Beda Fell - a rocky summit crest with Ullswater below, Hallin Fell across the water and the long slopes of Place Fell to the right under heavy cloud

Wainwright — Far Eastern FellsAlso a Birkett

Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Beda Fell at 509m (1,670ft) is a long, smooth ridge above Martindale, its summit giving outstanding views of Ullswater and the northern Eastern Fells.

509 m

Height

~2.5–3 h

Typical time

Bonus Birketts

See routes & download GPX → Parking & buses →

Home › Fells › Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Written and walked by Lee McCoy

509 mWainwright — Far Eastern Fells✓ summit is also a Birkett+8 bonus Birketts within 3 km Straightforward in cloud

Is it worth going? — Today’s conditions & 7-day summit forecast

Modelled guidance for the 509 m summit. Always check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.

On the summit today (Sat 12 Sep): 15° to 8°C, gusts to 43 mph, 10.7 mm of rain forecast.

Sat 12 Sep

🌧️

15° / 8°

💨 43 mph

🌧 10.7 mm (100%)

Sun 13 Sep

☁️

15° / 8°

💨 15 mph

🌧 0.0 mm (12%)

Mon 14 Sep

🌦️

16° / 12°

💨 35 mph

🌧 2.6 mm (100%)

Tue 15 Sep

🌦️

15° / 10°

💨 35 mph

🌧 5.0 mm (98%)

Wed 16 Sep

🌦️

12° / 8°

💨 27 mph

🌧 1.3 mm (54%)

Thu 17 Sep

🌦️

11° / 8°

💨 34 mph

🌧 9.3 mm (97%)

Fri 18 Sep

🌦️

12° / 9°

💨 35 mph

🌧 10.2 mm (92%)

Forecast snapshot from 12 Sep 2026, 18:50 UTC — refreshed nightly and updated live in your browser. Temperatures and gusts adjusted to the 509 m summit altitude via Open-Meteo. Summit conditions are always harsher than the valley — check the professional mountain forecasts before you go.

Pro mountain forecasts: MWIS · Met Office mountain forecast

Beda Fell (Beda Head) at a glance

Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Beda Fell at 509m (1,670ft) is a long, smooth ridge above Martindale, its summit giving outstanding views of Ullswater and the northern Eastern Fells. Wainwright described the traverse of Beda Fell and the ridge to Winter Crag as one of the finest Ullswater ridge walks for its views of the lake. The ascent from Martindale is pleasant and straightforward. Often combined with Angletarn Pikes and The Nab for a fine Martindale circuit. The Ullswater views are exceptional.

Field notes

The journey over from Angeltarn Pikes seemed endless, although in reality it's about two miles. It's a gentle stroll and the view over Ullswater was good, but interrupted by Hallin Fell which pokes its diminutive self up and crowds your attention. Because its so remote its actually one of the better places around Ullswater to relax in solitude. There's some grassy patches should you want to recline on a sunny day, while the craggy rocks are aligned the wrong way to comfortably rest on a wet day.

Routes up Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Hand-mapped, with GPX to download — full maps further down.

Angletarn Pikes and the Martindale round

22.2 km · ~6.7 hr · Hard

A long, quiet circuit of the Far Eastern fells above Patterdale — over Rest Dodd and out to the remote peak of The Nab, then back across Brock Crags to the twin tops of Angletarn Pikes, and home over Beda Fell and Place Fell. Twenty-two kilometres and six summits in some of the emptiest country in the National Park.

Brock Crags, Angletarn Pikes, Beda Fell & Place Fell

19.7 km · ~5.7 hr · Hard

A big, varied Far Eastern round above Patterdale and the quiet Boredale and Bannerdale valleys — over Brock Crags to lovely Angle Tarn (one of the prettiest sheets of water in the Lakes), along the grassy whaleback of Beda Fell, and up characterful Place Fell for its superb view down Ullswater. Nearly 20 km and a proper day out, but rarely hard underfoot.

