Activity and adventure

Here is our extensive guide to exploring England’s adventure capital.  The Lake District offers a wide choice of activities and adventure. Free for all to discover are the fells, mountains, forests and lakes where you can choose tracks and trails to suit all abilities.

Sail on the lakes

Popular steamboat trips and hire boats sail on the four big lakes of Coniston, Windermere, Ullswater and Derwentwater, offering you a different perspective of the passing landscapes. You can also borrow canoes, rowing boats, sailing dinghies and motor boats. Visit our comprehensive Lake District Guide to get ideas for your holiday itinerary.

Out of the ordinary

If you want to try something a little out of the ordinary, something to get the adrenaline rushing, your heart racing or simply an activity you might never have thought of doing – take a look at this list of activity centres and visitor attractions that should satisfy even the most adventurous spirited visitors.

The Predator Experience - Walking with Wolves

Promoting the conservation of birds of prey and other predators through experiential education, the Predator Experience inspires the public to protect biodiversity for the future and to aid wild populations by promoting positive raptor management and research.

Leader of the pack

Join the wolf hybrid pack on a magical walk through the woodlands and forests; learn the intricacy of social ranking and the subtle art of canine communication. If you’re lucky, you might even hear them howl. Set aside myth and legend, walk foot by paw on an exhilarating journey into the wildlife of a wolf. A reasonable level of fitness and ability is required for this experience.  For more information, click here.

Kendal Climbing Centre & Climbing Wall

Spend a day at the Kendal Climbing Wall. The centre offers vertical routes on the indoor walls for guests of all abilities, along with instruction courses - a good option for a rainy day.  For more information click here.

White Water Canoeing & Kayaking

There are plenty of activity and adventure centres located throughout the Lake District. They are often one-stop shops offering activities ranging from archery to mountain biking, paint-balling to quad biking. One of the most exciting outdoor pursuits is whitewater canoeing; an exhilarating trip down a fast-flowing river under the guidance of qualified instructors. They will choose the best river location on the day almost guaranteeing a great day on the water.

Ghyll / Gorge scrambling

Gorge or Ghyll scrambling is a full on ‘get wet’ activity, scrambling up spectacular mountain becks, traversing deep pools and climbing small waterfalls. You could even swim and jump in whenever you feel like it. With Mobile Adventure, you can try gorge scrambling at spots such as Stonycroft Ghyll, Church Beck and Esk Gorge, with wetsuits and all safety gear provided.

Honister Slate Mine

Honister is the last working slate mine in England, producing its famous Westmoreland Green Slate for over 300 years. Open to the public, the mine owners offer several activities and tours.  For both adults and children, there are underground tours of the mine tunnels, offering a fascinating insight into both past and present practices and conditions. 

Via Ferrata

For the brave and seeker of thrills, there is the Via Ferrata. Perched at the edge of Honister Pass, high above the beautiful valley of Buttermere, this really is a unique, adrenaline rush of an experience.

The Infinity Bridge

The Infinity Bridge is so-called because you cannot see the other side in cloudy weather. Its 350ft length is strung 2000ft above the gorge, placing it among the highest and certainly the longest in Europe. For more information, click here.

Lake District Gyroplanes

Remember Little Nellie in James Bond’s You Only Live Twice, where the eponymous international man of mystery flies an autogyro over the lair of Ernst Stavro Blofeld, set under an extinct volcano, thinking to yourself what fun that would be? Well, even if the answer is no, you can still recreate it! Lake District Gyroplanes or Cumbria Gyroplanes offers a similar experience minus the unwanted firepower.

After a short instruction, you can take control or simply sit back and enjoy the ride in the hands of experienced pilots, flying over the lakes and own extinct volcanoes of the National Park.

Virgin Balloon Flights

Imagine the thrill as you soar majestically skywards aboard the basket of a huge balloon with the beautiful Lake Windermere stretching away below you. Virgin Balloon Flights make this dream real, you can take off right beside England’s largest and most famous natural lake.

Newby Bridge

Found at the southern tip of the lake at the heart of the Lake District, Newby Bridge takes its name from the five-arched bridges built across the River Leven in 1651 and is arguably one of the most spectacular balloon launch sites in the world.

For more information, click Virgin Balloon Flights Newby Bridge Launch Site Info here.

North West Parachute Centre

Still in the air, NWPC will take you up for the thrill of a lifetime. From their custom-built planes, you plummet tandem-style with a professional skydiver from a height of around 15,000ft with a freefall descent of some 125mph.

Once the parachute opens, you have a gentle five-minute canopy ride down where the views promise to be spectacular. Solo jumping courses are available too. Allow for weather holds - tandem jumping is a day-long experience, solo jumping is over a longer duration. For more details, click here.

Extreme Mountain Biking

Two of the best turbo-charged Mountain Biking trails are in the Grizedale and Whinlatter Forests. Grizedale’s Pro North Face Mountain Bike Trail consists of nine sections of sinuous tracks and has a ‘red grade’. Of late they have added a black trail offering awesome jumps, berms and steep descents.

Whinlatter's altura trail

Whinlatter’s Altura Trail is the longest purpose-built trail in the Lake District. Some 19 kilometres long, it is a ‘red grade’ trail offering popular features like jumps, berms, rock features, skinnies and corkscrews.

On top of this, the route takes you some 500m above Keswick offering fantastic views of Derwentwater, Bassenthwaite, Helvellyn and Skiddaw. These trails are not for the fainthearted and are designed for experienced to expert riders.  There are less gruelling routes for cyclists of all abilities throughout the Lake District. For information on the hundreds of cycle trails in the region click here.

Go Ape at Grizedale and Whinlatter Forests

A treetop adventure where you can channel your inner Tarzan. Based all around the UK, GoApe tree top adventures have two locations in the Lake District National Park, one at the Grizedale Forest in south lakes, the other at Whinlatter in northern lakes.

Hugely successful and great fun, it is a series of rope bridges, scramble nets, high ropes, tunnels and zip wires forming trails that are suspended high up in the forest canopy.

There are several options to choose from; the Tree Top Junior is for all ages, where adults can supervise either on the course or from the ground.

For information on both sites click here.

Forest Segway

See the forest and surrounding area on a Segway! Go Ape offer the service or you can hire them from the car park in Cartmel.

4X4 off-roading

There are several companies offering off-road experiences to visitors. KANKKU based in Windermere have their own specially prepared vehicles offering guided off-road expeditions with tuition included as part of the experience.

Alternatively, you can take to the tracks by yourself in one of their ex-army Land Rovers. You get a briefing, maps, satellite GPS and a road book direction system to take care of the navigation while you enjoy the drive. There are several other off-road experience providers available in the Lake District. For more info click here.

Stay in the adventure capital of the UK

Find one of the country's best outdoor playgrounds on your doorstep with a holiday in the Lake District. We have a variety of gorgeous cottages in the Lake District, each just minutes away from your next adventure.