If you’re looking for an incredible wild swimming walk in the heart of the Lake District, look no further. The walk up to Buckstones Jump takes in a series of stunning waterfalls, all with picture perfect swimming holes. Each one has its own unique feel and all are very different to Buckstones Jump itself - which has glistening blue water and sits in a valley with incredible views.
Even if you’re not looking to go for a dip, this walk is gorgeous and there are plenty of spots to sit and relax with a picnic.
Here’s everything you need to know about visiting Buckstones Jump and the Rydal Waterfalls.
The walk to Buckstones Jump and the Rydal Waterfalls
The stats
Distance: 3.1 miles (5km) loop
Elevation gain: 240m
Difficulty: Easy - moderate
The walk up to Buckstones Jump does have some elevation gain, but it’s never a steep climb. The trail conditions are good for the most part, but you will encounter some short sections of bog. Even on our visit during a hot dry spell, sections of bog were unavoidable, so wear shoes you don’t mind getting wet.
Accessing the pool at Buckstones Jump is easy, but a couple of the other pools require short scrambles, which we’ll detail below.
There is no signposting for the trail, but we have you covered on directions below.
Starting the trail to Rydal Grot
From the parking area (details below), the walk heads through the black gate, directly opposite the church. You’ll follow the manicured path through part of the garden, past some gorgeous maple trees, before you come to a little gate on the right.
We’d recommend making the two minute detour down to Rydal Grot if you haven’t seen it already. The best way to get there is to walk through the Quiet Garden (you can find it on this map), which is next to the path by the bridge.
Pass through the gate and follow the path - which is lined with gorgeous plants on both sides - as it curves left down to the stream.
You’ll see a small stone hut and once you’re inside, the gorgeous Rydal Falls. It’s a unique way to view the falls and has stood the test of time as it was built way back in 1668!
The small waterfall flows into an emerald pool and you can admire it from the window seat inside the little hut.
It’s a beautiful spot, but no swimming is allowed - although that’s less disappointing when you see all the pools that are to come further along the trail.
Heading through the forest
Once you’ve visited the grot, head back towards the main path and walk over the bridge. You’ll get another good view of the grot from above, just a minute further along the path.
You’ll then pass through a gate and continue left, following the trail up through the campsite (which looks like a great place to stay and even had a couple of yurts!).
Follow the trail through the campsite and it will veer left and you’ll see a wooden bridge over a set of cascades.
Just before the bridge you’ll notice a path on the right that runs parallel to the river. This path runs along the eastern bank of Rydal Beck and is the route you need to take to visit all the waterfalls before you reach Buckstones Jump.
The path starts heading uphill through the woods, but it’s fairly gradual. You’ll quickly see a large emerald pool with some wooden stairs behind it.
This is the first of the swimming holes along the track and it’s very easy to access. However, it’s not as scenic as the ones further along, and not so secluded, so we didn’t venture in for a dip.
The main trail runs to the right of this pool, but it’s just a one minute detour if you do want to check it out.
Once you’re back on the main trail and as it climbs, it becomes a little rocky and there is a fallen tree over the track at one point, but it’s easy enough to climb over.
To the first waterfall - High Falls
Just 200m beyond the first pool (and directly off the main trail), you’ll come to a large waterfall: High Falls.
This is a very pretty waterfall and there’s a large swimming hole at the base.
It’s just a few metres from the trail to the base of the falls, but there’s no set path. You need to carefully make your way down the rocks and dirt track, which can be slippery, so take care.
The pool is great, but it’s better for taking a plunge than an actual swim, despite its size. This is down to the fact that there are a lot of large rocks in the water, which you bump into when swimming.
It’s still a lovely spot, but there are better pools for swimming further along the trail.
From the base it’s easy to get into the pool, but just be wary of the shallow rocks in the water. The water temperature is pretty cold - much colder than many other spots in the Lakes - but it’s refreshing on a hot day, (if you don’t stay in too long as you can’t swim to warm up).
To the chockstone waterfall
A little over 100m beyond High Falls, you’ll come to my favourite waterfall and pool. I don’t even know the name of this one, but I’ve called it Chockstone Falls, after the little rock wedged between the cliffs at the top of the falls.
It’s a dramatic waterfall and feels like it should be much more well known than it is!
How can somewhere that feels this wild and special, not be one of the Lakes must visit spots?! And as with every single pool along this walk, we got it entirely to ourselves.
For context this was in August on a hot day!
To reach the chockstone waterfall, you do need to negotiate one short scramble. It is the hardest of the pools to get into for that reason, but if you go carefully it’s not too bad.
There are plenty of hand and footholds to get down the steep dirt track, as well as tree roots for stability. It takes just a few minutes, but would be slippery after rain, so it does require care.
Once you’re at the bottom, getting into the pool is pretty easy. There are a couple of rocks to walk over, but then the water gets deep quickly. You can have a proper swim and it’s pretty wild as you get closer to the falls.
The tall gorge walls give this spot lots of atmosphere and it’s definitely one of my favourites in all the Lake District.
The water temperature is very cold, but when swimming it’s not too bad, but it’s not one for lazing around in!
It’s worth noting that we were visiting at a time of low flow. If there has been a lot of heavy rain, this pool might have quite a bit of current making it unsuitable for swimming.
