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How to walk from Ambleside to Sweden Bridge

by zoe tehrani
written by zoe tehrani Published: Last Updated on

The walk from Ambleside to Sweden Bridge was a lot more challenging than I was expecting. Not that it was crazy hard, it’s just that my expectations were way off. I told my boyfriend we were doing a short, not hilly, circular walk to a bridge. I told him this because that is what I thought. I hadn’t researched the walk. I just saw a trail on the map leading to a bridge. It didn’t look like far to walk from Ambleside, and I figured that Sweden Bridge wouldn’t be high up.

I was wrong on all levels.

The hill

The walk to Sweden Bridge from Ambleside is uphill the whole damn way. Even after reaching the bridge, there is more uphill. HOWEVER, I loved this walk. Way more than I was expecting. The uphill was just the right amount where you feel like you had a good workout but don’t get overly exhausted and wonder about your choices in life. 

I thought about how, if I lived in Ambleside, this would be the kind of walk I would come on before work in the morning. 

A winding gravel trail on the left on the walk up to Sweden Bridge from Ambleside. There is a green field on the right, with hills in the distance and a view of Lake Windermere. There is a small stone shed next to the trail.

Oh yes, and remember, usually when you walk up, the reward is insane views, and you do get that reward on the walk from Ambleside to Sweden Bridge.

Logistics for the walk from Ambleside to Sweden Bridge in the Lake District 

  • Start/Finish: Ambleside (Smithy Brow Lane)
  • How to get there: Smithy Brow Lane is directly opposite Rydal Road car park (leading off Rydal road).
  • Distance: 5.4km/3.5miles
  • Time: 1h 30min
  • Difficulty: The uphill is a bit puffy, but overall it’s not too long. So I’m going to say easy. If you are not that fit, then it might hurt a little. But not too much.
  • Terrain: A bit of road to start and end. Gravel and dirt trail
  • Elevation: Highest point 269m.
  • Time of year: We did this one during Autumn
  • Tips: Wear good grip shoes. Preferably hiking ones. I say this because downhill could get slippy. If you only have trainers, then don’t worry. Shoes are shoes. They serve their purpose.
  • Amenities: No toilets. Either pee in a bush or hold it. 

Map for the walk from Ambleside to Sweden Bridge in the Lake District

You can find my more detailed route map on AllTrails

-More walk route ideas near Ambleside and in the Lake District will be at the end-

How to walk from Ambleside to Sweden Bridge

So, right next to Rydal road car park in Ambleside, you should see a small roundabout. Take the exit up Smithy Brow and continue walking uphill past some cute white buildings before taking a left to walk up Sweden Bridge Lane. 

A road leading uphill in Ambleside at the start of the walk to Sweden Bridge. There are white building lining the road with plant pots hanging outside the buildings.

You will walk up Sweden Bridge lane for a bit, with gorgeous views to the left of the rooftops of Ambleside. It’s all very cute and quaint along here with stone walls and perfectly manicured bushes. This must be where the rich people live.

A view of rooftops of Ambleside with a big hill as a backdrop, with lots of Autumn coloured trees on it.
A view of rooftops of Ambleside on the uphill walk towards Sweden Bridge. The houses are surrounded by green hedges and lots of trees with leaves in Autumn shades of orange, red and green.
A tarmac road leading uphill with stone walls lining it. There are green bushes and trees along the stone wall on the right.
A driveway lined with bushes and hedges and trees in autumn shades of red, orange and green.

When you reach a junction, take the left to continue the walk up Sweden Bridge Lane.

Sweden Bridge Lane

The rest of the walk from Ambleside to Sweden Bridge is along this lane. Very very simple. You won’t need to make any more turnings until you reach Sweden Bridge and walk back to Ambleside. This makes my job easy, so now I will just tell you about what it’s like.

Getting onto rugged ground 

So, once you walk through a gate, the trail will become a bit more rugged.  You will continue to make your way uphill on a slightly rocky trail, alongside the stone walls, with lovely views back down to Ambleside and the surrounding hills. 

A road covered in orange autumn leaves with a wooden gate at the other end. There is a stone wall on both sides of the road covered in green moss.
A winding gravel trail lined with green grass leading uphill, with stone walls running alongside it.
A view down to a small village on the walk up to Sweden Bridge in the Lake District. The village is surrounded by hills of green with trees and mountains in the distance.

Now, for a fair bit, you will be walking up. Passing under trees, a mini rock waterfall and fields with sheep. Every so often getting a glimpse of mountain views in the distance.

A group of sheep walking in a green field on the walk from Ambleside to Sweden Bridge. There are hills and mountains in the background. There is cloud and mist covering part of the mountains.
A gravel, rocky trail leading uphill, with a stone wall on the left and grass on the right. The stone wall is covered in green moss. There is a mountain view in the distance with cloud and mist partly covering it.
A view down to a lake in a valley on the walk to Sweden Bridge from Ambleside in the Lake District. The hills surrounding the lake a covered in trees in shades of green, orange and reds. There is cloud above the mountains in the distance.

At some point the trail levels up and you will start to hear the sound of water, but this is not the end. It’s a trick. 

Keep going and you will soon find yourself walking uphill again. 

A gravel dirt trail covered in orange autumn leaves leading under tree branches. On the other side of the trees is a beam of light from the sun.
A winding gravel trail lined with stone walls and lots of green and orange foliage.
A steep wide gravel path with some sparse trees on both sides and a man standing in the distance.
A wet and winding gravel trail leading uphill in the Lake District. With a moss covered stone wall on the right and grass and bushes on the left. There is a mountain view in the distance.
.

