Buttermere Bluebells

6th-8th May 2025

The Lake District is an excellent place to see one of the nation’s favourite wild flowers in all of its glory. Rannerdale in the Buttermere Valley could well be the very best of the best, hosting thousands of bluebells in May each year. It’s a magical sight whatever the weather… moody or bright, the carpets of blue are extraordinarily beautiful.

The Lake District is an excellent place to see one of the nation’s favourite wild flowers in all of its glory. Rannerdale in the Buttermere Valley could well be the very best of the best, hosting thousands of bluebells in May each year. It’s a magical sight whatever the weather… moody or bright, the carpets of blue are extraordinarily beautiful.

We recommend a fabulous stay at The Bridge Hotel in Buttermere, where you will be spoilt with beautiful bedrooms with mountain views in every direction. You can also stay in the nieghbourghing towns of Keswick (25 mins) or Cockermouth (20mins), or next door valleys of Loweswater or Newlands or Borrowdale. The Glaramara Hotel in Borrowdale is an excellent location. We will all try to eat together in the evenings and we are working on where this will be, and will keep you posted.

PLEASE NOTE: The routes described below are flexible according to weather and participant ability.
If you are to choose just 1 Mountain day, as an introduction to fell walking, we suggest you choose the Robinson/Hindscarth day.

DAY 1
Group Social Hike for all - Rannerdale Bluebells and Crummock Water
13km & 370m ascent
Circumnavigating Crummock Water, under the steep flanks of Mellbreak soaking up this glorious valley and mountains towering above us. Returning with a little gentle ascent via the famous fellside of English Bluebells in the small Rannerdale valley, before descending back to Buttermere. The carpet of blue is extraordinary and never disappoints.

DAY 2
Mountain Hike – Haystacks and Fleetwith Pike via Honister Slate Mines
16km & 1050m ascent
Join us to reach the two classic summits you can see from Buttermere. The terrain to ascend is rocky and technical, but there are no steep ridges or drops. The ascent and descent can be challenging, but well worth the views from the tops as you make your way from Haystacks to Honister slate mines, through the most interesting slice of Lake District history. A visit to Dubs Mountain Bothy is a must before our lunch stop at Honister Slate Mines. We will take time to descend the rocky nose of Fleetwith Pike. This descent is long and requires good fell walking strength.

Lowland Hike - Buttermere and Bluebells
10km or 15km, 300m or 450m ascent
Heading off up the western shores of Buttermere with our higher level hikers, we will all reach the south end of the lake before they peel off uphill and we can take the return hike to buttermere on the eastern shores of the lake at a leisurely pace, perhaps dabbling toes along the way! After lunch (either packed lunch or take lunch in the cafe at buttermere village) we can explore the Rannerdale Bluebell area once more for those who would like to stride out a little further.

DAY 3
Mountain Hike - Dale Head, Hindscarth & Robinson
14km & 900m ascent (or 10km and 780m ascent if excluding Dale Head)
A Classic horseshoe. The steady, although somewhat relentless ascent is absolutely worth the stupendous views over buttermere and the mountains beyond to the west. The terrain is not technical, although some slightly, very short, rocky sections. This hike can be amended to tick only summits to reduce distance and ascent, depending on the group’s energy levels on day 3.

Lowland Hike – Exploring the waterfalls in the Newlands Valley
8km-14km and 200m-400m ascent
Setting off for a meander through meadows and heading under the western flanks of Catbells, before exploring deep into the valleys under Dalehead, Hindscarth and Robinson, our higher level hikers will be able to look down on us as we are watch the hypnotic flow of water cascading down off the fells. This area is an extremely quiet part of the Lakes District, so we will be free to clear our heads and dabble our toes in the rockpools above and below waterfalls. This route can be reduced in distance if the weather is extremely hot or wet, or have a great stride out with our poles if this is how the day takes us.

What is included:
3 days guided hiking, with 2 x qualified & knowledgeable Mountain leaders

What is not included: Dinner / Drinks/ Packed Lunches / Accommodation (see page 2)

GUIDING COST: £295