Onto Buckstones Jump
From the chockstone waterfall, there are two ways of getting to Buckstones Jump. We did both, forming a partial loop.
From the falls, you’ll continue heading uphill and after 100m, you’ll reach a gravel road and turn left. A further 100m along the road, you’ll see a path on the left that leads down to an old stone bridge.
Cross the bridge and follow the path uphill to a gate. You’ll then head right, past a small hut, and continue climbing up a rocky track.
It’s not smooth underfoot, but it’s not a difficult path. The views along this stretch are lovely - you’re no longer surrounded by trees, so you get some great vistas over the surrounding fells.
Roughly 800m after the gate, you’ll reach a section of track which is quite waterlogged (even during dry spells) and just beyond this is a stile.
Cross the stile and Buckstones Jump is 100m ahead of you. Unfortunately those 100m are very boggy.
Some bits were muddy, but much was just seriously waterlogged, and it was impossible to keep boots dry here. In the end, we just had to embrace it, as with so many other walks in the Lakes!
Swimming at Buckstones Jump
You’ll arrive at a little pebbly ‘beach’ in front of a small, but spectacular waterfall pool. It’s fully exposed to the sun, so on a clear day the water sparkles a beautiful blue and it is crystal clear.
There is plenty of space to set up a picnic, or just relax beside the water.
Getting into the pool is easy; it’s possibly the easiest in the lakes because there are no rocks whatsoever.
Just small pebbles which you need to briefly walk over before the water becomes really deep and you can have a proper swim.
The views are sublime, looking to the fells, down into the valley and even out to a shimmering Lake Windermere in the distance.
The water temperature is surprisingly cold. I assumed as it got a lot of sun it would be warmer, but as with all the pools along this track, it’s definitely on the icier side.
On a hot day it was perfect though, really refreshing, and you can have a proper swim, so it’s easy to keep warm.
Continuing on to waterfall number four - the gorge falls
After visiting Buckstones Jump, you could retrace your steps, but we’d highly recommend taking a slightly different route along the eastern bank of Rydal Beck to make it a partial circuit instead. In fact, the section along the eastern bank between chockstone falls and Buckstones Jump was our favourite, so I wouldn’t skip it.
You need to cross the pool at Buckstones Jump, using the stepping stones, and follow the worn down grassy path on the other side of the water. You’ll almost immediately come to another small emerald pool with a cascade, which was gorgeous, and another tempting place to take a dip.
After this you need to walk down a short rocky slab, which is grippy when dry, and continue over a stile (150m from Buckstones Jump).
Just 50m beyond the stile, you’ll come to the grotto pool. This one is another incredible spot and very easy to access.
You just need to walk down two rocks and over a couple of others in the water, before the pool deepens and you can have a proper swim.
This spot felt like a little fairy grotto, with a pretty waterfall, cliff walls and plenty of surrounding foliage, which give it a very secluded feel. The water is a brilliant emerald and the whole place has a lovely vibe about it.
In terms of temperature, it’s the same as the others, very cold!
Finishing the circuit
After the grotto pool, continue along the obvious track. Some sections have an awful lot of bracken on either side and are very scratchy on bare legs!
After 200m, you’ll come to a boggy stream crossing. For us, in summer, it was easy to cross using the rocks, but it might be harder to avoid the bog in wetter times.
You’ll then head right, along a good trail, but it’s over all too quickly and you soon hit more boggy patches. Mainly they were negotiable using rocks as stepping stones.
Once you reach a dry stone wall you need to look out for the stile that takes you over it. It’s easy to miss so the coordinates are: 54.455194, -2.978053 (What3Words: clip.boardroom.chestnuts).
After the stile, you need to head right, towards the sound of the water. Keep following the beck downhill once you hit the gravel path. You’ll see the right turn towards the chockstone falls 330m after crossing the stile.
From here you retrace your steps back to the parking area again.
Getting to Buckstones Jump and the Rydal Waterfalls
By car and parking
You can park at Rydal Mount (in Rydal) itself but the parking fee is £10 (£5 of which is redeemable in the gift shop). If you are lucky you can snag one of the limited spaces on the opposite side of the road to the mount car park.
These cost £2/£4 (time dependent) which should be placed in the honesty box in the church grounds. There are very few spaces here, so come early or late if visiting during peak periods.
Rydal is located between Ambleside and Grasmere - less than 10 minutes from either and 30 minutes from Keswick.
By public transport
If you’re staying in either Grasmere, Ambleside or Windermere, then the easiest way to visit Buckstones Jump and the Rydal Waterfalls by public transport is by hopping on the 555 bus (which departs every 20 minutes at the time of writing). It stops on the main road in Rydal, and is a 5 minute walk from Rydal Hall.
This bus should take 6 minutes from Ambleside, 10 minutes from Grasmere and 25 minutes from Windermere.
If you’re staying in Keswick, then the only way to get there by public transport is by taking the 555 bus from Booths supermarket. This takes about 45 minutes to get to Rydal.
Keep them wild
Please remember to take all rubbish with you and keep these places wild and pristine - as with anywhere in the outdoors. It’s important to leave them exactly as you found them so they will remain beautiful for generations to come.
Litter tends to breed litter, so if you do spot any and are able to pick it up and dispose of it outside the park, it will go a long way to keeping the area clean.
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