Reader event: Ullswater walk

Guardian readers Lorraine Porter and Roger Wild enjoy the bracing 35-minute journey from Glenridding to Howtown. Steamers have been crossing Ullswater lake for more than 150 years. Photograph: Rebecca Lupton/Guardian

Lesley Thomas and companions begin the seven-mile hike from Howtown back to Glenridding. The route, which skirts the southern half of Ullswater, was one of AW Wainwright’s favourite walks. Photograph: Rebecca Lupton/Guardian

Robin Thomas pauses to look across Ullswater, Cumbria’s second-largest lake, towards the distant Pennine hills. Photograph: Rebecca Lupton/Guardian

A rocky outcrop near Hallinhag wood provides a welcome rest stop after the first uphill section. Photograph: Rebecca Lupton/Guardian

Time to get moving again. David Davenport (third from left) and fellow walkers prepare to set off after a rest towards Sandwick. Photograph: Rebecca Lupton/Guardian

The path crosses a beck at Sandwick as it moves away from the lake’s edge towards Scalehow Wood. Photograph: Rebecca Lupton/Guardian

The walking party approaches Sandwick, where sloping fields and drystone walls are a scenic contrast to the preceding ancient woodland. Photograph: Rebecca Lupton/Guardian

Paths lead off in many directions, beckoning walkers to the tops of the fells. Photograph: Rebecca Lupton/Guardian

Jenny Ashmore (left) and Anita Lyons watch craft from Ullswater yacht club weaving between islets such as Norfolk Island and Lingy Holm. Photograph: Rebecca Lupton/Guardian

Ullswater reaches its most extreme depth of 62 metres below Silver Point. This popular rest stop provides ringside seats to Lakeland’s ever-changing skyscape. Photograph: Rebecca Lupton/Guardian

Robin Thomas and BM Ferguson (right) must watch their steps as the route climbs away from the lake shore. The footpath is frequently rocky underfoot, making this seven-mile walk more tiring than the map might suggest. Photograph: Rebecca lupton/Guardian

David Davenport, Roger Wild and Guardian's northern editor Martin Wainwright (left to right), who led readers on the walk, in the churchyard at St Patrick’s, Glenridding. Once an important mining village, Glenridding is now a hub for fell walkers and watersports lovers. Photograph: Rebecca Lupton/Guardian