Last updated 05:36, Friday, 19 September 2008

Owned by the Lake District National Park Authority, Bassenthwaite Lake is one of the longest and shallowest lakes in the national park. It is four miles long, three-quarters of a mile wide, with an average depth of 70ft.

The most northerly of the lakes, it is a National Nature Reserve, a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a candidate for a Special Area of Conservation.

Hundreds of birds migrate to Bassenthwaite from as far away as Africa and the Arctic. The ospreys returned to nest in 2001 after a gap of more than 100 years.

The shores are havens for plants and insects, including butterflies and a snail-eating fly. Fish in the lake include trout, salmon, pike, minnow, dace, ruffe, eel and roach.

The only lake in the Lake District with “lake” in its name, Bassenthwaite is often the venue for sailing events from the Bassenthwaite Sailing Club. It has the largest catchment area in the Lake District and is fed by and drains into the River Derwent.

There is a path along the west shore, but the only access from the east is at Mirehouse. The lake is the home of the vendace, a rare endangered fish species only found here and in Derwentwater.

Bassenthwaite is said to have its own monster, an Eachy – human in form, slimy and horrible to look at – which was last reported as being sighted in 1973.