The second largest lake in the Lake District, a long curving water in Patterdale where Wordsworth's daffodils grew
Ullswater is the second largest of the lakes, a long ribbon of water that bends in three sections through the valley of Patterdale in the north-east of the district. A lot of people rate it the loveliest of all the lakes, partly because of that curve, so the far end stays out of sight and new views open up as you move along the shore. The high fells stand close around the southern end at Glenridding, with Helvellyn and its ridges rising steeply behind.
This is daffodil country in the literary sense. It was on the shore here, in Gowbarrow Park, that Dorothy and William Wordsworth came across the long drift of wild daffodils that William later turned into his best-known poem. Just above the park, Aira Force drops through a wooded ravine, an easy and popular walk up from the lakeside, and one of the more reliable waterfalls to visit after rain.
The classic way to see Ullswater is from the water itself. The Ullswater ‘Steamers’ run traditional boats up and down the lake between the piers, and a favourite day out is to sail one way and walk back along the shoreline path. Boats and buses call at Glenridding at the southern tip, which has parking, shops and the main jumping-off point for the fells. As with all the lakes, the weather up here can change quickly, so check the forecast before you head onto the tops.
