Moss Force

Moss Force is a waterfall in the Lake District National Park in Cumbria, standing above Derwent. It lies 10 kilometres south-west of Keswick at Newlands Hause, the pass between the Newlands Valley and Buttermere Valley. The falls form where Moss Beck leaves Robinson fell and drops 100 metres in three cascades. The top cascade splits around a rock outcrop and falls into a small pool with rowan trees. Below, the middle cascade drops into a larger pool edged with juniper, and the lowest cascade leads into a wooded gorge. The beauty of Moss Force was praised by Samuel Taylor Coleridge in 1802 after heavy rain. Coleridge described the upper cascade as fearfully savage, with water torn apart by jagged rock and endless motion of pearls and glass bulbs. Alfred Wainwright included the falls in his 102-kilometre Wainwright Memorial Walk across the Lakeland fells. Tour buses stop at Newlands Hause, and walkers follow two paths down to the foot of the upper and middle cascades. The force also serves as a grade III winter ice climb with four sections totalling 110 metres. Visitors find the upper cascade the longest and most difficult to reach, requiring some scrambling over rock. The middle cascade offers easier access and a wider view of the plunge pool. Beyond the falls, Moss Beck flows across Buttermere Moss before joining other streams to become Keskadale Beck. The surrounding fells and valleys provide quiet walking routes for those who follow Wainwright’s memorial route.