Buttermere

The lake and the village

Beautiful Buttermere, set in its amphitheatre of mountains, is a tranquil scene made more dramatic by the play of light and shade in the narrow valley. In the village of the same name there is a choice of places to eat and stay — see Buttermere and Lorton.

Buttermere lying mirror-still with the fells and a lone shoreline tree reflected

St James’s church, and a window

Call into the tiny church of St James to look at the dedication to Alfred Wainwright — the Lake District’s best known fell walker, guide book author and illustrator.

Then look out of the window, and you see his favourite mountain, Haystacks, where his ashes are scattered.

A walker on the bracken path along the shore of Buttermere below steep fells

The walk round

The low-level walk round the lake is a delight, especially if it begins and ends in the hamlet of Buttermere itself. It takes about two to three hours.

There are footpaths around both Buttermere and Crummock Water, and on to Scale Force — the highest waterfall in the Lake District.

A group of walkers resting on the path high above Buttermere and its valley

Higher up, and getting here

Many popular high-level walks start from the valley, and can often be linked into the Honister Rambler bus, which runs a circular route from Keswick through Borrowdale and Buttermere. Bus times and routes are on the getting here page.

A short walk up from Honister to the top of Fleetwith Pike gives views over the whole length of Buttermere.