Paddleboarding on Ullswater: Glencoyne Bay to PuPu Island!

This week, we've been staying at the luxury Hillcroft Park campsite in Pooley Bridge. It's probably the most luxurious spot in the region, more glamping than camping—extremely spacious and spotlessly clean, with award-winning bathrooms. Even better - you can rent a private bathroom if your family prefers added privacy! Check back for our more extensive review of Pooley Bridge campsites at the end of summer!

We took a short 15 minute drive down the western side of Ullswater to Glencoyne Bay Car Park. w3w (///lectured.winks.adopting) This is a National Trust campsite so free for members otherwise its £9 for the day (2025 prices). The Car Park is pretty spacious with 35 spaces and is just a few steps from a substantial beached area for direct access to the lake, perfect for watersports...or there's hiking trails straight from the car park- you can reach Glenridding village or Aira force with a 30 mins scenic walk! We arrived at 9.30am on a Thursday morning at end of July and it was near empty but by 11am it was overcrowded with a queue of cars forming so make sure your an early riser with a plan before you set off!

From here we set up base camp for the day with camp chairs and a pop up tent for the little uns' to hideaway from the sun. We did a test ride of the new Loco Scout Air touring paddleboard with today as we wanted tot test the boys (age 4) on longer SUP touring days ready for some overnight SUP wild camping expeditions we hope to do in the near future...and wow what an amazing ride, so stable with 3 on board and glides across the water, we left Glencoyne bay and arrived at PuPu island in no time (Pronounced Poo Poo)... the island (formerly Norfolk Island) is a tiny grassed area with a few trees and rocks directly east from the bay. The rocks are covered in swan poo hence the boys new nickname for it but it made a nice adventurous stopover for lunch. Its about a mile round trip and can be done within 20 mins each direction - at a kids pace!

Here's a full route overview with distance/elevation profile and downloadable GPX files for your own GPS device. Click here or view 3D route here

After snacking on some Oreos and examining the rocks for any signs of Bigfoot, we headed back to the bay! The boys are brimming with adventure and imagination, eager for bigger, more daring expeditions as the quest for Bigfoot continues!

Part 2 coming soon!