Reaching Sweden Bridge

You know what’s interesting. On the way up we didn’t pass by any people. However, upon arriving at Sweden Bridge, there was a whole bunch of them. Apparently this is where it’s at. 

Sweden Bridge near Ambleside in the Lake District. There is a man walking over the bridge and some people own the other side of it. The water is filled with rocks of different sizes and a hill in the background.
A view of the water when standing on Sweden Bridge in the Lake District. There are rocks of various sizes in the water and hills in colours of red, green and orange on the other side.
A stream of water filled with rocks and bushes and shrubbery on either side of it.
The view standing on Sweden Bridge.

Leaving Sweden Bridge to walk back to Ambleside

Now, I mentioned earlier that this is a big uphill walk, and reaching Sweden Bridge is not the end of it. You have one more uphill. But I think it may be my favourite bit of the uphill….

Ok, so once you walk over Sweden Bridge, take a left through the gate and walk up the trail that turns right-ish.

A wooden fence and gate with a green hill on the other side. There is a man walking up the hill.
Follow the direction that man is going
A green grass covered hill with stone steps running up it, and a low level stone wall to the right on the walk back to Ambleside from Sweden Bridge.
A dirt trail in the Lake District, with green grass on both sides and orange shrubbery. There is a stone wall ahead with a wooden ladder to climb over it.

You will walk up these stone type steps alongside a stone wall before climbing over a ladder over a wall.

Continue to follow the trail up and you should get a cool view of Lake Windermere down to your left.

Slabs of rock leading uphill through overgrown green and orange grass.
A wooden stub signpost on the gravel trail, with a yellow arrow on it marking the walk back to Ambleside from Sweden Bridge.
Red and orange foliage with a stone wall running across the middle of the frame and a view of Lake Windermere and hills in the distance.
.

The walk downhill back to Ambleside 

The trail will guide you around to the left for views down to Ambleside and Lake Windermere.

The cool thing about this part of the walk back to Ambleside from Sweden Bridge, is that you have this awesome view the whole way….and it’s all downhill. No more up.

No. More. Up.

Saying that, going down had its challenges. 

You start off by walking through a gap in the stone wall. It felt a bit like entering the kingdom of downhill. Downhill on a gravel type path. The type which can get a little slippy on the loose rocks and your toes hit up against the front of your shoes.

A wide gravel trail running through an opening in a stone wall with a view of lake Windermere and surrounding hills in the distance.

Ok, It’s not really as aggressive as I’m making it sound. Going down is made up of undulations of varying degree. Some flat bits, some very gentle down bits, some steeper down bits. 

A gravel trail as it undulates downhill on the walk back to Ambleside from Sweden Bridge. The Traill is surrounding by fields of green grass and red foliage. Lake Windermere is visible in the distance surrounded by hills.
A gravel walking trail winding downhill, surrounded by green grass, red shrubbery and trees. Lake Windermere is in the distance surrounded by hills.
A gravel Traill with a big tree with orange leaves ahead. there are two sheep standing under the tree.
a trail winding downhill with a barbed wire fence on the left. There is green grass on both sides of the trail and a view down to Lake Windermere in the distance. city is a cloudy day.
A trail with green grass on the right and red shrubbery and trees with orange leaves on the left. There are hills covered in trees in the distance and mountains behind them. It is a cloudy day.
A view of green fields and a cottage through orange and green bushes and trees in the Lake District. There are green hills in the distance.

You will be following this main trail most of the way down, probably passing by some sheep and cows and cool looking trees.

The last bit of the walk back into Ambleside from Sweden Bridge

You will find near the bottom, that the trail does a sort of horse shoe bend, taking your around and passed a little rock waterfall, and then through a gate.

Water running down rocks surrounded by branches of trees and bushes.

Once through the gate you will walk passed a farm shed and maybe a blue tractor before reaching a civilised type path. 

A stone farm shed ahead at the independent of the dirt, gravel trail. There are green bushes on the sides of the trail.
A tarmac road on the walk back to Ambleside from Sweden Bridge in the Lake District. There is a stone wall on both sides off the trail with green hedges and shrubbery. There is a lamppost on the road and a tree with red leaves behind it.

Continue on this civilised path with lovely stone walls either side. Then when you reach the fork, take the right and you will soon be back to the town centre area.

More walks from Ambleside in the Lake District

The day after our walk to Sweden Bridge we did a short loop from Ambleside to a lovely little waterfall. It was a bit touristy, however, if you are in the area and have some time to kill, then this fills the gap. 

If you want something more challenging but don’t have all day to spare, then you could try this short walk to Todd Crag and back. It may be short, but it takes you really high up for views down to Windermere and Ambleside.

If you want to see something unique, like a cave, then you could try this walk around Rydal Water. It’s not a massive walk, and is relatively easy.

If you do have the day to spare, then you could try this 10ish mile walk to Elterwater and back. It is the most challenging of all of them but does give you the best view rewards.

Other walks in the Lake District

The Old Man of Coniston is a great route, taking you up high with some of the best views in the Lake District. It is on the more challenging side of walks, but its not crazy long.

I recommend the walk up Walla Crag, which isn’t too hard or long, but you get very good views. You also walk over the very cute and quaint Ashness Bridge.

For more walking ideas from Ambleside, you could check out the National Trust website.

Pin it for later: How to walk from Ambleside to Sweden Bridge in the Lake District

I like to spend my spare time in the outdoors, and walk a lot all over England. London born and bred, I have previously moved to the South West, and up to Yorkshire, mixed in with some van life, looking for all the best places for hiking.

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