Seathwaite, Borrowdale, starting point for several walking routes. Photo: Bob Smith/grough
Visitors to a walkers’ hotspot in the Lake District are being asked to park responsibly or consider alternatives at busy times.
The National Trust says the roadside areas at Seathwaite in Borrowdale are very popular but vehicles left there can cause access problems for farm traffic and, potentially, emergency vehicles.
The location is a starting point for walking routes up Great Gable, Scafell Pike and other peaks in the Central Fells.
A spokesperson for the charity, which owns the land in the area, said: “We’re working with Cumbria Highways and the Lake District National Park Authority to find a better solution, but this will take time.”
The trust is asking those parking there to make sure a fire engine or tractor and trailer could pass through safely.
Last November, several cars were damaged at the site by a large vehicle. Police said they believed the damage was caused by a tractor and trailer. Many of the occupants of the parked vehicles had made their way on to the fells for the annual Remembrance Day service on the summit of Great Gable.
The trust spokesperson said: “If you turn up and find that you can’t easily park at Seathwaite without being confident a fire engine or tractor and trailer could easily pass, please find an alternative place to park.
“The National Trust car parks at Seatoller and Honister Pass are just up the road. Every penny you put in the car park machine helps the trust to look after the places you love to walk and climb.”
On sunny days and bank holidays, the trust asked walkers if they could consider beginning their adventure from a different location in Borrowdale, planning a route elsewhere or even saving their walk for a quieter period.
It also said regular buses run from Keswick to Seatoller. It added it will be monitoring parking at Seathwaite during the summer.
More details are on the National Trust website.
John Martin
19 July 2018Its worth mentioning that Seathwaite farm also allow you to park on their land for a small fee
TH
19 July 2018Not much chance of visitors taking any notice of this. It's now the Silly Season and walkers will do anything to save walking an extra 800 yards when they've got a 12 mile fell walk planned.
Lancashire Lad
19 July 2018FA with TH on this, seen some bizarre parking of late.
Good luck for any Fire crews who need to access the eastern side of Coniston on a summers evening Lately...
Mark
20 July 2018There was plenty of parking in the farmers field before the NT bully boy tactics stopped it. They’ve only got themselves to blame.
Martyn
20 July 2018Yep, Mark is absolutely correct. I've never found the farmer (Mr Edmondson) to be anything other than friendly and accommodating, this situation is one that has arisen because of Some foolish tactics by the NT and complete idiocy of walkers blocking the road to HIS farm.
Sheepy
20 July 2018It also doesn't help when you've got the various assortment of peasants taking up spaces with their camper vans and converted buses rather than paying to use a campsite.
Paul
20 July 2018What happened with the NT and the farmers parking field ?
Northern Bloke
21 July 2018Same is true for parking in a lot of places, if they can park for nowt, they will even if it causes an obstruction. Even had to ask someone not to park on an MRT car park once at a weekend. His excuse was he didn't think the MRT would be using it today as it was a Sunday... I kid you not.
Sara taylor
21 July 2018The National Trust has banned the tenant farmer from having parking on one of his fields. So farmer has lost a source of income and parking is now more difficult. I imagine the NT are trying to sort out an official NT car park. So they ban parking in a field where they don’t get the revenue. Then spend a few months bleating about parking difficulties and then get permission from the Park Authority to build a proper car park with marking meters and get all the revenue.
Paul
21 July 2018Sounds about right , typical . I don’t mind paying for parking but the prices in the Lake District are ridiculous , always has been the way it’s structured is so it dosent allow you the time to do what you want so have to pay the full £8-9 so you can make a day of it , £2 for three hours , £5 all day ..... no probs
OldManofTheHills
22 July 2018Typical obstructionist attitude from the NT. The Scottish equivalent is just as bad
Mike V.
23 July 2018One would hope that the tenant farmer is given due consideration in whatever is being planned by the National Trust for future public parking at Seathwaite Farm.
It must be remembered that Seathwaite Farm is THE major start point for many fellwalks, and that free public parking has been “tolerated” (without hindrance) on the roadside verge leading to the farm for many decades.
Suggesting, as the NT is, that parking provisions elsewhere are being considered, to me, won’t solve the problem. – Seathwaite Farm is the de-facto start point for walks in that area, and that’s where suitable parking will always be needed.
The damage to inconsiderately parked vehicles last year was definitely out of order – the police should have been called in to sort things out legally! – But, this is a working farm and the farmer should not have his daily operations obstructed by thoughtless parking.
Unfortunately, the few always spoil things for everyone else. The idiots won’t go away of their own volition, and a reasoned and satisfactory solution needs to be found.
I’ve parked on that lane many times since the early seventies, and I’ve seen the parking problems increasing many-fold over the years. I genuinely believe that a suitably sized permanent car park at the farm, along with enforceable “no-parking” signs at all relevant points along the lane is the only viable long term solution.
I dislike paying exorbitant parking fees just as much as anyone else, but they are a fact of life, and bleating about it won’t make those parking fees go away! Surely, those who visit The Lakes regularly would gain by joining the NT, thus entitling them to use all NT car parks at no further cost. (I became an NT member solely for that reason, and I can definitely say that in terms of parking fees, it saves me money year on year).
My one concern with such an outcome would be that the NT and tenant farmer come to some mutually satisfactory financial agreement with regards to the farmer’s loss of use for whatever land was taken up by a car park.
David Jones
23 July 2020Why not just make the fire trucks thinner? It's easier to do that than make all the roads wider.
If they don't make the fire trucks thinner, then they'll always have this problem. No point in barking at the moon!