Ennerdale Water

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Ennerdale Water
Ennerdale Water.jpg
Lake District National Park UK relief location map.png
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Ennerdale Water
Location in the Lake District
Location relief map Borough of Copeland.svg
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Ennerdale Water
Location in Copeland Borough
Location Lake District, Cumbria
Coordinates 54°31′12″N3°22′34″W / 54.52000°N 3.37611°W / 54.52000; -3.37611
Type natural lake, reservoir
Primary inflows River Liza
Primary outflows River Ehen
Basin  countriesEngland
Max. length4.17 km (2.59 mi)
Max. width1.28 km (0.80 mi)
Surface area3 km2 (1.2 sq mi)
Max. depth45 m (148 ft)
Shore length110 km (6.2 mi)
Surface elevation113 m (371 ft)
Islands 4
1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure.
A map of Ennerdale Water from 1948 Ennerdalewatermap 1948.png
A map of Ennerdale Water from 1948

Ennerdale Water is the most westerly lake in the Lake District National Park in Cumbria, England. It is a glacial lake, with a maximum depth of 150 feet (46 metres), and is 1⁄2 to 1 mile (800 to 1,600 m) wide and 2+1⁄2 miles (4.0 kilometres) long.

Contents

The lake lies in the eponymous valley of Ennerdale, surrounded by some of the highest and best-known fells in Cumbria including: Great Gable (899 m), Green Gable, Brandreth, High Crag, Steeple and Pillar. To the west of the lake lies the hamlet of Ennerdale Bridge, consisting of two pubs and a few houses. It is close to the port of Whitehaven.

Etymology

" 'Anund's valley'. The name Ennerdale seems originally to have derived from 'Anundar', genitive sing.[ular] of the ON personal name 'Anundr'/'Ǫnundr', and ON 'dalr' 'valley', but there has been cross-influence between this p.n. and 'Ehen', the name of the river which flows through the valley." [1] (ON is Old Norse.)

The lake has been referred to in guidebooks and maps variously as "Brodewater" (1576), "Brodwater" (1695), "Broad Water" (1760), "Ennerdale Water" (1784) and "Ennerdale Lake" in Otley's Guide (1823). It is now the Ordnance Survey convention to name it "Ennerdale Water".

Geography

Ennerdale Water is fed by the River Liza and other streams, and in turn feeds the River Ehen, which runs to the Irish Sea.

Water abstraction

Although the lake is natural, in 1902 a shallow weir was added to what is probably a glacial moraine to maintain the level. [2] The lake is owned by United Utilities, which abstracts water to serve customers in the Whitehaven area. [3]

In 2013, United Utilities was informed by the Environment Agency that the abstraction licence was being revoked to protect the environment of Ennerdale and the River Ehen. This meant that United Utilities had to find an alternative water source for customers in West Cumbria. After public consultation, a preferred option to provide water to West Cumbria via a new pipeline from Thirlmere was selected. After a public inquiry in 2014, the independent Planning Inspectors report ruled that the Thirlmere transfer was the right solution and that abstraction from Ennerdale Water would cease by 2022. The construction of the pipeline commenced in 2017. At the same time, United Utilities started to blend water from Ennerdale Water with groundwater from boreholes near Egremont.

Environmental protection measures

Ennerdale has been designated a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). Species of interest include the Arctic char. The site contains a variety of habitats apart from the open water of the lake itself. [4]

Tourism

Despite being sited on Wainwright's coast-to-coast walk, the valley is not much visited by tourists.

Due to the remote location, the lack of a public road up the valley, and its management by the Forestry Commission, the National Trust and United Utilities, Ennerdale Water has not been as spoiled as other lakes in the National Park by construction, activity on the lake or the effects of tourism.

Notable facts

Though the Lake District is a popular UK location for film shoots, Ennerdale has been left relatively in the shadow, with only a few brief exceptions. The closing sequences of the film 28 Days Later (2002), directed by Danny Boyle, were filmed around the Ennerdale area, and include a sweeping, panoramic view of the lake.

In 1810 a large carnivore killed hundreds of sheep in and around Ennerdale before it was hunted down and killed. The locals dubbed it the Girt (dialect: "great") Dog of Ennerdale, though it was said to have had the traits of both a dog and a large cat.

Once a year, during the last week in August, the Ennerdale Show brings local people together with agricultural displays, competitions, arts and crafts.

Former US President Bill Clinton first proposed to his wife Hillary on the banks of Ennerdale Water in 1973. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake District</span> Mountainous region and national park in North West England

The Lake District, also known as the Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region and national park in Cumbria, North West England. It is famous for its landscape, including its lakes, coast, and the Cumbrian mountains, and for its literary associations with Beatrix Potter, John Ruskin, and the Lake Poets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wast Water</span> Body of water in Cumbria, England

Wast Water or Wastwater is a lake located in Wasdale, a valley in the western part of the Lake District National Park, England. The lake is almost three miles long and more than one-third mile (500 m) wide. It is a glacial lake, formed in a glacially 'over-deepened' valley. It is the deepest lake in England at 258 feet (79 m). The surface of the lake is about 200 feet (60 m) above sea level, while its bottom is over 50 feet (15 m) below sea level. It is owned by the National Trust.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thirlmere</span> An upland lake in Cumbria, England

