Seathwaite, Cumberland

Along the nearby Newhouse Gill, which descends from Grey Knotts, is a graphite mine which was opened after the discovery of graphite there in 1555. The extracted graphite was eventually used to supply the Derwent Cumberland Pencil Company factory in Keswick. The commercial mining of the unusual solid form of graphite found near the hamlet of Seathwaite ceased around 1891 when veins of the solid graphite became harder to find. The mine entrance is north-northwest of the hamlet at . For many years Seathwaite was a secluded spot, being connected to the main road at Seatoller by a rough track. However the emergence of fellwalking as an outdoor activity at the end of the 19th century led to the hamlet becoming a popular starting point for walkers bound for the surrounding mountains. The road was eventually surfaced, which led to motorists parking their cars along the verges on the approach to the farm. Seathwaite has become one of the most popular starting points for walking in the UK since it gives access to well-known mountains such as Scafell Pike, Great Gable and Glaramara. Famed Lakeland walker Alfred Wainwright made this comment: ==Governance==

Seathwaite is within the Penrith and Solway UK Parliamentary constituency. For Local Government purposes it is administered by Cumberland Council. Seathwaite is parished; Borrowdale Parish Council. ==Climate==

In 2008 Seathwaite was the wettest inhabited place in the United Kingdom and received around of rain per year. In September 1966, of rain fell on Seathwaite and the surrounding fells in an hour, the resulting flood severely damaging the nearby Stockley Bridge, which lies south of the hamlet. Stockley Bridge is an ancient packhorse bridge on the old route between Borrowdale and the Cumbrian coast. The bridge was widened in 1887 and had to be repaired after the 1966 storm. On 19–20 November 2009 Seathwaite received of rain in a 24-hour period, a major contributor to the 2009 Cumbria and southwest Scotland floods. This was a record for the amount of rain falling anywhere in the UK within 24 hours, until it was beaten by Honister Pass in December 2015. ==Borrowdale yews==

The Borrowdale yews are a group of originally four yew trees William Wordsworth celebrated in his 1803 poem Yew Trees. The largest, Borrowdale Yew, is hollow, large enough for eight people to squeeze inside. They are located a few hundred metres north of the village, on the opposite side of the Gill. Borrowdale Yew was one of 50 trees selected by The Tree Council in 2002, named Great British Trees, in honour of the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II. One of the four original trees is now fallen. ==See also==