(S/E) From the main Hawkshead car park turn left (South-West) and walk to Main Street going through the village (you will be opposite The Sun Boutique and Lounge). Turn right and walk on Main Street into the village, keep going straight on passing The Queens Head, Post Office, and Beatrix Potter Gallery. Walk past The Red Lion Inn and turn immediately right (North-East) onto Red Lion Yard.
(1). This lane runs past a private car park on the left and to a gate in front of the B5285. Go through the gate and cross over to Black Beck Road; go along the road for a short way to a house and take the path on the right, around the side of the house.
This path leads you past the gardens of the house, which are full of chickens, ducks, and quails. Continue along the path turning left (North-West) and then right (North-East: ignore that path along the beck to the courthouse) crossing open pasture to a gate.
(2) At the gate, turn left (North-North-East) and follow the Wray Castle signpost. This leads along a good path to another gate and junction with a path (Scar House Lane). Turn left (North) and follow Scar House Lane for about 60m, keep a look out for a kissing gate on the right (North-East) with a marker arrow.
Leave the lane, pass through the gate, and into more pasture. Walk gently uphill through the field, following the left side of the fence line until you pass through another gate so that you are on the right side of the fence. Continue up to the farm and junction with the road. (Loanthwaite Lane)
(3) Go through the gate and onto the Loanthwaite Lane, turn right (West) and follow the narrow lane to a T junction of roads ignoring paths from left and right. (Take care this is not a busy lane but it is narrow, so walk in single file and look out for vehicles)
(4) At the T junction turn left (North-East) and walk along the road for about 50m to a signpost and path on the right. Turn right (West) and take the path. This is the start of your ascent up Latterbarrow fell, it is gentle at first and leads to a bifurcation in the path.
(5) At the split in the path, take the left-hand track (East-North-East) and head uphill. It now gets steeper but the path is well maintained and has steps in many places. The steep part is soon over and the ascent starts to become more gentle as the path turns to the right (South-East) and leads you to the top of Latterbarrow and the monument.
(6) After enjoying the view, from the monument head in a North-North-Easterly direction on an obvious grassy path, this leads downhill and enters some light woodland. It crosses a small stream and continues until it joins the forestry track. Keep left and walk the forestry gate beside 'Basecamp on the OS map'. Go through the gate, turn left and follow the well-maintained track to a T junction with the farm opposite.
(7) Turn right (North-East) and follow the road into High Wray. You will pass the village hall on the right, then look out for a white house on the right with prominent white, round chimney pots. Just after passing this house turn right (North-East).
(8) It looks like you are walking into some people's drive but it is signposted and at the end of the tall slate wall on the left is a narrow gate with a couple of stone slab steps on the other side. Go through the gate and down the steps into a field. Walk down hill on the left hand side and pass through another gate onto the lakeshore path.
(9) On the lakeshore path turn left (North-West) and follow it until it curves away from a shingle beach and up via some steps to Wray Castle. (Have a look around the castle which is owned and managed by the National Trust or enjoy the grounds. You can extend your walk in this way by walking through the arboretum or to the landing stage at Low Wray Bay)
(10) Once you have finished exploring the grounds and castle return to the lakeshore path and back to (9). Continue along the path on your left, with the lake on your left hand, passing a jetty and boathouse to the car park at Red Nab. Continue along the track to a well proportioned house; Belle Grange.
(11) Immediately after Belle Grange turn right (West) and take the stoned path which ascends via some zig-zags into the woods and an open forest beyond. The path is obvious and at any junction always head straight on. You may see signposts for Hawkshead via Guide Posts (Note Guide Posts is a place on the OS map it does not refer to finger posts or markers) but there is significant forestry work taking place after the storms in the winter of 2021/2022 and some signpost may be missing.
(12) At Guide Posts cross roads (There was an obvious finger post at the time of writing) continue straight over and then start to descend through woodland, passing small tarns on the left until the path curves to the right and eventually passes through a gate to join the road.
(13) At the road turn left (South) and walk for about 15 m to a turning on the right into Crofts Head. Turn right (West) and the after the first house immediately take the path on the left (South-West) going through a gate and into a field. Walk across the field and then down to go through another gate onto Scar House Lane. Go straight over the lane and through another gate and into another field. Follow the path and go through a gate to (2).
(2) Turn left (South-West) and follow the path back to Hawkshead, passing beside the house selling chicken eggs, cross the road and walk to (1) in the village and then back to Hawkshead car park.
