Location : Coniston
Map - Ordnance Survey - SD 330000

Altitude 618 ft, depth 29 ft.

Tarn Hows, or The Tarns, is one of the most visited spots in Lakeland, and in high season can be literally packed with people. It is a beauty spot that must not be missed, yet is not entirely typical of the local landscape, for the tarn is partly artificial, being three tarns joined together in the 19th Century, and most of the trees surrounding it are conifers.

The attraction is its sheer beauty, surrounded by thick woodland, and views towards Wetherlam, the Helvellyn range and the Langdale Pikes.

There is a 1.5 mile path round the tarn that is level and well maintained and thus suitable for wheelchairs.

When the Tarns and its setting came up for sale in 1929, they were bought by Beatrix Potter who sold the half containing Tarn Hows to the National Trust, and bequeathed the rest of the estate to the Trust in her will.

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