There are at least 200 fell tops. The writer Alfred Wainwright wrote about 214. Check out the List of Wainwrights (opens in new window)
Sixteen largest lakes
Windermere - (14.8 km²)
Ullswater - (8.9 km²)
Derwentwater - (5.5 km²)
Bassenthwaite Lake - (5.3 km²)
Coniston Water - (4.0 km²)
Haweswater - 3.9 (3.9 km²)
Thirlmere - (3.3 km²)
Ennerdale Water - (3 km²)
Wastwater - (2.9 km²)
Crummock Water - (2.5 km²)
Esthwaite Water - (1 km²)
Buttermere - (0.9 km²)
Grasmere - (0.6 km²)
Loweswater - (0.6 km²)
Rydal Water - (0.3 km²)
Brotherswater - (0.2 km²)
Tarns
Tarn comes from the Old Norse word for 'pool'. It usually refers to a small mountain lake or pool. However as some tarns are larger than lakes, it's not an exact science! Here are some of the larger ones:
Blea Tarn
Little Langdale Tarn
Overwater Tarn
Stickle Tarn
Tarn Hows
Watendlath Tarn
Yew Tree Tarn
Facts about lakes and coastline
The deepest lake in England is Wastwater at 74 metres.
England's longest lake is Windermere which is 10.5 miles long (17km).
There is only one 'official' lake - Bassenthwaite Lake. All the others are 'meres' or 'waters'. A popular quiz question!
The National Park includes 26 miles (42km) of coastline and estuaries.
In the heavy rains of November 2009, Windermere lake rose 157cm. Over the week, that translates into an extra 35,700,000,000 litres. 22,100,000,000 litres of those were added in just 36 hours! This is the highest level ever recorded for the lake.
Facts about trees and woodlands
Woodland covers 13% of the Lake District National Park.
95 km² is owned or managed by the Forestry Commission.
120 km² is broadleaf woodland. This accounts for 64% of all woodland.
6.2 km² of woodland is owned and managed by the National Park.
We want to increase woodland cover in the National Park to 17% by 2050.
Key dates
1810 William Wordsworth publishes "Guide to the Lakes".
1847 Kendal and Windermere railway reaches Windermere.
2017 Lake District National Park is awarded World Heritage Site status.
Local population and housing
* 38,993 people live within the boundaries of the National Park. (Source: Census 2021 from the Office for National Statistics) * Population density per square kilometre: 16.5 * Total dwellings: 24,511 (Source: LDNPA Annual Monitoring Report) * Owner occupied: 68% (Source: Mid-Year 2018 Office for National Statistics Population Estimates) * Rented: 41.9% (Source: Mid-Year 2018 Office for National Statistics Population Estimates) * Holiday or second homes: 24% (Source: 2011 census)
Tourism
Tourism is the main source of income for Lake District economy. Tourism brings great benefits to the area. Visitors spend money on accommodation, food, drink and leisure activities and indirectly support other business such as wholesalers and the building trade.
There were 18.11 million tourists to the Lake District in 2023
There were 27.21 million tourist days (spending more than three hours) in the Lake District in 2023
Tourism revenue for the Lake District in 2023 was £2304 million (£2.304 billion)
Source for all figures: Cumbria Tourism has provided these figures.
