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10 routes and 9 fells within about 5 km of Coniston Water — ranked, with live conditions.

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Walks by Coniston Water

10 routes and 9 fells within about 5 km of Coniston Water, nearest first. Each fell carries today’s conditions and the bus where there is one. Planning the trip? See the full Coniston Water guide for parking, buses and where to stay.

I walked the Old Man round from the village on 31 August 2024. In mid-January the sun drops behind the fells there at about 14:04, a little over two hours before sunset, so a winter afternoon in the village is light but in shade.

Walking routes near Coniston Water, by how close they come to the water

Effort is the size of the day, from the distance and the climb; each route’s own page grades the steepness, navigation, exposure and ground underfoot, and names the hardest.

On the shore 4 walks

Each route’s line comes within 50 m of the water’s edge somewhere along it, measured against OpenStreetMap’s outline of the lake.

  • Top o' Selside Start 1.3 km away8.71 km~381 m~2¼–3¼ hModerate effort Hard: navigationPlannedPark: Dodgson Wood car park, Coniston Water east shoreThree tops in the woods east of Coniston Water — Top o' Selside, Arnsbarrow Hill and Stang Hill. 8.7 km and 381 m, rated hard to navigate. About 2¼–3¼ hours.Navigation: estimated from the map, not checked on the ground. Summary checked by Lee McCoy, 26 August 2026.
  • West Side of Coniston Start 3 km away5.8 km~27 m~1–1¾ hModerate: navigation🏞️ Easy & familyPlannedOut and back · Park: Coniston (layby) · Bus: 505, 660 m walk from Coniston, outside John Ruskin SchoolAn out-and-back of about 5.8 km from the lake end of Lake Road in Coniston, with a short loop where it turns, on permissive cycle paths, surfaced and compacted tracks and lanes, with almost no climbing (about 30 m).
  • Low Light Haw Start 3.1 km away5.63 km~247 m~1½–2¼ hEasy effort Moderate: steepness and navigationPlannedPark: Crab Haws car park, Bethecar Moor (free)A short loop onto Low Light Haw, one of the Outlying Fells, on Bethecar Moor on the wild eastern side of Coniston Water. A steep pull up through the woods onto open, heathery moor, and a wide view over Coniston Water and the southern fells. Under 6 km, but with one genuinely steep climb: a fine short outing for a clear day.Measured from the GPX track: the steepest sustained descent, about 21%.
  • The Sun Pub Walk (Coniston) Start 3.6 km away6.42 km~202 m~1½–2¼ hModerate: terrain🏞️ Easy & familyPlannedPark: Coniston, Ruskin Avenue (paid) · Bus: 505 at the startA short circuit from the door of The Sun in Coniston: 6.4 km with around 200 m of climbing, on the east side of the village. Our description of the way round is being rewritten to match the track; until then, follow the map and the GPX.

Within 500 m of the water 1 walk

Each route’s line comes within 500 m of the water’s edge, but not within 50 m.

  • Carron Crag from Grizedale Start 3.5 km away10.99 km~392 m~2¾–4 hModerate effort Hard: navigationPlannedPark: Grizedale Forest Visitor Centre (paid) · Bus: 505, 4.8 km walk from Hawkshead, at Tourist Information CentreThe high point of Grizedale Forest, a loop of 11 km with 392 m of climbing averaging about 9% with a 21% pull over 250 m at the start. Rated hard to navigate — forest tracks all look alike. About 2¾–4 hours.Measured from the GPX track: the steepest sustained climb, about 18%. Navigation: estimated from the map, not checked on the ground. Summary checked by Lee McCoy, 26 August 2026.

More walks within about 5 km 5 walks

Each starts within about 5 km of the lake, and its line stays more than 500 m from the water.

  • Dow Crag without the Old Man Start 3.2 km away11.88 km~630 m~3¼–4¾ hModerate effort Hard: steepness and navigationPlannedPark: Walna Scar Road, Coniston (paid, rough track) · Bus: 505, 1.8 km walk from Coniston, outside The Ruskin CentreA loop of about 11.9 km from the Walna Scar Road car park above Coniston, with about 630 m of climbing: out along the Walna Scar Road, up a public footpath past Goat's Water to Goat's Hawse and the top of Dow Crag, along the ridge over Buck Pike and Brown Pike, out over Walna Scar to White Maiden and back, and down the Walna Scar Road.
  • The Coniston Horseshoe Start 3.3 km away20.8 km~1333 m~6¼–8½ hSevere effort Severe: distanceWalked in partPark: Walna Scar Road, Coniston (paid, rough track) · Bus: 505, 1.8 km walk from Coniston, outside The Ruskin CentreThe full Coniston Horseshoe — the grand ~21 km, ~1,330 m round of seven Wainwrights above Coniston: Wetherlam, the steep Prison Band onto Swirl How, Great Carrs, Grey Friar, Brim Fell, the Old Man of Coniston and Dow Crag. The big day out; for the shorter version see the <a href="/routes/coniston-old-man-round.html">Coniston Old Man round</a>.Measured from the GPX track: the steepest sustained climb, about 31%.
  • North of Coniston Birketts Start 3.5 km away7.96 km~494 m~2¼–3¼ hModerate effort Hard: steepness and navigationWalked in partPark: Coniston Station car park (paid) · Bus: 505, 500 m walk from Coniston, outside The Ruskin CentreThree Birketts on the Yewdale fells north of Coniston — Long Crag, High Wythow and Low Wythow — on a short but steep loop. Steep for the legs (one descent of about 34% over 250 m), harder for the map: faint paths and a clear-day-only navigation challenge, rewarded with rarely-trodden tops and a fine view over Coniston Water.Measured from the GPX track: the steepest descent, about 34% over 250 m. Navigation: estimated from the map, not checked on the ground.
  • Coniston Old Man Round Start 3.5 km away16.1 km~1155 m~5–7 hHard effort Severe: steepnessWalked August 2024Park: Coniston Station car park (paid) · Bus: 505, 520 m walk from Coniston, outside The Ruskin CentreA satisfying round of the Coniston fells, and a simpler approach to the Old Man than my longer outing. From Coniston it climbs to the Old Man itself, then follows the high ridge over Brim Fell and Swirl How and back over Wetherlam, with an out-and-back to Grey Friar along the way, which the distance and climb include. You can extend it further by adding Dow Crag. Big views over the southern fells and the sea, old copper-mine history underfoot, and a proper mountain feel without the biggest mileage.Measured from the GPX track: the distance.
  • The Old Man of Coniston, up and down from Coniston Start 3.5 km away8.81 km~759 m~3–4¼ hModerate effort Severe: steepnessWalked in partPark: Coniston, Ruskin Avenue (paid) · Bus: 505 at the startA loop of about 8.8 km from the middle of Coniston to the top of the Old Man of Coniston (802 m) and back, with about 760 m of climbing: out along the Walna Scar Road and up the fell's south side by Little Arrow Edge, then down the main path past Low Water Quarry and Coniston Waterfall into the village.

Fells within about 5 km

None of the fells here are rated good to climb on 27 October — see fells to save for a bad day →
A prediction from our daily fell score, not a guarantee — always check the mountain forecast before you go. Our daily score covers the Wainwrights only, so the 8 Outlying fells here have no rating. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.

Map

● routes · ● fells within ~5 km

Distances are straight-line from the centre of Coniston Water — ‘within ~5 km’ means as the crow flies, not that the walk necessarily starts there. Always plan your own route and check the bus before you travel.