The “loveliest spot that man hath ever found” will be “desecrated” if the landowner gets the permission that floats its boats.
The Lowther Estate has asked the Lake District national Park Authority if it needs planning permission to launch ten motorised houseboats on Lake Grasmere, which it owns, much to the horror of some residents.
More than 200 locals thronged the shoreline this weekend to protest against the plans, which would allow tourists to stay aboard the 40ft by 12ft boats, to navigate the lake and to moor wherever they please.
The protesters say the unspoilt landscape, which inspired former resident William Wordsworth to pen a number of his poems, will be “desecrated” by the scheme.
