Fell Foot boatyard at Windermere to close to increase public access

Boatyard users have been left "gobsmacked" after plans were announced to close facilities at a lake. The National Trust said it wanted to end boat and equipment storage at Fell Foot, at the southern end of Windermere, in order to open up more of the shoreline to the public. The local boating community are now wondering if their days on the water are over after the charity asked them to clear out by the end of October. The trust's general manager for the area Laura Lee said the land was "a really important place for public access" and opening it up would allow it to "deliver the most public benefit". Kevin Wilkinson of the Fell Foot Lake Users has kept his boat there for about 15 years and volunteers for the National Trust. He said when he found out, he was "absolutely gobsmacked" and "sick, literally". "There's been times I don't particularly want to go into where, mental wellbeing and all the rest of it, I was in a very bad state and I was told to come up here and just to be here and out," Wilkinson said. "So if anyone out there would like to buy a Beneteau, mine's up for sale because there's nowhere else to leave it and there's a lot of people here who are in the same boat." Lee