Finishing of the Far Eastern Fells

22.5 km · ~6.6 hr

Rest Dodd, The Nab, Brock Crags and the Angletarn Pikes — six tops in 22.5 km with 1,279 m of climbing. Severe for both length and steepness and hard for navigation and exposure: about 6.6 hours and a full day out.

Classifications & hill data

Wainwright

Far Eastern

Birkett

Fellranger

Synge

509 m

Height

1,670 ft

In feet

NY 4288 1716

Grid ref

The short answers

Is Beda Fell (Beda Head) a Wainwright?

Beda Fell (Beda Head) is a Wainwright. It is also on the Birkett list, the Synge list and the Fellranger list.

Where do you park for Beda Fell (Beda Head)?

The nearest car park we hold is Beda Fell (layby), about 0.8 km from the summit in a straight line. The next is Gowk Hill (layby), 1.3 km out. We only look within 2.5 km, measured straight-line: over longer distances a road may cross a pass and the drive bears no relation to the line.

How hard is Beda Fell (Beda Head)?

The shortest way up we hold is Brock Crags, Angletarn Pikes, Beda Fell & Place Fell — 19.7 km, 1070 m of ascent, about 5.7 hours. On our scale its hardest axis is steepness — Hard.

All axes: steepness: Hard · length: Hard · navigation: Moderate · terrain: Moderate · exposure: Easy.

My hikes over Beda Fell (Beda Head) (Strava)

1 logged hike pass over this summit:

Finishing of the Far Eastern Fells (opens in new tab) — 23.1 km · 1463 m ascent · 6h 01m moving · 14 Aug 2026

Interactive route maps and photos load here for visitors with JavaScript. Data from Strava.

Parking & buses for Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Best parking to hike Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Where we have the data, each parking spot also shows the nearest public toilets and facilities (cafés, pubs, shops).

Beda Fell (layby) — 0.8 km from summit (straight line)

Nearest fells: Beda Fell (Beda Head) (0.8 km), Gowk Hill (1.1 km), Brownthwaite Crag (1.2 km). Free (OSM-tagged). Grass surface (OSM-tagged).

Directions Something changed here?

Gowk Hill (layby) — 1.3 km from summit (straight line)

Nearest fells: Gowk Hill (0.8 km), The Nab (1.1 km), Brownthwaite Crag (1.2 km). Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged). Fee not verified — check signage on arrival.

Directions Something changed here?

Steel Knotts (layby) — 1.3 km from summit (straight line)

Nearest fells: Steel Knotts (Pikeawassa - Steel Knotts) (0.7 km), Sleet Fell (1.2 km), Beda Fell (Beda Head) (1.3 km). Free (OSM-tagged). Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged).

Directions Something changed here?

Martindale, St Peter's church (free, limited) — 2.1 km from summit (straight line)

Quiet side of Ullswater — Hallin Fell, Steel Knotts, Beda Fell, Pikeawassa.

Directions Something changed here?

If it is full: Aira Force, High Cascades (NT, paid) (3.6 km); Aira Force (NT, paid) (3.9 km)

Hallin Fell, south-east car park (free) — 2.1 km from summit (straight line)

Walking base for Hallin Fell, Sleet Fell, Low Birk Fell and Birk Fell (Bleaberry Knott - Birk Fell) — the 'Hallin Fell' route starts 8 m away. Also serves 'Birketts to the South of Ullswater'. Free (OSM-tagged). Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged).

Directions Something changed here?

Positions are approximate — zoom the map to confirm. Lakeland car parks fill before 9am on fine weekends.

Tip: pan and zoom the interactive map at the top of this page to spot other potential parking near your route.

Vehicles are left entirely at their owner’s risk. We list places people park; we cannot vouch for any of them. Judge it on the day: take valuables with you, leave nothing on show, and if a spot feels wrong when you get there, park somewhere else.

Getting to Beda Fell (Beda Head) by bus

The 508 stops at Hartsop, in road end, 20 m from the start of Finishing of the Far Eastern Fells. The last bus is 17:44 towards Penrith (508) and 15:50 towards Keswick (509), every day. Checked against the operator’s timetable, 7 September 2026. Times here are a guide, not a promise — leave yourself more than the minute.

