Ten years ago Storm Abigail chased me off this ridge before I ever reached Pavey Ark. This time I climb Jack’s Rake to get there the best way: up through the crowds and the Highland cattle by Stickle Ghyll, a brew stop at Stickle Tarn, then a scramble with a two-hundred-year-old rowan tree rooted halfway up it. Pavey Ark gets summited in style.
The Adventurer’s Route: up over Birkhouse Moor, along Striding Edge’s ice-age arête to Helvellyn’s summit, down Swirral Edge and over Catstycam before dropping back through the valley to Glenridding — and a well-earned pint at the Traveller’s Rest.
Binsey is about as far north as you can get on the Wainwrights map — a lonely little hill most people drive straight past. After a long day on the Uldale Fells, I couldn’t quite let it go, so I packed a bivvy instead of heading home, and found out exactly why Alfred put it in the book.
Back in the Northern Fells for a winter round of six lesser-known Wainwrights: Great Cockup, Meal Fell, Great Sca Fell, Knott, Brae Fell and Longlands Fell. Deep snow, no winter boots, and a plan forming for Binsey.
I left Bakestall off my big Skiddaw day, thinking it wasn’t worth the extra climb. So I went back for it at night, with a wild camp thrown in.
Great Mell Fell from the Matterdale road is a short Wainwright walk with more character than its size suggests. The … Read more
I’ve done all 214 Wainwrights myself, and I never found a map that really celebrated the round the way it deserved, so I made one. Every fell plotted across the Lake District, framed and ready to hang, built for planning your route, tracking every summit, and keeping on the wall long after you’re done.
Discover the benefits of wild camping, from peace and perspective to confidence, freedom and a deeper connection with the outdoors.
Starting in Horton-in-Ribblesdale gives Pen-y-Ghent a better beginning than a lay-by ever could. There is a bit of age to … Read more
For thousands of us from Bolton, Horwich and Chorley, Rivington Pike is simply our hill, the one we all default to. But there’s more to it than beacon fires and reservoir views: this modest gritstone summit has hosted a Victorian industrialist’s grand landscaping project, a landmark access protest, wartime radar stations, and even a young Alfred Wainwright, long before he ever set foot in the Lakes. Here’s the full story, plus a circular route taking in the Pigeon Tower, the Terraced Gardens and Lower Rivington Reservoir.
A lovely day out up the Troutbeck Tongue, following in the Roman’s footsteps and being one of the last people to see the only Golden Eagle in England before it disappeared.
All eight Skiddaw fells in one long winter day from Millbeck: Dodd, Carl Side, Long Side, Ullock Pike, Skiddaw, Skiddaw Little Man, Lonscale Fell and Latrigg. Deep snow, huge views over Derwent Water and Bassenthwaite, rime ice on the fences, and feet (and dog) properly done in by the finish — with one fell, Bakestall, left for another day.
I climb the Langdale Pikes with barely any experience, scramble up a gully Wainwright himself suggested, and lose my way on the descent as Storm Abigail rolls in. My phone dies, my map turns to pulp in the rain, and I spend a long hour working out which way is down. It’s the walk that pushed me to get proper training in mountain navigation.
Latrigg might be the easiest Wainwright there is: a little road, a little car park, and barely a hundred metres of climbing between you and one of the best views over Derwent Water in the Lakes. Our dog Lacey’s getting on now, so we took her up for what’s likely her last Wainwright, and I’ll tell you why this unassuming fell deserves its place in the book as much as any of the big ones.
I’ve been coming to the Lake District since before I could walk it, and I’ve now stood on all 214 Wainwrights. This isn’t another “top things to see” list — it’s what 50 years of actually spending time in this place has taught me.
There’s something magnetic about the Peak District. Maybe it’s the rolling gritstone edges that stretch for miles, or the steep … Read more
I started my journey of ultralight backpacking due to my health. One winter, a couple of years ago, I missed … Read more
Set amongst the beautiful fells of south-west Yorkshire Dales National Park, you’ll find the perfect location for Horton-in-Ribblesdale camping. Here, … Read more
Discover the tragic and fascinating aircraft crash sites of The Lake District. Aircraft Crash Sites in the lake district The … Read more
Everyone knows of the maps produced by Ordnance Survey, but what of its origins? What was it that fueled the … Read more