The Lake District National Park Authority publishes lake-by-lake information for people on the water, and paddle boarders are named in some of it and not in the rest. This article reads five of the Authority’s pages: its boating page, its Bassenthwaite permits page, its Windermere byelaws page (which carries the Windermere Registration Byelaws 2008 and the Windermere Navigation Byelaws 2008), the Lake District (Smaller Lakes) Byelaws 1971 and its Windermere boat registration page. The web pages are undated and were read on 1 November 2026; the byelaws carry their own dates. They set out one authority’s rules, and say nothing about other waters.
Bassenthwaite: a permit before launching
The Authority says Bassenthwaite has special protection as a National Nature Reserve and that sailing, rowing, kayaking, canoeing, paddleboarding, fishing and swimming are all allowed on the lake. A permit is needed: the page says to take “a rowing boat, sailing boat, dinghy, canoe, kayak, windsurfer, paddleboard or any kind of unpowered pleasure craft” onto the lake requires one.
The boating permit prices on the page, as read, are £7 for 1 day, £20 for 7 days, £50 for 3 months and £100 for 12 months, with under 16s free and a 50% discount for Blue Badge holders. Permits must be bought in advance, online or at one of the local shops, and are not available at the lake shore. A permit must be produced when a Lake Warden or the Ranger Service asks for it, and the Authority says it may be withdrawn from anyone failing to comply with its conditions.
The page also says two no boating zones exist, marked by white-topped posts on the shoreline, that Peel Wyke is available for launching boats, canoes and kayaks, and that the Smaller Lakes byelaws apply to anyone on the water. It asks visitors to follow “check, clean and dry” to help prevent the spread of freshwater invasive species.
Windermere: two sets of byelaws
Two sets of Windermere byelaws are published on the page, and they have different scopes. The Registration Byelaws 2008 apply to a “power driven vessel”, defined as any vessel propelled by machinery. Byelaw 4 says such a vessel must not be brought, kept, let for hire or used on the lake unless registered with the Authority. The Authority’s registration page says powered boats need a current registration, including boats with outboard or electric motors or other mechanical means of propulsion.
The Navigation Byelaws 2008 are wider. Byelaw 2 says they must be complied with by all vessels on the lake, and byelaw 3.2 defines a vessel as including every description of water craft used or capable of being used as a means of transportation on water. The text read does not name paddle boards. Among its provisions, the master of every vessel must comply with the lights provisions in all weathers from sunset to sunrise, every vessel must at all times carry a whistle or other means of making an efficient sound signal, and the master must maintain a proper lookout by sight and hearing.
Whether a particular board counts as a vessel under those definitions is not answered by name in the text, so the Authority is the body to ask. Its head office number, 01539 724555, is shown on its website.
The smaller lakes byelaws
The Lake District (Smaller Lakes) Byelaws 1971, made under section 13 of the Countryside Act 1968, are headed as prohibiting power-driven vessels on certain lakes. Byelaw 4 says no person shall use any power driven vessel on a lake specified in the Schedule, and byelaw 3 defines a power driven vessel as one propelled by an internal combustion engine. The text read does not mention paddle boards, and the Schedule’s lake names were not in the text read. The Authority’s Bassenthwaite page nonetheless tells everyone on the water there to be aware of these byelaws.
The Authority’s safety advice
The boating page has a safety section. For all boats it says to make sure a life jacket or buoyancy aid is “CE Approved” and to wear the life jacket near or on the water, and a life jacket checks section adds that life jackets should be worn during any water sport activity.
A group of tips is addressed to all boats, canoes, kayaks and paddleboards:
- wind direction can change suddenly, and it can make paddling much harder
- look out for large boats turning, which need plenty of room
- always pass two ferry lengths to the rear of the car ferry
- canoe, kayak or paddleboard with someone else or hire a guide, and stay close to shore
It also says to keep clear of swimmers, to watch for blue and white flags showing that swimmers and divers are in the water, and to keep as far from swimmers and their support boats as possible.
What was not covered
The boating page lists separate byelaw pages for Ullswater, Coniston Water and Derwentwater. Those pages were not read for this article, so they are not described here. Rules, permit prices and byelaws can change, so the Authority’s current pages are the place to check.
The bottom line
On the Authority’s pages, Bassenthwaite is the clearest case for paddle boarders: paddleboards are named, a permit is needed in advance, and it must be produced when a warden or ranger asks. On Windermere the registration byelaws are written for power driven vessels and the navigation byelaws for vessels in general, without naming paddle boards. The Authority’s safety tips name paddleboards in one group of tips, and its advice to wear a CE Approved life jacket or buoyancy aid is addressed to all boats.
Sources
- Boating on the lakes, Lake District National Park Authority, page undated, read 1 November 2026 (lakedistrict.gov.uk)
- Bassenthwaite permits, Lake District National Park Authority, page undated, read 1 November 2026 (lakedistrict.gov.uk)
- Windermere byelaws (Windermere Registration Byelaws 2008 and Windermere Navigation Byelaws 2008), Lake District National Park Authority, page undated, read 1 November 2026 (lakedistrict.gov.uk)
- Small lakes byelaws (Lake District (Smaller Lakes) Byelaws 1971), Lake District National Park Authority, page undated, read 1 November 2026 (lakedistrict.gov.uk)
- Windermere boat registration, Lake District National Park Authority, page undated, read 1 November 2026 (lakedistrict.gov.uk)