Stagecoach 508 “Ullswater Bus”

Penrith – Pooley Bridge – Aira Force – Glenridding – Patterdale (summer services continue over Kirkstone Pass to Troutbeck and Windermere)

Catch it from: Penrith · Windermere (summer only)

The key route from Penrith for the Eastern and Far Eastern fells: Helvellyn from Glenridding, Place Fell, the Hartsop fells. The summer Kirkstone extension drops you at the pass for Red Screes and Caudale Moor.

Rural routes change seasonally — confirm on stagecoachbus.com (opens in new tab) or Traveline before relying on a last bus.

Hazards on Beda Fell (Beda Head)

No hazard card for this fell. The usual open-fell rules apply: check the forecast, carry a map and compass, and turn back in cloud if the ground is not what you expected.

Navigating Beda Fell (Beda Head) in cloud

Straightforward

A broad, gently-sloping top with little to steer by — easy to lose your bearings and hard to relocate in mist. Navigation here is relatively straightforward even in cloud — but carry map and compass and know how to use them; a low score never means “safe”.

In winter — snow, whiteout, cornices, buried features — every top demands full winter navigation skills whatever its band, and a broad, gentle summit can be the worst place of all. See walking in bad weather and the navigation guide.

How Beda Fell (Beda Head) compares with all 214 — the Clag Index: navigating in cloud. A relative, deliberately cautious guide; the site can’t navigate for you.

Map & nearby Birketts

Free mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap (switch layers top-right). Parking positions are approximate.

Nearest parking: Beda Fell (layby), about 0.8 km from the summit (straight line). Full parking, toilets and bus details are below.

Birketts near Beda Fell (Beda Head) (within 3 km)

These Birkett tops are not Wainwright summits — detour to them on this walk and they are pure profit. Distances are straight-line; allow extra for terrain.

1.4 km EBrownthwaite Crag444 m · Far Eastern

1.7 km ESEGowk Hill471 m · Far Eastern

1.7 km NWHigh Dodd501 m · Far Eastern

1.8 km NNWSleet Fell378 m · Far Eastern

2.5 km WThe Knight552 m · Far Eastern

2.6 km NWLow Birk Fell373 m · Far Eastern

2.8 km WNWBirk Fell (Bleaberry Knott)512 m · Far Eastern

2.9 km SERed Crag711 m · Far Eastern

Routes over Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Angletarn Pikes and the Martindale roundPlanned

22.23 km · ~1349 m ascent · loop · ~6.5–9 h · Hard

Summits: Rest Dodd The Nab Brock Crags (Wainwright)Angletarn Pikes (Angletarn Pikes North Top)Beda Fell (Beda Head)Place Fell

✎️ This is the antidote to Helvellyn on an August Saturday. The Nab is one of the least-visited Wainwrights precisely because of the deer forest, and the reward for the boggy trudge out to it is a summit almost nobody stands on. Angletarn Pikes and its tarn are the prettiest thing in the Far Eastern fells.

⬇️ Download GPX

Best season: Late spring to autumn. The ground between Rest Dodd and The Nab is notoriously boggy and the navigation is committing in cloud — save this one for a clear day with dry ground underfoot.

⚠️ Warnings: The Nab sits in the Martindale deer forest — England’s oldest deer herd. Access is by a permissive route only; keep to it, keep dogs on a lead, and do not wander. During the autumn rut the estate asks walkers to stay away entirely. Check before you go. The ground either side of The Nab is genuinely boggy — peat hags and wet channels that swallow the path. Expect wet feet and slow going, and do not judge your timings by the distance alone. A big day: over 22 km and 1,350 m of ascent, with navigation graded hard. The high ground is broad, rolling and short of landmarks — in cloud this is a compass-and-pacing exercise. Long, remote and thinly walked. You will not meet many people, which is the joy of it and also the point — carry what you need to get yourself out.

