What is Ennerdale Bridge famous for? 

Despite Ennerdale Bridge being a small hamlet, Ennerdale Valley is brimming with history and renowned for being one of the most unspoilt areas in the entire Lake District…

  • Black Sail Youth Hostel 

The Ennerdale area is home to the YHA Black Sail, which holds the status of England’s most remote and isolated youth hostel. The hostel is accessible only by foot with the nearest road being around 3 miles away and attracts hikers and travellers looking for a unique, rural experience in the wilderness. The hostel sits at the head of the Ennerdale Valley and originated as a shepherds bothy. Hikers who are climbing nearby mountains such as Great Gable, Pillar and Red Pike use the hostel as a tranquil base. The cosy hut is complete with a wood-burning stove perfect for huddling around and telling mountain tales. Its unlikely you’ll get mobile coverage here and there are no electric sockets so story telling is the ultimate night time activity here! 

  • Wainwrights Coast to Coast 

Wainwright devised his long distance trail in 1973 in his book ‘A Coast to Coast Walk.’ The author splits the route up into 12 stages starting from St Bees and finishing at Robin Hoods Bay and takes around two weeks to complete.

Footpaths in Cleator and Ennerdale Bridge make up parts of the first section of Wainwright’s famous Coast to Coast route. The first day starts at St Bees and travels through Cleator before reaching Ennerdale Bridge. Accommodation and pubs in the small hamlet are often used by hikers completing the trail as they pass through or rest for the night. 

  • Historic sites and events 

  • St Marys Church 

The hamlet’s parish church, St Marys, was built upon the site of a medieval chapel between 1856 and 1858 and is still in use today. The church is little but impressive and was mentioned in Wordsworth’s poem ‘The Brothers.’ The church bell is one of the oldest parts of the building and is of pre-Reformation date. 

  • Kinniside Stone Circle 

The road from Ennerdale Bridge to Calder Bridge passes by the impressive Kinniside Stone Circle. The perfect circle made up of 11 stones is believed to date back to either the Neolithic or Bronze Age period, although the stones may not be in their original state due to an 18th century farmer dismantling the circle and using some of the stones for gate posts.  It was restored as close to the original as possible in 1925 and set in concrete. 

  • Monk’s Bridge

Near the fell road from Ennerdale to Calder Bridge, there is an old, quaint packhorse bridge known as Monk’s Bridge. The ancient bridge arches over Friar Gill and was built by the monks of Calder Abbey who would have crossed the bridge on many of their journeys and likely used it to transport Iron ore to the smithies on the fells to be smelted.

  • Bill Clinton’s proposal

In 2016, former US president Bill Clinton stated during his Democratic convention speech that he proposed to his wife Hillary on the banks of Ennerdale Water during summer in 1973. 

  • ‘The Ennerdale Dog’

In 1810, a mysterious large carnivore killed hundreds of sheep in and around Ennerdale, causing chaos for farmers in the village. Locals made huge efforts to catch and the kill the animal but non-prevailed. Eventually, following numerous attempts, the dog was shot and killed by local man John Steel and its carcass weighed over 8 stone. Locals named it the ‘Girt (great) Dog of Ennerdale’ and it was said to have had traits of both a dog and cat with a striped coat and lion like features. Historians believe the animal was likely a cross between a mastiff and greyhound and escaped from a travelling ‘gipsy’ troop.  Until the late 1800’s, the animal’s taxidermied skin was on display in the Hutton’s Museum in Keswick.

  • Ennerdale on Screen

Ennerdale was used as a filming location for Danny Boyles 2002 blockbuster ’28 Days Later,’ The closing sequences include a sweeping, panoramic view of Ennerdale Water.