Brougham and Eamont Bridge

A walk with two rivers, a Roman fort, a castle, a fortified manor house, and two ancient henges.
3.75 miles
Easy
50m
3hrs

Walk Information

This is a 3¾-mile (6 km) circular walk starting near the Countess’s Pillar, passing through Brougham Hall, Eamont Bridge, and Brougham Castle. ​ The route is easy, with half on minor roads. If you like history, this is the walk for you!

From ancient henges to Roman remains and castles, step through Eden's history whilst enjoying two of Eden's rivers, making sure you take time out to spot oystercatchers, ringed plovers, and other birds along the riverbanks.

Accessibility

Please be aware of livestock whilst walking in the countryside, most cows and sheep on public right of ways are safe but stay alert to the potential risk to you and your walking party, especially with cows and calves (see the link for more info. to stay safe).

Keep your dog on a lead around all livestock, even if your dog is especially well-behaved, the poor sheep don’t know this! Especially in lambing time, try to leave the field as calm as you found it.

Plan Your Visit

Parking: Cars can be parked in the lay-by, just inside the junction where a path along a redundant segment of the old A66, made available by kind permission of local landowner, John Slack, provides safe pedestrian access to the Countess’s Pillar.

Directions

1
A tall, decorated pillar made of brick.
Cars can be parked in the lay-by, just inside the junction where a path along a redundant segment of the old A66, made available by kind permission of local landowner, John Slack, provides safe pedestrian access to the Countess’s Pillar.
2
Once you have visited Lady Anne’s pillar, return along the permissive path to the lay-by and follow the road away from the A66. Keep straight on when you get to the crossroads, following signs for Brougham Hall.
3
Continue along the road which bends right and then left between the remnants of an avenue of oak trees, with some houses on the left, and you arrive at Brougham Hall.
4
From Brougham Hall, carry on along the main road past the Hall, around the bend to the left.
5
Go under the bridge which crosses to the Cromwellian Chapel on the right and continue along the road until you reach the A6, where you turn right onto the pavement, and cross the bridge over the river Lowther.
6
When you arrive at the southern end of Eamont Bridge village, cross the road (keeping a careful eye on the busy traffic) to the corner of the junction with the road to Yanwath.
7
Walk up some steps and through a metal gate by the war memorial, into King Arthur’s Round Table. Leave the site through a kissing-gate near the information board and cross the road to he opposite pavement. Continue along the road until you arrive at a huge block of stone, which is the Eden Millennium Monument, where you turn right.
8
Carry on down this road to Mayburgh Henge which is in a field on the right. Go through a kissing-gate and bear right, round the perimeter of the field until you reach the entrance to the henge, on your left.
9
Leave Mayburgh Henge by the same way you came in and turn right with the noisy motorway on your left. Turn right over a wall-stile opposite the 'Southwaite Greenmill’ millstone onto a footpath sign-posted to Eamont Bridge. Go through a kissing-gate and follow left hand boundary of field until you get to a second kissing-gate, bringing you out onto a tarmac drive. Keep straight on to Eamont Bridge.
10
Cross the road by the traffic lights at Eamont Bridge to the path opposite, which turns left across the metal footbridge over the river.
11
Turn right on the other side of the bridge and follow the tarmac drive, with the river on your right. At the end of the drive, where it enters Low Mill, turn left, go over the step-stile, through the corner of a field and over another step-stile, where you bear right along a wooded track. Cross a third step-stile into a large field and follow the river-side path.
12
At the bend of the river by the weir, go over the footbridge. The noise of traffic intrudes once again as the path curves close to the A66 and then away again, with Brougham Castle coming into view as you cross another step-stile and continue along by the river.
13
The path leaves the riverbank and veers left, along the line of a fence around a property where the swimming club building was situated. Cross a metal ladder-stile out of the field and turn right. If you are walking back to Penrith, the underpass is on the left. For Brougham Castle turn right at the road junction, away from the A66, and go over the bridge.
14
From the castle gate, continue along the road to the junction and turn left, back to the lay- by where you started.