Skiddaw, Lake District
Vivienne Crow gives us a magnificent, bus-assisted tour of England's fourth-highest mountain
SKIDDAW’S MASSIVE BULK dominates the northern Lake District. Although its Jenkin Hill path is pounded by thousands of pairs of boots every year (this is England’s fourth highest mountain, after all) it’s not exactly a ‘fashionable’ destination. Some might say it lacks the grace and excitement of other Lakeland fells; but they’re wrong to dismiss this great big, loveable chunk of slate.
The most satisfying way to experience Skiddaw (931m/3054ft) is to combine the narrow Longside Edge ridge approach – by far the finest ascent – with the best descent – over quiet Sale How and through the steep-sided Glenderaterra valley.
Not only does this linear walk avoid busier paths, it also covers a variety of terrain and provides a taste of both sides of the mountain.
broadens. The path skirts the N flank of Carl Side’s grassy dome.
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Swing NE to push up through steep, loose scree. Reaching a cairn-cum-shelter on the summit plateau, turn L to reach the trig pillar. Standing at the edge of the National Park, with no other fells of comparable stature nearby, Skiddaw enjoys views that take in Lakeland’s highest peaks as well as Scotland’s Southern Uplands.
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From the top, retrace your steps for 260m. Keep L where your ascent route drops R. A few metres after a gate, head NE on a grass path. The harsh, imposing slopes of Skiddaw’s west face have now been replaced by the softer, more rounded landscape of the Northern Fells. The path, boggy at times, goes up and over Sale How.
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Keep Skiddaw House’s boundary wall on your right and follow it to a clear track. Cross this and follow a path swinging R, beside the hostel’s garden wall. Entering the Glenderaterra gap beyond a gate, keep R when the path splits. As you pass between Lonscale Fell and Blease Fell, the ground to the E plummets steeply to the valley floor. Emerge from the valley, ford Whit Beck and join the tourist route at a pedestrian gate.
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Turn R through a large gate to enter a parking area. After 70m, go through the gate on the L. Keep R at any forks as the well-trodden path descends. After crossing the A66, the edge of Keswick is reached at Briar Rigg.
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Turn L along this residential street. Go right at a roundabout, walk to the L of the leisure centre and turn R along the road. Go straight over a busy crossroads. When the road bends L, turn R and keep straight ahead when the pedestrian area ends. Go left at the next roundabout, and the Booths bus stands are on the R in 130m.