Full route guide ↗

🥾 Walked in part — Lee walked this ground in August 2026; km 0.2–1.4, km 15.9–18.0 of this line are from the map.

A planned line is a suggestion, not a guarantee — conditions change. Navigate independently and carry a map & compass. How to use this guide.

Brock Crags, Angletarn Pikes, Beda Fell & Place FellPlanned

19.71 km · ~1070 m ascent · loop · ~5.5–7.5 h · Hard

Summits: Brock Crags (Wainwright)Angletarn Pikes (Angletarn Pikes North Top)Beda Fell (Beda Head)Place Fell

✎️ A grand tour of the quieter Far Eastern fells, with Angle Tarn and the Ullswater view from Place Fell as the highlights — a long but rewarding round.

⬇️ Download GPX

Best season: Year-round in good conditions, best in clear weather for the Ullswater and High Street views. A long day — the ridges and cols are boggy in places and slow when wet.

⚠️ Warnings: A long day (nearly 20 km, over 1,000 m of ascent) — start early, carry food, water and layers, and keep an eye on the time and the light. Boggy in places, especially along the Beda Fell ridge and the cols — slow when wet. The higher, quieter ground can be confusing in mist — carry map and compass. Livestock on the lower fells and valleys; keep dogs under close control.

Full route guide ↗

🥾 Walked in part — Lee walked this ground in August 2026; km 8.2–12.2, km 13.7–15.9 of this line are from the map.

A planned line is a suggestion, not a guarantee — conditions change. Navigate independently and carry a map & compass. How to use this guide.

Finishing of the Far Eastern FellsPlanned

22.5 km · ~1279 m ascent · linear · ~6.5–9 h

Summits: Rest Dodd The Nab Brock Crags (Wainwright)Angletarn Pikes (Angletarn Pikes North Top)Beda Fell (Beda Head)Place Fell

⬇️ Download GPX

Full route guide ↗

A planned line is a suggestion, not a guarantee — conditions change. Navigate independently and carry a map & compass. How to use this guide.

On the hill: terrain and water on Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Water & shelter on the way up

On the Angletarn Pikes and the Martindale round route:

🚌 Road End (467 m)

On the Brock Crags, Angletarn Pikes, Beda Fell & Place Fell route:

🛖 map (42 m)🛖 map (55 m)

On the Finishing of the Far Eastern Fells route:

🛖 map (9 m)🛖 map (94 m)🚌 Road End (44 m)🚌 Patterdale Hotel (E bound) (63 m)🚌 Patterdale Hotel (W bound) (93 m)🚌 Cow Bridge car park (233 m)⛺ Patterdale Youth Hostel (428 m)⛺ Patterdale Youth Hostel camp site (454 m)

The view from Beda Fell (Beda Head)

The 360° skyline from Beda Fell (Beda Head)

A computed 360° skyline — every visible named top labelled by distance and bearing, from the terrain model in perfect clarity, not photographed. Drag to pan; reveal the far four-nations horizon.

drag to pan · arrow keys

What you can see from Beda Fell (Beda Head), by direction

East: Wether Hill (3 km), Loadpot Hill (3 km)
South-east: Red Crag (3 km), High Raise (4 km)
South: Rest Dodd (4 km), Rampsgill Head (4 km), The Knott (5 km), Gray Crag (6 km), Stony Cove Pike (7 km), Caudale Moor (7 km), Red Screes (9 km)
South-west: Gavel Pike (7 km), St Sunday Crag (7 km), Hart Crag (8 km), Dove Crag (9 km), Cofa Pike (9 km), Fairfield (9 km), Dollywaggon Pike (9 km)
West: Hart Side (7 km), Green Side (8 km), Stybarrow Dodd (9 km), Nethermost Pike (9 km), High Crag (9 km), Great Dodd (9 km)
North-west: Randerside (9 km), Clough Head (11 km), Blencathra (15 km), Gategill Fell Top (15 km), Bannerdale Crags (15 km), Atkinson Pike (15 km), Knowe Crags (15 km), Bowscale Fell (16 km), Skiddaw Lesser Man (19 km), Skiddaw Little Man (19 km), Skiddaw South Top (20 km), Skiddaw Middle Top (20 km), Skiddaw (21 km), Skiddaw North Top (21 km), Knott (21 km), Broad End (21 km)

