Grasmere, Lake District: Wordsworth, History & Things to Do

Grasmere lies in a green bowl of the central Lake District, beside a small lake of the same name and ringed by fells. It is a village of grey Lakeland stone, slate roofs and old inns, gathered round a medieval church on the banks of the River Rothay.

Why Grasmere Is Special

Grasmere is the village of William Wordsworth. He called the vale "the loveliest spot that man hath ever found", lived in three houses here, and lies buried in the churchyard, so a visit is a walk through English poetry as much as through the hills.

It is also beautifully placed for walkers. Paths lead straight from the village up onto the fells and round the lake to Rydal Water, and you can come back to tea rooms, galleries and the famous gingerbread shop.

The History of Grasmere

Wordsworth first saw Dove Cottage in 1799, on a walking tour of the Lakes with Samuel Taylor Coleridge. He moved in with his sister Dorothy in December 1799 and they lived there until May 1808, years of "plain living, but high thinking" in which he wrote much of his greatest poetry and Dorothy kept her Grasmere journals.

As the family grew, with three children born in four years, they moved to Allan Bank in Grasmere in 1808, and the writer Thomas De Quincey took over Dove Cottage. The Wordsworth Trust bought the cottage in 1890 and opened it to the public in 1891, one of the first writers' houses in the world to be preserved in this way.

St Oswald's church, named after the 7th-century Christian king of Northumbria, stands at the heart of the village. Wordsworth was buried in its churchyard in 1850, and the graves of his wife Mary, his sister Dorothy and several of his children lie close by, under yew trees the poet is said to have planted.

Two old customs keep the village calendar. The rushbearing ceremony, centred on St Oswald's, has ancient origins from the days when rushes were spread on the earth floor of the church; today children carry rush crosses and garlands through the village in summer. The Grasmere Sports, with fell running, hound trailing and Cumberland and Westmorland wrestling, were first held in 1852.

Beside the lychgate, the little Grasmere Gingerbread shop sells the spiced, chewy gingerbread first made here by Sarah Nelson in the 1850s, to a recipe still kept secret.

Things to Do in Grasmere

Begin at Dove Cottage and the Wordsworth Museum at Town End (check opening times), then walk into the village to St Oswald's and the Wordsworth graves, and buy gingerbread at the lychgate.

Walk the shore of Grasmere lake to Loughrigg Terrace for one of the best low-level views in the Lakes, and continue round Rydal Water if you have time. Stronger walkers can climb Helm Crag, the "Lion and the Lamb", straight from the village.

Gardens, Countryside & Antiques near Grasmere

The whole of the Lake District National Park surrounds you; our guide to the Lake District has its great lakes and fells. Ambleside and Windermere are a few miles south, with Antiques on High Bowness for browsing.

For gardens, the topiary of Levens Hall and the gardens of Holker Hall & Gardens are within an hour's drive, and families enjoy the Lake District Wildlife Park near Bassenthwaite.

Grasmere Through the Seasons

Spring brings daffodils, the flower of Wordsworth's most famous poem, to the lake shore and the Wordsworth Daffodil Garden by the church. Summer is the season of the rushbearing and the Grasmere Sports. Autumn turns the bracken on the fells to copper, and in winter, with snow on the tops, the village is at its quietest and most beautiful.

Getting to Grasmere

The nearest railway station is Windermere, about eight miles away, with buses north through Ambleside to Grasmere. In summer the village car parks fill early.

Grasmere: Questions & Answers

Where is Wordsworth buried?

In the churchyard of St Oswald's in Grasmere. He died in 1850, and his wife Mary, his sister Dorothy and several of his children lie nearby.

Can you visit Dove Cottage?

Yes. Dove Cottage, Wordsworth's home from 1799 to 1808, is run by the Wordsworth Trust with a museum beside it; check opening times before you go.

Our Advice

Our advice: Come early or late in the day, see Dove Cottage first, then walk the lake to Loughrigg Terrace and come back for gingerbread and tea in the village.