Boot is a small village in Eskdale,

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. ...

, in the Lake District of England. It forms part of the

Borough of Copeland The Borough of Copeland is a local government district with borough status in western Cumbria, England. Its council is based in Whitehaven. It was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of the Borough of Whitehaven, Ennerdale Rural District ...

. There are two roads from which to access the village, one of which is the

Hardknott Pass Hardknott Pass is a hill pass between Eskdale and the Duddon Valley in the Lake District National Park, Cumbria, England. The tarmac-surfaced road, which is the most direct route from the central Lake District to West Cumbria, shares the ti ...

and

Wrynose Pass The Wrynose Pass is a mountain pass in the Lake District National Park in Cumbria, England between the Duddon Valley and Little Langdale. Etymology The unusual name of the pass is taken from that of the adjacent Wrynose hill, also called Wryn ...

, England's steepest road; it is closed when icy (often, during winter). The village of Boot has two pubs: ''The Boot Inn'' (formerly ''The Burnmoor Inn'') and ''The Brook House Inn''; however ''The Woolpack Inn - Hardknott Bar & Cafe'' is only a short walk nearer to Hardknott Pass. The Woolpack Inn has an adjoined brewery known as Hardknott Brewery. There is also a water corn mill dating back to 1547 known as Eskdale Mill. Since 1970's this has been open to the public as a visitor attraction and showcases original working milling machinery driven by two overshot waterwheels. The mill underwent a £1 million refurbishment in 2019 with support from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Copeland Community Fund. The permanent population of Boot is 10–15, but can rise to between 90 and 120 in summer when the inn and local

bed-and-breakfast Bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. Bed and breakfasts are often private family homes and typically have between four and eleven rooms, wit ...

and holiday cottages are full. These businesses survive on fell walkers ( ramblers), the passengers of the

Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway The Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway is a minimum gauge heritage railway in Cumbria, England. The line runs from Ravenglass to Dalegarth Station near Boot in the valley of Eskdale, in the Lake District. At Ravenglass the line ends at Rav ...

(which stops less than 300 metres from Boot), and holiday-makers from the nearby campsite and cottages. Also in the area is an old boarding house (now available to rent) and a small church. On the moorland around one mile north of the village are five

stone circles A stone circle is a ring of standing stones. Most are found in Northwestern Europe – especially in Britain, Ireland, and Brittany – and typically date from the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age, with most being built from 3000 BC. The ...

known collectively as the Burnmoor stone circles.Burnmoor Stone Circles
Lake District National Park On 2 June 2010, Boot became the centre of a search after a shooting spree in

. The killer, 52-year-old taxi driver Derrick Bird, was found dead in woods near Boot after a four-hour manhunt. He killed 12 people and injured 11 others.

References

Villages in Cumbria Borough of Copeland {{Cumbria-geo-stub

See also

References