Paddle boarding at Fell Foot, Windermere is amazing!  It was the first place we ever paddle boarded in the Lake District and we have been back many times since.

Fell Foot Park is a National Trust site just outside of Newby Bridge at the south end of Windermere.  If you are travelling from the south of the lakes its probably the closes SUP spot you can get to in the Lakes District.  Facilities wise it’s amazing!  You do have to pay to park but it’s really worth it!  On site there are toilets, cafes, a play area and large open grassy areas perfect for a picnic. There is even SUP hire here!  It’s a perfect place to go on a sunny day and make a day of it.

For more information check out the National Trust website by clicking here.

From the car park it’s not far to the lake edge but it is a little downhill (and we mean a little!).  

Access to the lake is really simple and often in the summer it’s a case of walking out into Windermere until you are ready to hop on.  The bottom drops away really gradually so it’s great for kids (just make sure you are deep enough so if you fall in you are safe).  This part of Windermere is also where the water flows out and becomes the River Leven so you have the benefit of a lake and a river paddle option.  One word of warning, on the odd occasion the lake level can rise.  The higher the lake level the fast the River Leven runs.  We have been there when the bottom path of the park was underwater and the kayakers were having difficulty paddling upstream, never mind paddle boarders.  The lake was still fine though, we just kept a safe distance from the mouth of the river.

Just north of Fell Foot and on the other side is Lakeside where the Windermere Cruises go from.  This means you often get to see the famous steamers like the MV Swan and MW Teal.  As long as you don’t paddle north of Lakeside you will never be in their way!  If you do just keep an eye out, they are hard to miss!