A Windermere shuttle service has launched while its ferry is out of action.
Windermere Lake Cruises has worked with Mountain Goat and The National Trust to create the Cross Lakes Experience to carry passengers from Bowness Pier 3 to a new landing point at Ash Landing, on the western shore of Windermere.
From there it will connect with the newly reinstated Mountain Goat 525 bus service, which will take passengers onwards to Beatrix Potter’s former home Hill Top and the village of Hawkshead, with onward connections to Coniston.
It is the first time that the Cross Lakes Experience service has operated since 2019 – before the pandemic.
Nigel Wilkinson, managing director of Windemere Lake Cruises, said: “We are delighted to be adding this new service to help ease transport issues while the MV Mallard, which operates the Windermere Ferry, is out of operation.
“Our aim is to support nearby communities, keep people moving and ensure we do our bit to guide both residents and visitors through our iconic Lakeland landscape with minimum disruption.
“The boat service is entirely privately funded and we hope that both visitors and residents will support this initiative in sufficient volumes to make the service economically sustainable. As well as Mountain Goat and The National Trust, we would like to acknowledge the support that we have received to establish this service from Bowness Bay Marina Limited, Westmorland and Furness Council, Claife Parish Council and our contractors Jetties and Moorings Limited and Thomas Bland Blacksmiths.”
The new landing location for the Cross Lakes Experience, Ash Landing, is about half a mile south of the previous cross lakes shuttle landing point at Ferry House.
There will be ten return services every day of the week, with the first sailing leaving Bowness Pier 3 at 9.55am. The last return from Ash Landing will be at 5.05pm.
Due to the nature of the jetty at Ash Landing, sailings will be subject to weather conditions and lake height being suitable for operation, and the new “Cross Lakes Experience” will only carry foot passengers and not bicycles.
