YHA hopping in The Lake District - YHA Langdale to YHA Hawkshead

(S) Leave YHA Langdale through the back entrance, onto the Elterwater road. Go over a cattle-grid and follow the road down until a path crosses under Huntingstile Crag. Turn left off the road and follow the path down to the B 5343. Turn left and almost immediately right down the local road into Elterwater.

(1) Go past the bus stop and The Britannia Inn towards the bridge over Great Langdale Beck. Before crossing the bridge turn left into the car park and out through a gate onto the Cumbria Way path. Follow the river, keeping to the north bank, past Elter Water to Skelwith Bridge. At Skelwith Force, cross over the footbridge and enter the forest on the other side of the River Brathay. Follow the path past Park House up to Park Farm. Leave the Cumbria Way, taking the driveway to the A 593 and turn left. After about 100m past a few houses on the right, take the path through a wooden gate heading south uphill. Follow this path past Lower Arnside until a drystone wall crosses it, first on the right then the left. Just after this, there is a path off to the left that follows thr¡e dry stone wall heading north. The wall then turns 90º to head east and keep following the dry stone wall all the way to a ladder-style that crosses the wall to reach the trig point on Black Fell - Black Crag (Wainwright at 323m).

(2) Head off the fell south-west to a small unnamed tarn and the corner of Iron Keld Plantation. Join the track coming from Low Arnside bearing left to enter the wood. At a fork in the path bear right to head south through the wood to reach the track near the Torver Intake. Turn left and head south-east past Limestone Hill and down to the road junction near Borwick Lodge and bear left along Skinner How Lane. Just past the last building on the right at Sand Ground, take the path (signposted Hawkshead Hill) up the field. This comes out onto a minor road opposite a telephone box and letterbox; turn left into Hawkshead Hill.

(3) At the junction with the B 5285 turn left (signposted Hawkshead) past the Baptist Chapel and out of the hamlet. About 200m further on, leave the road on the right by a signposted metal kissing gate. Ignore the path going right next to the stream, but bear left across the fields past Keen Ground Farm. At a lane, turn left to go down Vicarage Lane into Hawkshead and a visit to The Queens Head Inn near the National Trust Shop. To leave Hawkshead, go up to St. Michael and All Angels church and take the path at the back heading over the fields towards The Vicarage. Turn left at a wooden kissing-gate, going away from The Vicarage to head up to Roger Ground. At the road turn right then leave the road at a sharp right hand bend, going along a track between houses to eventually come out at Howe Farm, with Esthwaite Water right in front. Go down to the main road and turn right. Follow this road for about 300m to the YHA Hawkshead (Esthwaite Lodge).(E)

This is low-lying walking and, as such, there is a fair amount of tarmac to be covered. Make sure your boots are comfortable and be sure to take waterproof gear as the weather can change quite quickly. There are a number of places to hole up for a while if necessary and buses can help if it really turns bad.