5 secret beauty spots in north Cumbria to avoid the crowds

Yahoo

4 hours ago

AH, the Lake District. That glorious, sweaty, rain-drenched Instagram darling where sheep outnumber residents and the car parks are full of unused and expensive hiking boots, pampered labradors, and desperate city escapees.
Of course, a healthy intake of tourists makes for a certain vibrancy, but there are times when the clogged single-track lanes, mile-long queues for an ice cream, and lack of any seats in the pubs get a bit too much.
Thankfully, what many visitors don't know is there are parts of Cumbria where the buses stop early, the mobile signal waves a merciful white flag, and the cafés haven't yet discovered oat milk.
Here are five of my favourite under-the-radar days out in north Cumbria to avoid the crowds that are weird, wonderful, and blessedly lacking in coach parties and selfie-sticks.
1. Talkin Tarn – The Anti-Windermere
Tucked just outside Brampton (yes, that Brampton - the one where your sat-nav gets confused), Talkin Tarn Country Park is like Windermere's introverted cousin who reads poetry and quietly judges you for bringing disposable BBQs.
Talkin Tarn is hardly 'undiscovered', and does attract a healthy amount of visitors (for good reason), but if you fancy whiling away a few hours by a picturesque body of water, you won't have to fight your way through crowds to see it (see disclaimer at the end!).
It's a marvellously understated glacial lake surrounded by woodland paths, with enough charm to lose yourself in nature, and (usually) a peaceful serenity a far cry from its brasher relatives.
Talkin Tarn Country Park (Image: Archive) You can walk around the whole tarn in 25 minutes, which means it's perfect for lazy strollers, families with pushchairs, or those of us nursing a hangover and clutching a questionable takeaway coffee.
There's a quaint café, boats to hire in summer, and plenty of wildlife to keep the kids interested. Crucially, it's blissfully lacking in overpriced fudge shops.
2. Gilsland Spa – Crumbling Romance and Sulphur Springs
Gilsland Spa is where history, geology, and a strong odour of rotten eggs collide.
Straddling the border of Cumbria and Northumberland like a dithering Geordie, the village of Gilsland is home to an famous old spa hotel, breath-taking gorge walks, and the kind of riverside bridges that dare you to have a quiet existential moment mid-way across.
An aerial shot of Gilsland (Image: Archive) Follow the path down to the sulphur well (bring a strong stomach) and remember our hardy forefathers who used to bathe in this noxious substance for their health.
The views are gorge-ous (sorry), the geology fascinating, and the foot traffic minimal. Bonus points for the spooky Victorian vibe and the perfectly credible local insistence that everywhere is haunted.
3. Bewcastle – Where History Sleeps and No One Wakes It
Another fascinating spot within easy reach of Hadrian's Wall, Bewcastle is a truly atmospheric gem of a place.
If you like your attractions ancient, obscure, and in a state of semi-collapse, Bewcastle is the stuff of dreams.
This village is home to the ruins of a Roman fort, a church with serious Saxon street cred, and one of the most impressive Anglo-Saxon crosses in the country - which you'll probably have to yourself because nobody seems to remember it exists.
Atmospheric Bewcastle is full of historic sites (Image: Google Maps) Bewcastle is where you go when you want to feel profoundly insignificant in the nicest possible way.
It's quiet, it's haunting, and there's something deeply comforting about crumbling stones that have survived empires while you fail to keep you sole houseplant alive.
4. Bowness-on-Solway – The End of the World (Or At Least the Wall)
Forget the other Bowness – this is where those in the know go.
Head west until your signal dies and the sky gets weirdly big, and you'll reach Bowness-on-Solway — where Hadrian's Wall ends with a resigned shrug into the Irish Sea.
It's windswept, wonderfully bleak, and home to more birds than humans (ornithologists, rejoice).
Bowness-on-Solway's enchanting coastline (Image: Google Maps)
This is the perfect place for people who like the idea of finishing a Roman trail but are too lazy to walk 84 miles of it.
You can arrive in a warm car, take in the view, mutter something about Roman ambition, and then pop into the King's Arms for a pint and a pie, all the while feeling smugly superior to those circling the other Bowness for three hours desperate for a parking spot.
The views over the Solway Firth are nothing short of ethereal, the sunsets are world-class, and the air smells like seaweed and sheep.
5. The Eden Viaducts – Bridges to Nowhere and a Cracking Walk
Once vital arteries of the railway network, the Eden Viaducts near Langwathby now stand like solemn, overgrown reminders of Britain's knack for building brilliant things and then shutting them down for budget reasons. But what a sight they are.
Take the walk around the Eden Valley and you'll find the likes of Smardale Gill and the majestic Lacy Viaduct.
These great stone beasts stretch across gorges and rivers like Roman aqueducts on a gap year.
Smardale Gill Viaduct (Image: Julian Thurgood)
You'll meet a few dog walkers, the occasional suspicious sheep, and probably no one else.
Bring good boots, some ham and pease pudding sandwiches, and your best 'lost Victorian railway enthusiast' energy.
You'll look the part, even if you haven't seen an OS map since you scraped through you Silver Duke of Edinburgh award at school.
DISCLAIMER - I can only speak from personal experience – if you decide to visit any of these places, there could be throngs of tourists that day, but I'm not sure my influence alone is great enough to cause such a shift.
But as we are now on the sprint to the summer holidays, and some of Cumbria's more fashionable hotspots already starting to feel as busy as a 1970s pub carpet, you may want to get your explorer's hat on and try on these – or better still, seek out your own undiscovered gems – it's much more fun that way.