Keswick Circular Walk

5 miles (8 km)

This circular walk from the popular town of Keswick takes you to some of the highlights of this beautiful area of the North Lakes. There's easy lakeside paths, woodland trails and climbs to the hills above Derwentwater. It's quite a challenging 5 mile walk but with great views over the lake from the high points.
The walk starts from the car park next to the tourist information centre and the theatre near the lake. From here you can pick up a footpath heading south along the lake to Friar's Crag. It's a gentle climb to a lovely viewpoint overlooking the lake. You'll also find a memorial to John Ruskin, the leading English�art critic�of the�Victorian era.
Continue south along the lake to Calfclose Bay where you turn left and climb to Walla Crag. There's some nice woodland trails through Great Wood and splendid views towards Skiddaw from the 379�m (1,243�ft) high point of the fell.
The route then descends to Castlerigg with lovely views of the Brockle Beck in this area. Around here you also have the option of taking a short detour to the Castlerigg Stone Circle. It's a fascinating site which dates from 3,300 to 900 BC, during the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Ages.
The final section of the walk takes you through Castlehead Wood where there is another nice viewpoint. You then pass Cockshot Wood and return to the finish point back at the car park. Here you can enjoy refreshments at the lakeside cafe which has outdoor seating and views towards the lake.
There's lots of great options for extending your walking in the town but the most popular is the climb to Catbells. It's about a 4 mile hike from the car park with views of the River Derwent and the surrounding fells. See the Catbells from Keswick Walk for full details.
Also near Keswick is the peaceful Newlands Valley where you can enjoy some stunning climbs and waterside paths along the Newlands Beck.

Keswick Circular Walk Ordnance Survey Map - view and print off detailed OS map

Keswick Circular Walk Open Street Map - view and print off detailed map

Keswick Circular Walk OS Map - Mobile GPS OS Map with Location tracking

Keswick Circular Walk Open Street Map - Mobile GPS Map with Location tracking

Pubs/Cafes

Back in Keswick the Lake Road Inn is a good choice for some post walk refreshments. The pub does good food and also has a nice garden area to sit out in if the weather is fine. You can find the pub on 10 Lake Road with a postcode of CA12 5BT for your sat navs. It's also dog friendly inside and outside if you have your canine friend with you.

Further Information and Other Local Ideas

The Keswick Railway Path will take you east through the River Great Valley on the old railway line to Threlkeld. Here you could visit Threlkeld Quarry Museum and enjoy a ride on the narrow gauge railway that runs into the old quarry. There's also�a collection of historic machinery, such as locomotives and cranes, an underground tour of a realistic mine, a comprehensive geological and mining museum, and mineral panning.
Just to the west you can pick up the Coledale Horseshoe. The popular circular walk starts from the village of Braithwaite, exploring the wonderful hanging valley and visiting several of the area's significant peaks on the way. The route also passes close to Force Crag Mine. The�Scheduled ancient monument�dates back to the 1800s and is now run by the National Trust. It's an interesting place to visit with information boards detailing the mine's history and some pleasant walks along the Coledale Beck.