Rydal Water in the Lake District, Cumbria, England

Winter on Rydal Water. Rydal Water

Reflecting winter skies and frozen falls in our homepage image is Rydal Water, one of the smallest but prettiest lakes in England’s Lake District National Park. Rydal Water is one of the two lakes most associated with William Wordsworth, one of England’s greatest poets. (The other is neighbouring Grasmere, to which Rydal is connected by the River Rothay.) Wordsworth lived around these bodies of water, first at Dove Cottage and later at Rydal Mount, between 1799 and 1850, writing some of his best-known works and hosting leading lights of the Romantic movement, including his friend, Samuel Taylor Coleridge. To the western edge of the lake is Wordsworth’s Seat, a rocky outcrop said to be the writer’s favourite spot.

Rydal Water sits in a glacial valley that also contains the town of Ambleside, one of 13 valleys in the Lake District. Partly owned by the National Trust, it sits at the foot of Loughrigg Fell and has been known to freeze over on winter days like this one. You can walk around Rydal Water and take in Wordsworth’s former homes as well as pass by Rydal Cave on the hill above the lake. Grasmere and Rydal Water enjoy a beautiful setting in any season, surrounded by woodland, pasture, and craggy fells, as well as several National Trust-owned properties and beautifully designed landscapes. An inspiring place for aspiring poets, whatever the weather.