Cathedral Cave
1 NY327047 Start at the bridge below Elterwater village. The first half of the route has Cumbria Way markers. Follow a wide path downstream to left of Great Langdale Beck, then in woods below the Langdale valley road. It passes the foot of Elter Water (the lake), and continues beside the outflow (River Brathay) to a handsome footbridge. Just downstream is a rocky viewpoint below Skelwith Force.
2 NY340034 Cross the handsome footbridge and follow the path up left, through woods. Near A593 turn right, to leave the woods and join the driveway of Park House. At the house, bear left on a wide path. This runs gently downhill then up again to a track near Park Farm (unhelpfully, all the houses along this part of the route are called Park!).
3 NY335032 Turn up left between the buildings, then keep right onto an enclosed path. It runs south-west then west for 200m to cross the driveway of another house. The path slants down a field, south-west, and down steps to River Brathay. Follow it upstream to a minor road. Turn right for 100m, then take the lower path, running to left of the river, upstream to a viewpoint above Colwith Force.
4 NY327030 The path slants up through the woods to a wider one. Follow this to the right, to a tarmac lane near High Park. Turn up left for nearly 1km, to a junction 50m short of the main A593. Here turn back sharp right. The lane bends right, then curves around the edge of a wood to pass Low Oxen Fell house. Keep ahead as another lane joins from the left, to pass through High Oxen Fell farm. In another 800m you reach the foot of Hodge Close Quarry.
5 NY318019 A side track on the left gives views of the northern quarry hole; but then continue on the main one ahead to the edge of Hodge Close settlement. Turn left, between the buildings, to a stony track on the right (before taking it, follow the road ahead to look into the southern quarry hollow, linked to the other by an underground cavern hole). The stony track runs west, below quarry spoil heaps. At a track junction bear down right, on a wide path of loose slates which looks like a stream. It runs down north-west to join a stony track.
6 NY313020 Turn right for 800m. After a house, look out for a stone-step stile on the left. If you don’t have a torch, just head on down the track to River Brathay and turn left. Follow the path up to a tunnel entrance, about 1.5m high but getting higher inside. A side passage left is blocked by a fixed gate at the entrance to a vast dark cavern; but the main passage to right emerges into a quarry hole. Up to right, you can look down through a big window into the Cathedral Cave below. Scramble down to the bottom of the quarry hole, where a short tunnel leads into the Cathedral Cave. Pass between the slanting pillar and the pool, to a tunnel leading out to open air.
7 NY313028 The path ahead leads down to a stony track above River Brathay. Turn left, then right on the path across the fine footbridge, Slater Bridge. Head over glacier-smoothed rocks to the corner of a driveway, and follow it out to the Little Langdale road. Cross to a tarmac lane uphill. It becomes a rough byway track across moorland and down into Sawrey’s Wood, to reach road just south of Elterwater
village.