Thirlmere is a reservoir in the Borough of Allerdale in Cumbria and the English Lake District. The Helvellyn ridge lies to the east of Thirlmere. To the west of Thirlmere are a number of fells; for instance, Armboth Fell and Raven Crag both of which give views of the lake and of Helvellyn beyond.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bassenthwaite Lake</span> Large lake in the United Kingdom

Bassenthwaite Lake is a body of water in the Lake District in North West England, near the town of Keswick. It has an area of 5.3 km2 (2.0 sq mi), making the fourth largest of the lakes in the region. The lake has a length of approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) long and maximum width of 0.75 miles (1 km), a maximum depth of 19 m (62 ft), and a surface elevation of 68 m (223 ft) above sea level. Its primary inflow and outflow is the River Derwent, which drains into the Irish Sea at Workington. The lake is in the unitary authority of Cumberland, and the ceremonial county of Cumbria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pillar (Lake District)</span> Mountain in the English Lake District, Cumbria, England

Pillar is a mountain in the western part of the English Lake District. Situated between the valleys of Ennerdale to the north and Wasdale to the south, it is the highest point of the Pillar group. At 892 metres (2,927 ft) it is the eighth-highest mountain in the Lake District. The fell takes its name from Pillar Rock, a prominent feature on the Ennerdale side, regarded as the birthplace of rock climbing in the district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Gable</span> Mountain in the United Kingdom

Great Gable is a mountain in the Lake District, United Kingdom. It is named after its appearance as a pyramid from Wasdale, though it is dome-shaped from most other directions. It is one of the most popular of the Lakeland fells, and there are many different routes to the summit. Great Gable is linked by the high pass of Windy Gap to its smaller sister hill, Green Gable, and by the lower pass of Beck Head to its western neighbour, Kirk Fell.

Ennerdale may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crummock Water</span> Lake in Cumbria, England

Crummock Water is a lake in the Lake District in North West England. It is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long, 0.6 miles (0.97 km) wide, 140 feet (43 m) deep, and has an area of 2.5 square kilometres (0.97 sq mi). The lake's primary inflow is Buttermere Dubs, itself the outflow of Buttermere, and its outflow is the River Cocker, which meets the River Derwent at Cockermouth before entering the Irish Sea at Workington. It is in the unitary authority of Cumberland and the ceremonial county of Cumbria. It is in the parish of Buttermere, and its western shore forms part of the western boundary of the parish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cumbrian toponymy</span> Study of place names in Cumbria, England

Cumbrian toponymy refers to the study of place names in Cumbria, a county in North West England, and as a result of the spread of the ancient Cumbric language, further parts of northern England and the Southern Uplands of Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Ehen</span> River in Cumbria, England

The River Ehen is a river in Cumbria, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Liza</span> River in Cumbria, England

The River Liza flows through Ennerdale, a glacial valley in Cumbria, England. The river is allowed to flow freely as part of a rewilding project.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Borne</span> Fell in the Lake District, Cumbria, England

Great Borne is a fell in the English Lake District with a height of 616 m (2,021 ft). It is a rather secluded hill situated at the western end of the long ridge which divides the Ennerdale and Buttermere valleys.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ennerdale, Cumbria</span> Valley in Cumbria, England

Ennerdale is a valley in Cumbria, England. Ennerdale Water, fed by the River Liza, is the most westerly lake in the Lake District National Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grike (Lake District)</span> Fell in the Lake District, England

Grike is a hill in the west of the English Lake District, near Ennerdale Water. It is part of the Lank Rigg group, the most westerly Wainwright as the fells diminish toward the coastal plain. It can be climbed from Kinniside or Ennerdale Bridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western Fells</span>

The Western Fells are a part of the Cumbrian Mountains in the Lake District of England. Centred on Great Gable they occupy a triangular area between Buttermere and Wasdale. The Western Fells are characterised by high ridges and an abundance of naked rock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ennerdale Bridge</span> Human settlement in England

Ennerdale Bridge is a hamlet in the county of Cumbria, England. It is in the civil parish of Ennerdale and Kinniside. It had a total population taken at the 2011 census of 220.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chapelhouse Reservoir</span> A reservoir in Cumbria, England

Chapelhouse Reservoir is a water reservoir near Uldale in Cumbria, England.

The Ennerdale black pearl is a rare black pearl formed in freshwater pearl mussels found on stretches of the Ehen and Irt rivers in the English county of Cumbria.

References

  1. ↑ Whaley, Diana (2006). A dictionary of Lake District place-names. Nottingham: English Place-Name Society. pp. lx, 423 p.109. ISBN   0904889726.
  2. ↑ "Ennerdale part of Lakestay.co.uk about the English Lake District". Lakestay.co.uk. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
  3. ↑ Robinson, Sarah (May 2013). "Plans made to stop using Ennerdale as water source". The Whitehaven News . Retrieved 12 October 2016.
  4. ↑ "Ennerdale" (PDF). Natural England. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 October 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2013.
  5. ↑ Bernstein, Carl (27 May 2007). "The pain of being Hillary". The Times . London. Retrieved 9 August 2010.
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