In the footsteps of Furness monks (From The Westmorland Gazette)

In the footsteps of Furness monks

10:20am Friday 25th April 2008

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The village of Hawkshead has many small stone cottages, archways, squares and cobbled nooks, beloved of Wordsworth and Beatrix Potter. It lies near the head of Esthwaite Water, nestles under the fine old church of St Michael and lies mid-way between Coniston Water and Windermere. The land between the two lakes once belonged to the monks of Furness Abbey. In 1578, Archbishop Sandys made Hawkshead a parish, and in 1585 he founded the grammar school. It is no longer a school but is open to the public at reasonable times. The courthouse, partly 13th century, is the only remnant left of the Furness Abbey monks' manorial building.

Leave your vehicle in Hawkshead pay-and-display car park, grid ref 354981.

1/ Leave the car park in the direction of Hawkshead's fine church. Cross the road, go through some large gates and walk towards the gate into the churchyard, passing the magnificent old grammar school, with its splendid sundial, on your right. Walk ahead from the gate and continue to a signposted gate. Beyond, bear half right, on a pleasant track, in the direction of Walker Ground. Pass through another gate and notice as you go the fine stone flags used as fencing. At a T-junction, turn left and almost immediately right, to walk across a large area of parkland, with scattered clumps of fine trees and dramatic views of the Lakeland fells. Ignore a path left and take the arrowed stile hidden behind a tree. Wind on towards a large gracious house and go through the arrowed kissing gate. Then curve round right towards the fence and pass through an unsigned gate on to a narrow road where you descend, right, under beeches, to join the road from Hawkshead.

2/ Cross and walk left. When level with the splendid old courthouse, on the left, take the signposted double gates on your right. The fastening is heavy to open and it decants you into a muddy area. Bear right, gradually striking, left, away from Black Beck, towards the hedge on the far side of the pasture, to pick up a path coming in on your right from Hawkshead. Cross the wide drainage ditch on a slab bridge and go ahead through three kissing gates onto Scar House Lane, a track, and walk left. A short way along, leave the track by a waymarked gate on the right. Follow the reinforced gated path, uphill, and follow it where it is diverted on to Loanthwaite Lane.

3/ Turn left to pass High Loanthwaite Farm, a Beatrix Potter bequest to the National Trust, and turn into a track on the right immediately beyond the dwelling. In a few steps climb the stile on the left, signposted Outgate', and walk ahead to pass through a gate and then on into woodland. Cross the muddy dell on a short boardwalk and then leave the trees by a stile. Follow the waymark directing you across the pasture. Ignore a gate on the right and walk ahead to an arrowed gate. Turn right beyond, and follow the path to join the B5286 at the Outgate Inn. Walk right, with care, along the B-road for a short way to reach a small building, on the right, with a plaque saying that it was meeting place for many years of Outgate WI.

4/ Immediately beyond, walk right and descend a pleasant ginnel. At its end, bear left to a gate. Beyond curve right to walk a pebbly path' close to a clump of trees, now on your left, and then take an old curving grassy trod, left, that leads you gently down to the valley. Negotiate a large fallen branch and then strike half right over the pasture, away from the woodland, to cross a slab footbridge over a hurrying beck. Climb uphill to the wall corner and walk on, with the wall to your right, to go over a stile. Stroll left soon to spot a waymark by a telegraph pole. Head on the rolling pasture to an unmarked gate. Once through, keep ahead, with fine views of Blelham Tarn. As you near the three-armed signpost, turn right to walk beside the wall on your left towards High Loanthwaite.

5/ Carry on beside the wall and when it turns away, follow the rather sparse waymarks ahead over the pastures. These lead you to two stiles beside each other. Beyond, keep beside a fenced hedge on your right to cross a very boggy patch, cross a stream by a turf bridge and turn left to follow more waymarks to a gateway. Stride the track beyond, to the farm, picking the driest way possible and on reaching the road, turn left. Walk uphill and very soon take the second right turn, signposted Colthouse'. Stride the farm track, wet in places, and carry on into pleasing woodland, where you might have to dodge more wet places.

6/ Where the track divides, keep ahead to a small gate and descend a grassy walled track to where it becomes tarmacked. Here take the next signposted right turn to go through a field gate. Wind round with the wall on your right and go ahead by the fence on your left. Pass through a wall gap and strike diagonally across the pasture, with lots of rock outcrops, to climb stone steps over the wall just before the far right corner. Descend, left, a stony path, and then drop down a short grassy slope to a stile onto Scar House Lane and walk right into Colthouse, where you might like to explore the tiny hamlet. Then bear right to walk a quiet lane to join the road from the ferry, soon to turn right to reach the car park on your left.

Information

Distance: 5 miles Time: 3 hours Terrain: Some very good paths and tracks and a few muddy ones. Fairly level walk.

Map: OS Explorer OL 7 NB: Restrictions on space mean that this article provides a general summary of the route. It is advisable for anyone who plans to follow the walk to take a copy of the relevant Ordnance Survey map.

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