On the clearest days the far horizon adds: Broad Law (110 km, Scotland), White Coomb (102 km, Scotland), Ettrick Pen (93 km, Scotland), Wisp Hill (82 km, Scotland), Roan Fell (76 km, Scotland), Cauldcleuch Head (84 km, Scotland), Dun Rig (116 km, Scotland), Calkin Rig (72 km, Scotland).

Computed from terrain in perfect clarity, not photographed · distances are straight-line.

Computed from Copernicus GLO-30 terrain; distant tops from the Database of British and Irish Hills (opens in new tab) (CC BY 4.0). See how we compute the view · and the summit intervisibility report below.

Sunrise and sunset on Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Beda Fell (Beda Head) waits for the sun. Its longest wait of the modelled year falls at midwinter, when the sun is up for 38 minutes before it clears this skyline — first light 09:10 against an almanac sunrise of 08:32. You are standing in shadow while the valley below is already lit. The sun comes up to the south-east from here (139.6°), and the skyline on that bearing stands at 3.45°.

Midsummer. The filled shape is the skyline as seen from the summit; the line is the sun’s path. Where they meet is first light — everything left of that point is the wait.

Times for 2026, in Lakeland clock time (GMT in winter, BST in summer) — and model outputs rather than observations.
	First light	Almanac sunrise	Difference
Midsummer	04:42 BST ±5.0 min	04:36	+6 min
Equinox	06:37 GMT ±5.0 min	06:15	+22 min
Midwinter	09:10 GMT ±5.0 min	08:32	+38 min

A low, open northern horizon — the ground falls away northwards (mean -0.03°).

Last light — when the sun leaves Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Beda Fell (Beda Head) loses the sun early. Its earliest evening of the modelled year falls at the September equinox, when last light is 25 minutes before almanac sunset — 18:46 against 19:11. The sun goes down to the west from here (266.4°), and the skyline on that bearing stands at 3.27°.

The evening of the same three days. A negative difference means a ridge takes the sun before the valley loses it.
	Last light	Almanac sunset	Difference
Midsummer	21:39 BST ±5.0 min	21:52	-13 min
Equinox	18:01 GMT ±5.0 min	18:25	-24 min
Midwinter	15:29 GMT ±5.0 min	15:48	-19 min

Computed, not photographed. First light is the first minute the sun’s upper limb clears this summit’s own skyline and last light the last minute it is still clear of it, both solved against the 360° horizon profile behind The View from Beda Fell (Beda Head). Almanac sunrise and sunset are the flat-horizon convention. Every time carries a ± band from the 30 m elevation model — it smooths arêtes and cornices, so nothing here claims better than five minutes. These are daylight figures, not a descent plan: the light goes on fading for a good while after the sun leaves, and going down in it is a decision about your own ground and party, not about this table.

What you can see from Beda Fell (Beda Head)

On a clear day — computed sightlines, curvature- and refraction-corrected.

44Wainwrights in view+6 marginal

—Sea in viewnone from here

All 44 Wainwrights in clear view (nearest first)

Steel Knotts (Pikeawassa - Steel Knotts), The Nab, Place Fell, Wether Hill, Hallin Fell, Angletarn Pikes (Angletarn Pikes North Top), Loadpot Hill, Rest Dodd, Brock Crags (Wainwright), Bonscale Pike, High Raise (High Street), Arnison Crag, Rampsgill Head, The Knott (High Street), Arthur's Pike, Kidsty Pike, Gowbarrow Fell (Wainwright summit), Gray Crag, Birks, Hartsop Dodd, Little Mell Fell, St Sunday Crag, Stony Cove Pike (Caudale Moor), Hart Side, Middle Dodd, Hart Crag, Dove Crag, Stybarrow Dodd, Great Mell Fell, Fairfield, Nethermost Pike, Red Screes, Dollywaggon Pike, Great Dodd, Clough Head, Souther Fell, Blencathra - Hallsfell Top, Bannerdale Crags, Bowscale Fell, Lonscale Fell, Carrock Fell, Skiddaw Little Man, Skiddaw, Knott

How Beda Fell (Beda Head)’s view compares with all 214 — the View Report: every Wainwright ranked by what you can see from the top.

