Taylor Gill Force is one of the tallest and most impressive waterfalls in the Lake District. It tumbles down the cliffside, surrounded by beautiful larch trees and backed by the rugged Seathwaite Fell.
There are a couple of ways to reach the falls and we chose the quickest route, which takes you through some spectacular scenery. You’ll be walking along the picturesque Grains Gill with dramatic fells on either side of you. We first saw the waterfall across the valley when walking to Stockley Bridge for a dip and knew we had to get a closer look. It didn’t disappoint.
Here’s how to reach Taylor Gill Force via the shortest route.
The walk to Taylor Gill Force
The stats
Distance: 1 mile (1.6km) each way
Elevation gain: 125m
Difficulty: Moderate due to terrain
Summary: Although the walk to Taylor Gill Force is short and almost entirely flat, not much of it is on a well formed path. The track is quite rocky and boggy, even in summer.
There is one very brief scramble to reach the main lookout over the falls.
Starting the trail
From Seathwaite Farm (parking details below) the walk crosses to the far end of the car park, heading west towards Styhead Gill. If you’ve parked close to the farm buildings, it is roughly a 200m walk.
You’ll head through the large gate and then over the small wooden bridge to the right, with views of Sour Milk Ghyll Waterfall (not to be confused with the one in Grasmere).
Take the trail immediately on the left after the bridge. At times it feels like there is a proper path, but more often that not, it’s just picking your way along, taking the route that looks easiest to you.
Along the rocky track
The grassy track is dotted with stones and these provide a way to avoid some of the boggy ground. We were visiting after a heavy night of rain, but it felt like the type of ground that is somewhat boggy year round.
It’s not like this the whole way to the falls, but it is for a significant amount of the time. Our boots were flooded early on and sometimes it was less hassle to simply succumb to the bog rather than try and rock hop all the time.
Roughly 550m after the small wooden bridge you’ll pass through a short patch of tall bracken and then quickly come to a high stile. You’re now just over halfway to the viewpoint.
Arriving at Taylor Gill Force
Although the terrain is not the most comfortable to walk on, the scenery is stunning. You’re walking in-between high fells the entire way and it’s generally a very quiet track.
The walk continues in much the same vein (albeit a bit boggier) for the next 500m or so, when you’ll then see a narrow gravel path leading uphill (1.5km into the walk).
After 100m along the good gravel track you’ll come to the scramble. It’s only 60m long and there are plenty of easy foot placements.
It’s grippy when dry, but could be very slippery when wet. There isn’t really any exposure because you can opt to hug the route closest to the rock wall.
Halfway up this scramble you can see the top of Taylor Gill Force.
You’ll then pass through a small gate and find yourself at the main viewpoint. There are some large rocks, which make for a lovely spot to sit and take in the view.
Taylor Gill Force
Although the viewpoint is a little distant from the falls, it still offers a fabulous view. It’s an impressive waterfall, especially after rain, although even when we saw it the first time during a dry spell the flow was still good.
The surrounding larch trees would no doubt look spectacular in the autumn when the leaves turn yellow.
We had seen some photos where people had scrambled down to the bottom of the falls, but the hillside is steep and there’s now a fence there. We were happy simply to enjoy the view from our rock perch.
If you were feeling a bit more adventurous you could also scramble up the next set of rocks and cross over to the top of the falls, following the route that would eventually lead you to Scafell Pike (along Wainwright’s favourite route).
There were a few people there along with a tent (!) so we decided to leave them to it and enjoy our own private spot.
The view from the top would no doubt be good, but I think the best vista is definitely from across the gully, so you can see the falls almost in their entirety.
When you’re ready to leave the falls, you can either retrace your steps like we did, or take the longer route over the top of the falls and then down the hill and back along the opposite side of the river (via Stockley Bridge).
Parking for Taylor Gill Force
The shortest route to Taylor Gill Force begins in Seathwaite, postcode CA12 5XJ. There is some free off road parking available and if that fills up you can park at Seathwaite Farm for £5 for the day. You can also camp here for a very reasonable fee and the setting under the fells and beside the river is sublime.
Seathwaite is only 2 miles (6 mins) from Borrowdale, 9 miles (25 minutes) from Keswick and 25 miles (1 hour) from Ambleside.
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