Just in time for the late May bank holiday next weekend, a recent study has revealed the top 10 most Instagrammed walks across the Lake District.
With further easing of Government Restrictions in the UK, more and more people will be venturing out of their local areas to walk in the beautiful Cumbrian countryside.
So to provide some inspiration for families, friends, couples, or solo walkers, research, conducted by Shoe Zone, looked at popular walks across Cumbria, cross referenced with Instagram data, to see which walks give the most Instagrammable opportunities.
These are the top 10 most Instagrammed walks in the Lake District:
1) Ambleside to Grasmere, The Coffin Route (310k posts) A woodland walk taking you from Ambleside to Grasmere.
This route takes you alongside the lakes Rydal and Grasmere and you’ll even pass the family home of poet William Wordsworth. Whilst in Grasmere, it’s advised you pick up some of the famous gingerbread!
2) Helm Crag (109k posts) Starting in the heart of Grasmere, this walk up to Helm Crag follows a rock stairway up to it’s summit which is a canon shaped rock named ‘The Howitzer’.
3) Helvellyn via Striding Edge (95k posts) Helvellyn is the second highest mountain in the Lake District, standing at a height of 712m above sea level. Starting in the village of Glenridding, this route to the summit via Striding Edge is one of the most popular in the Lakes.
4) Scafell Pike (92k posts) Scafell is the highest mountain in England at an elevation of 978m above sea level, and so is one of the more challenging walks in the Lakes. The mountain is also the highest war memorial in the National Trust in memory of those fought in World War One.
5) Buttermere lakeside walk (77k posts) The walk around Buttermere passes through rocky tunnels and the woodlands alongside Buttermere water with a backdrop of the Lake’s magnificent mountain ranges such as Fleetwith Pike.
6) Cat Bells (58k posts) Positioned alongside Derwent Water in Keswick, Cat Bells in one of the more popular walks in the Lakes and also one of the smaller hills, so perfect for those looking to begin a hobby in hiking and hill walking!
7) Lake Coniston to Grizedale Forest (41k posts) This 15km walk starts on the shores of Coniston Water and leads you up to Grizedale forest which is the largest forest in the Lakes.
8) Rosthwaite to Watendlath (37k posts) Situated along Borrowdale, Rosthwaite is a popular, yet small, settlement, starting here the walk leads you through to Watendlath which is sat next to stunning tarn.
9) Blencathra (35.6k posts) Blencathra has six separate fell tops and is one of the higher hills in the lakes, providing a more challenging walk with sharp edges as you ascend. However, the challenge and effort to get to the summit is worth it, with views stretching out over the northern Lakeland.
10) St Bees to Whitehaven (23k posts) A coastal walk, starting in village of St Bees and finishing in Whitehaven, the route is full of history and wildlife.
Shoe Zone have created a full guide of the most Instagrammable walks across the UK here.
Head of Marketing at Shoe Zone, Charlotte Maker, said: “With our daily walks one of the only things we have been getting up to lately, we wanted to conduct some research into some of the lovely walks that people had been embarking on during lockdown.
“The rocketing sales we’ve seen around wellies and walking boots over the past year shows just how much we’re enjoying getting outside, even just for an hour.”
The data was compiled by analysing 100 most popular walks in the UK from The Outdoor Guide cross referenced with the top three hashtags for each walk on Instagram.
Walks were also analysed for their key three features as well as difficulty, length, time to complete, suitability for dogs, accessibility for prams and whether they required walking boots
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here