Sightlines from a bare-earth terrain model (forests and buildings not included), corrected for the Earth’s curvature and average atmospheric refraction. “Distant” sightlines and any over 100 km depend on exceptionally clear air. Modelled from Copernicus GLO-30 open elevation data — a guide to the view, not a guarantee of any single one.

Places to stay near this fell

Greenbank Farm Bed and Breakfast (opens in new tab) guest house

about 1.8 km from the start, in a straight line

Ranked first despite being the eighth-nearest candidate because it answers more of the 6pm questions than anything else in the radius, and it answers them in its own sentences with prices attached: drying facilities, evening meals from £14.00, packed lunches at £6.00, and the only stated room composition on an independent B&B here. Its family room is a room for three, not four — which is exactly the fact a family of four needs before booking, and the reason a bare family_rooms=yes would have been a worse row than this one.

The farmhouse sits below Arnison Crag and looks across at Place Fell and Angletarn Pikes — the two fells this start's routes climb.

Drying room “We also have drying facilities and a large patio and garden to enjoy the view.”
Family rooms “Family: Room for three with a double and one single bed.”
Evening meal “We offer hearty home-cooked breakfasts and evening meals as well as packed lunches if required.”
Packed lunch “Packed Lunches £6.00”

Worth knowing before you book

These places state on their own site that they do not take children.

Patterdale Youth Hostel (YHA Patterdale) (opens in new tab) “Under 12s are not permitted in dorm rooms.”

What each place says about itself, quoted from their own site. We have not stayed at any of them, and there are no prices, no booking and no affiliate links. Distances are straight lines from each route start, never walking times. Properties found via OpenStreetMap (opens in new tab).

Frequently asked questions about Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Is Beda Fell an easy walk?

Yes, by the standards of the fells around it. Beda Fell is a long grassy ridge running out above Martindale, and walking the crest of it is about as pleasant and straightforward as ridge walking gets in this corner of the district.

The catch is that we have not mapped a short way up it. Our routes over Beda Fell are big days that use it as one link in a chain: 19.7 km with 1070 m of ascent over Brock Crags, Angletarn Pikes and Place Fell, which we rate Hard. Taken on its own from Martindale it is a far gentler proposition than those numbers imply.

Questions drawn from real Google “People also ask” searches; answers written and fact-checked by us. · Reviewed 2026-08-30 · Suggest a question or correction (opens in new tab)

Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Is it worth going? — Today’s conditions & 7-day summit forecast

Beda Fell (Beda Head) at a glance

Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Field notes

Routes up Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Classifications & hill data

The short answers

Is Beda Fell (Beda Head) a Wainwright?

Where do you park for Beda Fell (Beda Head)?

How hard is Beda Fell (Beda Head)?

My hikes over Beda Fell (Beda Head) (Strava)

Parking & buses for Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Best parking to hike Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Getting to Beda Fell (Beda Head) by bus

Hazards on Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Navigating Beda Fell (Beda Head) in cloud

Map & nearby Birketts

Birketts near Beda Fell (Beda Head) (within 3 km)

Routes over Beda Fell (Beda Head)

On the hill: terrain and water on Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Water & shelter on the way up

The view from Beda Fell (Beda Head)

The 360° skyline from Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Sunrise and sunset on Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Last light — when the sun leaves Beda Fell (Beda Head)

What you can see from Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Places to stay near this fell

Greenbank Farm Bed and Breakfast (opens in new tab) guest house

Worth knowing before you book

Frequently asked questions about Beda Fell (Beda Head)

Other fells near Beda Fell (Beda Head)