On the north-western edge of the Lake District National Park, Ennerdale is now known for one of the UK’s longest-running wild land restoration projects. It became Cumbria’s largest National Nature Reserve in 2022.
But this landscape has a much longer human story. Long before tree planting began here in 1926, people were drawn to Ennerdale for its rich natural resources.
Medieval Ennerdale
During the Medieval period (1066–1485), the valley was a place of industry and community. Native woodland provided timber and fuel, while iron ore was mined along Clews Gill. Together, these resources supported a thriving iron-working industry, with small settlements forming close to where people lived and worked.
On the surrounding open land, wealthy landowners also developed agriculture, shaping the landscape in different ways.
A growing iron industry
The fells above Ennerdale Water were a focus for iron mining throughout the Medieval period and afterwards. Over time, activity expanded down towards the lakeshore.
At the water’s edge, a type of furnace known as a 'bloomery' was built. This is where the iron smelting process was carried out by heating iron ore to very high temperatures, and then separating the molten iron from the waste material. What remained was a solid lump of metal, called a bloom, which could be shaped by blacksmiths.
Today, the remains of this site is a scheduled monument.
Evidence suggests this wasn’t the only furnace in the area. A geophysical survey in 2000 identified at least two more, now buried beneath layers of smelting waste.
This industry depended on a steady supply of charcoal to fuel the furnaces. Ennerdale’s woodland provided the perfect resource. Nearby, you can still find the remains of charcoal-making platforms, along with a rare late-Medieval charcoal pit.
Smithy Beck
Just uphill from the bloomery lie the remains of Smithy Beck settlement. Now quiet and overgrown, it was once home to local miners and ironworkers. Excavations in the 1960s revealed pottery from both the Medieval and Post-Medieval periods, giving us a glimpse into everyday life here at Ennerdale.
The interactivie 3D model below shows the stone foundations of a two-celled rectangular longhouse found here.
The low stone walls you see today mark the footprints of longhouses that once sheltered a busy working community. You can visit this site on a self-guided walk of Ennerdale.
Cattle, communities and the landscape
A short distance from Smithy Beck, a different way of life was already established.
Since at least the 1320s, Woundell Beck has been home to a cattle farm known as a 'vaccary'. Historical records show that the land here belonged to John de Multon, Baron of Egremont, who owned two such farms in the area.
This tradition of grazing has deep roots, and continues to shape the landscape today. In 2006, year-round grazing by hardy Galloway cattle was reintroduced to the valley. This supports natural processes and helps restore the landscape in ways that echo Medieval land management.
The people who cared for these cattle lived and worked here too. They farmed small plots on terraced slopes and cleared stones from the ground, many of which can still be seen scattered across the hillside.
This farming community once included 11 houses and is now recognised as a scheduled monument. In summer, livestock were taken higher onto the fells to graze. The remains of simple shelters, known as 'shielings', can still be found at Great Cove near Low Gillerthwaite.
