Lake District Fell Guides

At 978 metres, Scafell Pike is the highest point in England, and it earns that status. The final approach from Lingmell Col is a boulder-field slog that goes on longer than you expect. The summit itself is a wide, cairn-strewn plateau of dark volcanic rock, disorienting in mist. In clear conditions the view is extraordinary: the Coniston Fells to the south-east, the Gable group to the north, the Isle of Man visible on a good day, and a sense of scale that makes most other summits feel modest. The summit cairn is a proper structure, not just a pile of stones. The OS triangulation pillar has been removed but the cairn is unmistakeable. A war memorial plaque sits here too. On a Saturday in July there might be a hundred people on the summit at once. On a November weekday you might have it entirely to yourself. Both experiences are the same mountain. The descent demands respect. The boulder field that looks manageable going up becomes treacherous in wet conditions or fading light. More rescues happen on the descent than the ascent. Plan accordingly.

Helvellyn at 950 metres is the third-highest fell in England and possibly the most climbed. The reason is Striding Edge. That narrow arête connecting High Spying How to the summit ridge is one of the great experiences in British walking — exposed, exhilarating, and genuinely committing in poor conditions. In good weather it is a hands-and-feet scramble of around half a mile that leaves most people grinning. In mist and ice it is a serious proposition. The summit is a long, windswept plateau running roughly north to south. The highest point has a stone shelter and a large cairn. On a clear day the views extend west to the Scafell group, south over the Coniston Fells, north to the Scottish hills, and east toward the Pennines. The site of the famous 1926 aircraft landing — the first mountain-top landing in England — is marked on the plateau. On the eastern side, Red Tarn sits in a hanging valley below the ridge lines of Striding Edge and Swirral Edge. It is one of the most dramatic corrie lakes in the Lakes. Catstycam rises sharply to the north. The whole eastern face of Helvellyn, viewed from Glenridding, is a textbook glacial landscape.

Skiddaw at 931 metres dominates the northern skyline above Keswick. From town it looks improbable — the mountain appears as a clean, rounded mass of grey-green slate, its upper slopes bare and almost featureless. The reality is that Skiddaw is one of the more accessible big fells, built on old Skiddaw Slate that weathers to smooth, rounded ridges rather than the craggy drama of the volcanic Borrowdale fells to the south. The summit ridge runs broadly north-south, with the highest point at the southern end. The views are exceptional in clear conditions: the Solway Firth and Scotland to the north, the Cumbrian coast and the Isle of Man to the west, and the entire volcanic knot of the central Lakes spread out to the south. It is the kind of summit that rewards a clear autumn day more than most. The upper mountain can be brutally exposed. The slate surface that looks solid can be treacherous in frost or rain. There is nowhere to shelter on the top, and the ridge funnels wind.

Blencathra is 868 metres of volcanic rock that looks, from the A66, like it is about to fall on you. The southern face is cut into a series of ridges and gullies that Wainwright described as the most imposing mountain front in the Lake District. He was right. The five ridges — Gategill Fell, Hall's Fell, Doddick Fell, Scales Fell, and Sharp Edge — each offer a different character and a different way to earn the summit. The summit itself is a flattish ridge with a small cross-shaped shelter and a handful of cairns. The view south across Thirlmere and the Helvellyn range is one of the great panoramas from any Lake District fell. North, Skiddaw fills the skyline. East, the Eden Valley opens toward the Pennines. It is a summit that rewards sitting down for a while. Sharp Edge on the north-eastern flank is often compared to Striding Edge on Helvellyn. It is shorter, narrower, and has more genuine exposure. In dry conditions it is a brilliant grade one scramble. In wet or icy conditions it has caused serious accidents. The rockface immediately below the Edge — the step to gain the main ridge — is the crux and requires confidence.

Great Gable at 899 metres is the fell that appears on the Fell and Rock Climbing Club's badge — the one that looks exactly like a mountain should look. From Wasdale Head it rises as a perfect triangle above Lingmell and Westmorland Cairn. The ascent reveals it is not quite the pyramid it appears: the upper slopes are a boulder field of volcanic rock that demands attention and boot-work. The summit is a wide, rocky platform. The Napes Needles are visible on the south face — one of the great rock climbing venues in England, where climbers first started to treat the rock as an objective in itself rather than an obstacle. The Fell and Rock's memorial tablet is fixed to the summit rocks, dedicated to members killed in the First World War. It is one of the more moving spots in the Lake District, particularly in the context of the annual Remembrance Sunday gathering held here each year. The views from the summit across to Scafell Pike and the full southern arc of the Lake District are outstanding. Westmorland Cairn, a few hundred metres below the summit to the south, is worth the short detour for its own outlook across Great Hell Gate and into Wasdale.

The Coniston Old Man at 803 metres is the Old Man of the village, the fell that locals simply call 'the Old Man' and measure themselves against. It has been quarried, mined for copper, and climbed by day-trippers since the Victorian era. The industrial history is visible throughout the ascent — copper ore tips, quarry workings, and the remains of a former reservoir for the quarry machinery add a texture that makes this feel like a fell with a working past. The summit is a surprisingly spacious plateau with a large cairn and a triangulation pillar. The view east down to Coniston Water is one of the great fell panoramas in the southern Lakes — the lake stretching south toward Morecambe Bay, Windermere visible behind it. North and west, the rest of the Coniston Fells spread out toward Dow Crag and Brim Fell. The ridge walk to these summits and back is an excellent extension. Goat's Water sits in the hollow between the Old Man and Dow Crag, a cold dark tarn beneath the crags. Low Water is directly below the summit on the northeast face, visible from the quarry path on the ascent. Both are worth visiting on a circuit day rather than the straight out-and-back.

Catbells at 451 metres is the fell that introduces more people to the Lake District fells than any other. It earns that role. The views over Derwentwater are exceptional from remarkably low down, and the ridge walk to and from the summit gives a genuine fell experience without the commitment of the bigger mountains. Beatrix Potter walked it. There is a plaque for Hugh Walpole near the summit. It has a long history of being loved. The summit is a small rocky knob with a ring of cairns and, on weekends in July and August, more people than you expect. From the top, Derwentwater spreads north toward Keswick, the Skiddaw massif fills the northern skyline, and the Borrowdale valley cuts south between the Borrowdale Fells. On a clear autumn day the colours below are extraordinary. Beyond the summit the ridge continues south to Maiden Moor and High Spy, both considerably quieter fells that can extend the day significantly. The descent via Hause Gate and back down to Hawes End is the standard return, but the ridge extension to Maiden Moor and down via the Bull Crag path to Grange gives a finer day for those with legs to spare.