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Semerwater is the second largest natural lake in 
"Semer Water, N Yorks, UK – All Creatures Great & Small, The Female Of The Species (1988)"
- Waymarking.com Semerwater is referenced in Sarah Moss's 2020 novel "Summerwater," the title of which stems from a character misremembering the name of the lake and the poem associated with it.
Lake Semerwater website
{{authority control Lakes of North Yorkshire Sites of Special Scientific Interest in North Yorkshire RSemerwater
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by national parks, including most of the Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors. It is one of four cou ...
, England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
, after Malham Tarn
Malham Tarn is a glacial lake near the village of Malham in the Yorkshire Dales, England. The lake is one of only eight upland alkaline lakes in Europe. At an altitude of above sea level it is the highest marl lake in the United Kingdom. Its ...
. It is half a mile (800 m) long, covers and lies in Raydale, opposite the River Bain
The River Bain is a river in Lincolnshire, England, and a tributary of the River Witham.
The Bain rises in the Lincolnshire Wolds at Ludford,J. N. Clarke, (1990), ''The Horncastle and Tattershall Canal'', Oakwood Press, a village on The Vi ...
. A private pay and display parking area is at the foot of the lake.
Semerwater attracts canoers, windsurfers, yachtsmen and fishermen. There are three small settlements nearby:
*Stalling Busk
Stalling Busk is one of three settlements around Semer Water in the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire in the small dale of Raydale just off from Wensleydale, England. The hamlet lies to the immediate south of the lake.
As well as th ...
* Countersett
* Marsett
Semerwater was the subject of a number of sketches and paintings by the artist J M W Turner.
Semerwater is a pleonastic place name. The name, first recorded in 1153, derives from the Old English elements ''sæ'' 'lake', ''mere'' 'lake' and ''water''. The form "Lake Semerwater" introduces a fourth element with the same meaning.
The lake is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, first notified in 1975.
Legend
According to an old legend, Semerwater was once occupied by a prosperous city. One night an old man (or in some versions, an angel in disguise) came down to the city, in search of food and drink. He went from door to door, and at each house he was turned away. Finally, he came to the hovel of a poor couple just outside the town; the couple took him in and treated him with great kindness. When the stranger was about to leave, he turned to face the town and uttered the curse: An alternative version as told by locals: And as soon as this was said, the waters of the lake rose up and flooded the village, drowning the proud inhabitants and leaving only the hovel of the poor couple on the hillside unscathed. The legend was the subject of a poem, ''The Ballad of Semerwater'', by Sir William Watson.Popular culture
Semerwater was featured in the British television series '' All Creatures Great and Small'', in the episode "Female of the Species".- Waymarking.com Semerwater is referenced in Sarah Moss's 2020 novel "Summerwater," the title of which stems from a character misremembering the name of the lake and the poem associated with it.
References
External links
Lake Semerwater website
{{authority control Lakes of North Yorkshire Sites of Special Scientific Interest in North Yorkshire RSemerwater