Lake District Facts

Below are a selection of Lake District facts: highest peaks, longest lakes and highest tarns. 

The National Park

The English Lake District National Park is England's largest and covers 2292 square kilometres (885 square miles), the largest of the 11 national parks in England & Wales, containing over 1800 miles of footpaths through some of Britain's most beautiful countryside. The variety of spectacular mountains, peaceful lakes, rolling fells and bustling market towns make the Lake District a unique part of Britain.

Width (west to east): 33 miles

Width (north to south): 40 miles

Key dates

1810 William Wordsworth publishes "Guide to the Lakes"

1847 Kendal and Windermere railway reaches Windermere

1951 Lake District National Park establishedThe English Lake District is also steeped in literary history, with Wordsworth and Ruskin (and others) using the area's natural beauty to help provide inspiration.

People

• There are 12 million visitors a year (Source: 1994 All Parks Visitor Survey)
• Visitors to the Lake District come by private motor vehicle: 89 per cent
• 42,239 people live within the boundaries of the National Park. (Source: 1991 census)

Housing

• Total dwellings: 22, 930
• Owner occupied: 67.7%
• Rented: 32.3%
• Holiday or second homes: 15%

Weather

Mean temperature in Ambleside:

• July - 14.9 degrees centigrade
• January - 3.1degrees centigrade

Annual rainfall:

• in Ambleside: 2061mm
• in Seathwaite, the wettest inhabited place in England: 3552mm

Cultural Heritage

Over 6000 known archaeological sites and monuments dating from prehistory to World War II, including over 200 scheduled ancient monuments

1740 listed buildings and structures

21 Conservation Areas covering historic towns and villages