# Watendlath > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Watendlath > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Watendlath.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watendlath > Source revision: 1326955233 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Hamlet in Cumbria, England This article needs more citations. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Watendlath" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (August 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message) Hamlet in England Watendlath Hamlet Packhorse bridge at Watendlath Watendlath Location in the former Allerdale district Show map of the former Allerdale Borough Watendlath Location within Cumbria Show map of Cumbria OS grid reference NY274163 Civil parish Borrowdale Unitary authority Cumberland Ceremonial county Cumbria Region North West Country England Sovereign state United Kingdom Post town KESWICK Postcode district CA12 Dialling code 017687 Police Cumbria Fire Cumbria Ambulance North West UK Parliament Penrith and Solway List of places UK England Cumbria 54°32′14″N 3°07′17″W / 54.537222°N 3.121389°W / 54.537222; -3.121389 **Watendlath** is a [hamlet](/source/Hamlet_(place)) and [tarn](/source/Tarn_(lake)) (a small lake) in the [Lake District](/source/Lake_District) in the English county of [Cumbria](/source/Cumbria), [historically](/source/Historic_counties_of_England) part of [Cumberland](/source/Cumberland), Watendlath is owned by the [National Trust](/source/National_Trust_for_Places_of_Historic_Interest_or_Natural_Beauty) and sits high between the [Borrowdale](/source/Borrowdale) and [Thirlmere](/source/Thirlmere) valleys at 863 feet (263 m) above sea level. ## Watendlath Tarn Watendlath Tarn is fed by Bleatarn Gill from **Blea Tarn**, 700 feet (210 m) above, below [Bell Crags](/source/Bell_Crags). Water from Watendlath Tarn flows into the beck of the same name and eventually feeds [Lodore Falls](/source/Lodore_Falls), and ends up in Derwent Water. The tarn is seven acres (2.8 hectares) in size, with a maximum depth of 56 feet (17 m). It was given to the National Trust by Queen Victoria's daughter, Princess Louise, in memory of her brother, King Edward VII. Watendlath Tarn is stocked with [brown trout](/source/Brown_Trout) and [rainbow trout](/source/Rainbow_Trout) and is a popular [fly fishing](/source/Fly_fishing) water, with wading and boat fishing used. ## Governance Watendlath is within the [Penrith and Solway UK parliamentary constituency](/source/Penrith_and_Solway_(UK_Parliament_constituency)). Watendlath has its own [Parish Council](/source/Parish_councils_in_England); *Borrowdale Parish Council*.[1] ## Farm Herdwick sheep The traditional [Lakeland](/source/Lake_District) [farm](/source/Farm) in Watendlath is rented out by the [National Trust](/source/National_Trust_for_Places_of_Historic_Interest_or_Natural_Beauty) and, as is the case with Lakeland farms owned by the Trust, the herd of [Herdwick sheep](/source/Herdwick_sheep) are owned by the Trust and not the farmer, changing hands with each tenant. This is part of the National Trust's policy aimed at ensuring this rare breed's survival. Fold Head Farm house was used by [Sir Hugh Walpole](/source/Sir_Hugh_Walpole) as the fictional home of Judith Paris in his Herries Saga of four novels published in the early 1930s ## Watendlath in poetry Edmund Casson's poem *The Wise Kings of Borrowdale* mentions: - Watendlath's quiet nook. - A farm is there, and a slated barn, - And a waterfall, and a pebbly tarn; - And all the way to High Lodore - The banks of the beck are painted o'er - With red [herb-willow](/source/Epilobium) and red [loose-strife](/source/Loosestrife). ## Packhorse bridge One of the features of Watendlath is [Ashness Bridge](/source/Ashness_Bridge), a traditional [packhorse bridge](/source/Packhorse_bridge), "perhaps the best-known and most photographed packhorse bridge in the whole of England".[2] In 2015 Watendlath's [packhorse bridge](/source/Packhorse_bridge) was named 4th best bridge in [England](/source/England) on which to play [Poohsticks](/source/Poohsticks).[3] ## Access by road Watendlath is reached by a minor road from the Borrowdale road (B5289). The single track unmarked road winds its way up over [Ashness Bridge](/source/Ashness_Bridge), which is a traditional stone-built bridge and a very famous landmark. Motorists encountering any traffic coming in the opposite direction on the single track road must use the passing places that are provided. Near the bridge is a cairn to the Lakeland fell-runner [Robert Graham](/source/Bob_Graham_Round), who in 1932 set a Lakeland 24-hour record of 42 tops, which was not equalled for 28 years. ## Dora Carrington One famous painting of Watendlath is by [Dora Carrington](/source/Dora_Carrington) and this picture hangs in the Tate Gallery. During the period 1917–1921 Carrington's subjects were mostly intimate portraits and landscapes. The painting depicts Watendlath Farm, where the newly-wed Carrington spent a summer holiday with her husband and their friends in 1921. Among the guests was her husband's friend, [Gerald Brenan](/source/Gerald_Brenan), with whom she developed a mutual attraction. The identity of the two figures in white is not known. ## Toponymy The name came from [Old Norse](/source/Old_Norse) *vatn-endi-hlaða* = "water-end-[barn](/source/Barn)". ## See also - [Listed buildings in Borrowdale](/source/Listed_buildings_in_Borrowdale) ## References 1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["Borrowdale Parish Council"](https://borrowdale.org.uk/). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-hinchliffe_2-0)** Hinchliffe, Ernest (1994). *A Guide to the Packhorse Bridges of England*. [Milnrow](/source/Milnrow), Cumbria: Cicerone Press. p. 53. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [1-85284-143-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/1-85284-143-5). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["VisitEngland's guide to the best Poohsticks bridges"](https://www.visitengland.com/blog/expert-insights/august-2015/pooh-sticks). *VisitEngland*. 17 August 2015. Retrieved 30 August 2021. ## External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to [Watendlath](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Watendlath). - [http://www.visitcumbria.com/kes/watend.htm](http://www.visitcumbria.com/kes/watend.htm) - Dora Carrington, [Farm at Watendlath](https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/carrington-farm-at-watendlath-t04945), Tate Gallery [Portal](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Contents/Portals): - [Cumbria](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Cumbria) --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Watendlath](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watendlath) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watendlath?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.