Borrowdale es un valle y una parroquia civil en el distrito inglés de los lagos en Cumberland , Inglaterra. Está en el condado ceremonial de Cumbria y a veces se lo conoce como Cumberland Borrowdale para distinguirlo de otro Borrowdale en el condado histórico de Westmorland .
El valle nace en el distrito central de los Lagos y corre hacia el norte llevando el río Derwent al lago de Derwentwater. Las aguas del río tienen su origen en una amplia zona del macizo central del Distrito de los Lagos al norte de Esk Hause y Stake Pass . Estos orígenes incluyen los desagües del extremo norte de Scafell , Great End , el lado este del macizo de Dale Head , la parte occidental de Central Fells y toda la cresta de Glaramara . Cerca de Rosthwaite, el valle lateral de Langstrath se une al valle principal de Seathwaite antes de que las aguas combinadas negocien la estrecha brecha conocida como las Fauces de Borrowdale . Aquí está flanqueado por los riscos rocosos de Castle Crag y Grange Fell . Luego, el valle se abre alrededor de Grange antes de que el río desemboque en Derwentwater, dominado por Catbells , Skiddaw y Walla Crag .
La mayoría de las montañas en la cabecera de Borrowdale, incluidas Scafell Pike y Great Gable , son parte del Grupo Volcánico Borrowdale , un desarrollo geológico del período Ordovícico .
La carretera B5289 recorre todo el valle y en el extremo sur cruza el paso de Honister hacia Buttermere . En el corazón del valle se encuentra el pueblo de Rosthwaite , otros pueblos de Borrowdale incluyen Stonethwaite , Seatoller , Seathwaite y Grange .
Borrowdale is within the Copeland UK Parliamentary constituency and the North West England European Parliamentary constituency. Trudy Harrison is the Member of parliament.
Before Brexit for the European Parliament its residents voted to elect MEPs for the North West England constituency.
For Local Government purposes it is in the Cumberland unitary authority area.
Borrowdale has its own Parish Council; Borrowdale Parish Council.[1] The civil parish of Borrowdale covers a considerable area around the valley, including the southern half of Derwent Water. It includes the settlements of Grange, Rosthwaite, Seathwaite, Seatoller, Stonethwaite and Watendlath. It lies entirely within the Lake District National Park.
At the time of the 2001 census, the parish had a population of 438 people, living in 137 households.[2][3] The 2011 Census showed that the population had declined to 417 residents among 128 households.[4]
The valley is currently a tourist location with hotels, guesthouses, holiday cottages, bed and breakfasts, youth hostels and campsites. It caters to lowland visitors as well as hillwalkers.
Sometime before 1565 (some sources say as early as 1500), a major deposit of graphite was discovered near the Seathwaite hamlet in Borrowdale parish.[5][6] The locals found that it was useful for marking sheep. The graphite was pure and solid, and it could easily be sawn into sticks; the pencil industry was born in nearby Keswick. The graphite find remains unique.[7][8][9][10][11]
In the first of Sir Hugh Walpole's series of four novels Rogue Herries about the Herries family, Borrowdale is the site of a fictional house called Herries, the home of Francis Herries, the protagonist of the novel. Subsequent novels in the series are also largely set in Borrowdale. The valley and its surrounding mountains are described in sympathetic detail.
El propio Walpole tenía una casa en Brackenburn, Manesty, con vistas a Derwent Water desde 1924 hasta su muerte en 1941. Hazel Bank Country House era el hogar ficticio de Rogue Herries y el lugar de nacimiento de Judith Paris. Walpole era amigo de la familia Simpson, propietaria de Hazel Bank. Aquí es donde Walpole encontró la inspiración para las "Crónicas de Herries".
