Aira Force Waterfall
Aira Force near Ullswater in the Lake District National Park is one of the finest waterfalls in the Lake District, a powerful cascade falling approximately 20 metres through a narrow gorge of considerable drama beneath a stone arch bridge that frames the fall from above in a composition of great visual sophistication. The National Trust manages the surrounding woodland and the well-maintained paths through the gorge provide excellent access to the falls and to the further reaches of the Aira Beck above.
The fall is set in a wooded ravine of considerable beauty, the mixed deciduous woodland of oak, ash and birch creating a sheltered, moisture-retaining environment in which ferns, mosses and lichens flourish on every available surface. The contrast between the enclosed woodland gorge and the open Ullswater lakeside visible from the path above creates a landscape of considerable variety in a short walk. The falls are most impressive in winter and spring when the rainfall is highest and the surrounding deciduous trees allow light into the gorge.
The story of the Knight and the Maiden, from which Wordsworth derived his poem The Somnambulist, is associated with Aira Force, giving the waterfall a Romantic literary dimension that appealed greatly to the Victorian visitors who came in large numbers to the Lake District in the railway age. The Martindale deer forest above the falls provides excellent red deer watching in the autumn rut, and the path to the high country above provides access to one of the finest unspoiled upland landscapes in the national park.