Walking From Elterwater
If you are an intrepid explorer who likes to bag something a bit different, try Cathedral Cavern at Little Langdale; right in the heart of the Lake District. You can park near it, but my friend Gillian and I decided to bus it to Elterwater and walk the couple of miles to it from there.
View at Elterwater.
We had the perfect day for snapping landscape shots as it was so clear.
Take the rough track up the hill from near the Britannia Inn. It starts as a narrow lane. Check your map as there are several narrow lanes and the mobile signal in the area is all but non existent. This is one walk to do your homework first as there are no signs for Cathedral Cavern and road signs to Little Langdale will take you on a much longer route. It’s a steep climb up a rough track but the views make up for it, especially when you descend towards Little Langdale Tarn.
The route from Elterwater. Not far now!
Looking down onto Little Langdale Tarn.
Little Langdale itself is just a scattering of houses and farms, though you may find a very welcome shelter outside a farm, offering do-it-yourself hot drinks and home-made cakes.
The walk itself feels longer that the two miles that Google says it is and it took us at least an hour, albeit that I stopped for photos now and again.
Finding the cavern itself wasn’t easy. You cross a river via a footbridge and look for a stile on your right 100 yards ahead. Head up the steep wooded slope and look for a tunnel entrance.
The fun starts here; take a torch and good footwear!
Looking back to the entrance of the quarry tunnel.
Into The Darkness!
There are probably other and maybe better routes, but this was mine.
The tunnel (worth a hard hat by the way), links a series of old quarries. It takes just a few minutes of darkness, avoiding the joining tunnel on your left, before you emerge. It’s a bit of a clamber over rocks to get out and before you will be the entrance to Cathedral Cavern.
Cathedral Cavern
Towering rockface.
Cathedral Cavern viewed from the inside and a rare outing of my ‘fisheye’ lens.
I liked how this vegetation on a rock took advantage of the limited daylight penetrating the cave.
access to the cavern was via one of several short tunnels.
Looking down into the cave.
S short detour from the cave or a different approach is via the picturesque Slaters Bridge.
It’s easy enough to get into the cavern via another short tunnel, but it was easier to photograph it from the outside looking in, due to the lighting.
For more information, you can find a really good web page about Cathedral Cavern HERE
The inevitable selfie to finish off with!
I hope you enjoy this brief ramble. More Photographer’s Ramblings coming soon!