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Seven Walks,
Seven Pints

A Jennings guide to some of the Lake District's finest walks, each ending at a pub with a beer you've earned.

Epic views meet epic brews

Our favourites

There is a particular quality to a pint earned after a proper walk. Jennings understood this long before it became a marketing idea. These routes are ones we know best, and each one ends at a pub that serves the real thing: a draught Jennings.

Jennings favourites

Miles of Lakeland paths

Wainwrights bagged

A Jennings at the finish

Seven routes

The walks

From a stroll above Cockermouth to the full summit of Skiddaw. All seven end where they should.

Easy 3.7 miles

Watch Hill

Watch Hill rises gently to the north east of Cockermouth, close enough to reach on foot from the brewery yard. The paths run across open fields and alongside dry stone walls, climbing steadily onto Setmurthy Common. The reward is a wide view back over the town, the Derwent valley, and the northern fells stacked along the horizon. It is an easy couple of hours, the kind of walk you take before lunch and still get back for the afternoon. Of all the routes here, this is the one that starts closest to the well.

The Taproom at Castle Brewery, Cockermouth

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Illustrated route map of the Watch Hill walk near Cockermouth, walkable from the brewery, 3.7 miles, Easy.

Moderate 3.1 miles

Sale Fell

Sale Fell sits above the western shore of Bassenthwaite Lake, one of the smallest of Wainwright's fells and one of the kindest. From the layby at St Margaret's Church in Wythop, a clear grassy path climbs through bracken to a bench that looks the length of the water. At 359 metres the summit asks little of the legs and gives a great deal back: the northern fells on one side, Skiddaw filling the sky, the lake laid out below. It makes a first fell for some and an easy afternoon for everyone else. Bassenthwaite is a shorter drive from Cockermouth than most people expect.

The Pheasant Inn, Bassenthwaite Lake

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Illustrated route map of the Sale Fell walk near Bassenthwaite, 3.1 miles, Moderate.

Moderate 3 miles

Barrow Fell

Barrow is a clean ridge of grass above Braithwaite, rising to 455 metres in one steady pull from the village. There is nothing technical about it. The path is wide, the gradient fair, and the summit opens a full circle of view: Bassenthwaite and Derwentwater to either side, Skiddaw to the north, the Coledale horseshoe curving west. It sits between Bassenthwaite and Keswick, near enough to pair with either. For the effort it asks, few fells in the north west give back more.

The Coledale Inn, Braithwaite

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Illustrated route map of the Barrow Fell walk near Braithwaite, between Bassenthwaite and Keswick, 3 miles, Moderate.

Moderate 4.2 miles

Catbells via Derwentwater

Catbells is the most approachable of the Derwentwater fells, which explains why it is also one of the most loved. The ridge path from Hawse End climbs steadily through heather and bracken, with the lake opening below you on the left and Derwentwater's wooded islands growing smaller as you ascend. At the summit, 451 metres, the panorama takes in Skiddaw to the north, Blencathra's distinctive outline to the north east, and on a clear day the whole Borrowdale valley curving south towards Scafell. The descent via Hause Gate is loose in places but straightforward, and brings you back down to the lakeshore path with the Derwentwater ferry terminal in sight. The walk requires good boots but is a lovely elevated climb that is relatively easy for any skill level, making it a real potted favourite.

The Wainwright, Keswick

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Illustrated route map of the Catbells via Derwentwater walk near Derwentwater, near Keswick, 4.2 miles, Moderate.

Challenging 8 miles

Skiddaw

Skiddaw is one of only four Lake District fells above 3,000 feet, and the most accessible of them. The standard route from Keswick via Latrigg gains 800 metres in four miles of steady, never-technical ascent on good paths. The summit plateau is vast and exposed, and the views on a clear day encompass the Solway Firth, the Scottish hills, and the full northern fells. This is a mountain that rewards preparation: proper kit, food and water, and an early start before the cloud builds. The descent via the same route takes approximately two hours at a steady pace. By the time you reach the Keswick streets, a proper pint will have become a necessity. There is no better beer for a post-Skiddaw pub stop than one brewed in the shadow of the same massif.

The George, Keswick

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Illustrated route map of the Skiddaw walk near Keswick, 8 miles, Challenging.

Coming soon

The Cockermouth Circuit

The Taproom at Castle Brewery, Cockermouth

Full route coming soon

Easy 10 miles

The Derwentwater Walk

The Derwentwater shore path makes a full circuit of the lake, ten miles of almost level walking through ancient woodland and along the water's edge. There are no summits to chase. The pleasure is in the slow turning of the view: Catbells across the water, Borrowdale opening to the south, the jaws of the valley closing behind you as you round the far end. It is National Trust ground for much of the way, with launches and benches if the legs tire. Start and finish in Keswick. People travel for this one, and they are right to.

The Wainwright, Keswick

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