slow in season. The Steamers are frequently the quicker way to move about.
The Steamers run from the pier a few minutes away — sail the length of the lake to Glenridding, or go one way to Howtown and walk the shoreline path back, around seven miles and largely level. Wainwright rated it the most beautiful walk in Lakeland and he was not a man given to overstatement.
Aira Force is roughly ten minutes down the western shore: a sixty-five-foot fall through ancient woodland, and the ground where Dorothy Wordsworth recorded the daffodils her brother later made famous. Go before nine — the car park fills.
Lowther Castle, a short drive east and outside the national park, is a vast roofless Gothic shell with gardens being brought back after decades of neglect. Almost no Lakeland visitor goes. It is strange and rather wonderful.
Our scheduled small-group tours depart Windermere station, Bowness Pier 1 and Ambleside library — all a fair drive south over Kirkstone or round by the A66. From Pooley Bridge a private day collected at the door is the practical answer, and it can run the northern fells or head south to the famous central lakes.
From this end of Ullswater a private day is simply how it works — the scheduled pickups are a fair drive away, so we collect at the door and shape the route around your party. Well-behaved dogs are welcome aboard, travelling safely in our vehicle crates.
Not sure which route suits your plans, or want a day built entirely from scratch — a family reunion, a wedding anniversary, scattering ashes somewhere that mattered? Tell us what you have in mind and we'll design a day around it — see our guide to celebrating a special occasion for ideas, or get in touch directly.
The grand sweep: ten lakes, the high passes between them, and an Ullswater Steamers cruise exclusive to this tour. If a celebration stay deserves one great day out, this is it.
See dates & bookCollected at the door, your party only, the day shaped to you — literary landscapes, hidden valleys, or simply the most beautiful roads we know. Well-behaved dogs are welcome aboard in our vehicle crates.
Enquire about a private dayDove Cottage at Grasmere — entry included as standard — and the valleys that made the poems, with Dora's Field carpeted gold in daffodil season. The right literary day for this most Georgian of addresses.
See dates & bookAcross the lake to Hill Top and Near Sawrey, with our illustration-matching walk through the village lanes — back for a long lakeside lunch.
See dates & bookThe afternoon version crosses the lake by boat rather than by road — worth choosing if you'd like the crossing itself to be part of the day.
See dates & bookA slow hall morning, then eight lakes and their valleys at a seven-seat pace — the most civilised way to spend a Lakeland afternoon.
See dates & bookThe same eight lakes as the afternoon tour, run the opposite way round in the morning — ideal if you'd rather keep your afternoon free for the lawns.
See dates & bookA full literary day east to Haworth — the Parsonage, the cobbled village, and the moors that gave Wuthering Heights its weather, newly magnetic with the recent film. Oxenholme pickup available.
See dates & bookInto the Dales for Grassington's "Darrowby", the Wensleydale Creamery, Kilnsey Crag and Bolton Abbey — filming locations brought to life around you with live scene technology.
See dates & bookOn the western shore at Watermillock, roughly midway along Ullswater between Pooley Bridge and Glenridding.
A few minutes south along the shore road — one of the closest places to stay to it.
On private tours, yes. Scheduled departures leave Windermere station, Bowness Pier 1 and Ambleside library, all a fair drive south.
Narrow and slow through the season. The Ullswater Steamers are often quicker and considerably more pleasant.
We are an independent local tour operator. This guide is not affiliated with or endorsed by The Brackenrigg Inn.