561 mWainwright — Far Eastern Fells+1 bonus Birkett within 3 km Fewer traps in Clag
Brock Crags at 561m (1,841ft) is a craggy little summit above Hartsop and Hayeswater Gill, sitting between Angletarn Pikes and Rest Dodd on the ridge above Patterdale. Wainwright noted its fine views across to the High Street range and down to Hayeswater.
Summit conditions on Brock Crags (Wainwright)
On the summit on Tuesday 27 October: 11° to 6°C, gusts to 58 mph, 9.5 mm of rain forecast over the whole day, midnight to midnight.
Against our lines, Tuesday 27 October: wind, cold and cloud from the Met Office UKV 2 km model (daylight hours, as in the verdict above); rain from the summit line’s forecast (the whole day). A tile is large when this top is past its line.
Wind on the top
Past the line
52mph, our estimate for the open top in the worst daylight hour
The Met Office 2 km model’s gust of 47 mph times our exposure factor of 1.11. The summit line above gives Open-Meteo’s highest gust for the whole day, 58 mph, before any exposure factor.
under 25
25–35
35–45
45–55
55+
The line Our line: 25 mph, where our wind Scale begins its 25–35 band: “balance affected; buffeting on exposed ground”. MWIS (opens in new tab) describes what wind does to a walker across a range rather than at a line: from about 20–25 mph it starts to affect your balance.
Estimated: it is not calibrated against summit readings, and the two forecasts can disagree by more than a band.
Rain, and the becks
Past the line
9.5mm of rain over the whole day, midnight to midnight
The same figure as the summit line above and the 7-day forecast.
The line Our line: 6 mm in the day, where our scorer counts a day as soaking. We read rainfall, never river levels: becks in spate.
Open-Meteo’s forecast. It says nothing about rain already in the ground.
Also checkedcold: feels like 2 °C, no ice or snow forecast; cloud: a clear-top reading of 43 out of 100, over our in-cloud line of 20. Under a line is not the same as fine: it means only that these figures are under the lines we use.
Not in these tiles Lightning, river levels, snow or ice already lying, and the ground under your feet. A tile cannot see them, so an empty space here never means they are absent.
Snow figures with a second opinion: Powered by Met Office data
Wainwrights are scored for walking conditions each morning from the Met Office’s UK forecast model, read for each summit through Open-Meteo; the forecast figures are Open-Meteo’s, worked out for the summit’s height. How we check →
Choose the way up before the car park: these three routes start from two places, and the last two rows give the parking and bus at each route’s own start. Full maps further down.
Hands for a few steps: the highest rock of Angletarn Pikes' North Top (about km 11.4).
Exposure
Easy
Easy
Not assessed
Navigation
Moderate
Hard
Hard
Steepest stretch
Descent of about 27% at 15.7 km (Hard)
Climb of about 30% at 1.2 km (Hard)
Descent of about 31% at 4.0 km (Hard)
After the summit
Over Angletarn Pikes (Angletarn Pikes North Top), Beda Fell (Beda Head) and Place Fell
Over Angletarn Pikes (Angletarn Pikes North Top), Beda Fell (Beda Head) and Place Fell
Over Angletarn Pikes (Angletarn Pikes North Top), Beda Fell (Beda Head) and Place Fell
Walked or planned
Walked in part; km 2.8–3.3, km 10.0–14.9, km 16.7–19.3 from the map
Walked in part; km 0.3–1.7, km 19.4–22.1 from the map
Walked by Lee, August 2026
Car park at the start
Hartsop village (donation)
Hartsop village (donation)
Cow Bridge, Hartsop (paid)
Bus to the start
508, 580 m walk from Hartsop, adjacent to road end
508, 560 m walk from Hartsop, adjacent to road end
508 at the start
Times run from fast to steady pace (Naismith’s rule). Scrambling quotes each route’s own notes; “not mentioned” means they do not say, not that the ground has none. Each route’s page has its map, stages and GPX.
Distance, climb and the steepest stretch are measured from each route’s GPX track; the other grades are set on the ground, judged from the map or estimated from OpenStreetMap, and each route page says which. How we check →
Is Brock Crags an easy walk?
Yes, in itself — a low knobbly fell above Hartsop with a short climb and a rocky little top, and nothing on it that asks anything of you beyond a bit of route-finding among the outcrops.
Our routes over it are long chains rather than the short valley climb most people do: 19.7 km with 1072 m of ascent with Angle Tarn, Beda Fell and Place Fell, rated Hard. From Hartsop alone it is a considerably smaller morning than that.
Route starts first, then the car parks nearest the summit, which are not always a way up.
Hartsop village (donation) — at the start of Brock Crags, Angletarn Pikes, Beda Fell & Place Fell and Angletarn Pikes and the Martindale round
For Hartsop Dodd, Gray Crag, High Street via Hayeswater, Brock Crags. It asks an optional donation, not a charge (Lee, who walked past it on 14 August 2026). People also use the Cow Bridge car park, 0.9 km away, if they would rather not drive down the lane.
If it is full: Cow Bridge, Hartsop (paid) (0.9 km, 32 m up)
Cow Bridge, Hartsop (paid) — 0.3 km from the start of Finishing of the Far Eastern Fells (straight line)
Paid car park by Brothers Water — Hartsop above How, Dovedale, Caudale Moor. Fees: pay and display; coins and cards; RingGo ID 37323 (LDNPA, checked August 2026).
Cow Bridge (layby) — 1.4 km from summit (straight line)
Walking base for Middle Dodd, Little Hart Crag (Little Hart Crag - West Top), High Hartsop Dodd and Gale Crag — the 'Middle Dodd Little Hart Crag and High Hartsop Dodd' route starts 56 m away. Also serves 'Hartsop Fells and Hart Crag'. Free (OSM-tagged). Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged).
2 more places to park near Brock Crags (Wainwright)
Brothers Water, east shore (free) — 1.6 km from summit (straight line)
On the A592 by the east shore of Brothers Water (OpenStreetMap, 26 m from the road). The nearest route starts are 'Finishing of the Far Eastern Fells', 0.8 km north on foot at Hartsop, and the two at Cow Bridge, 1.0 km north on foot. Free (OSM-tagged). Compacted surface (OSM-tagged).
Bridgend, south (layby) — 1.9 km from summit (straight line)
On the A592 at Bridgend, between Patterdale and Hartsop, beside the Bridgend bus stops. The nearest route starts are the two at Cow Bridge, 1.1 km south on foot, and the two in Patterdale, 1.9 km north on foot ('St Sunday Crag', which climbs Arnison Crag, and 'Place Fell and The Knight'). Free (OSM-tagged).
Of the pay-and-display machine tickets sold at Cow Bridge from 17 August 2024 to 31 March 2026, 34% were bought before 10am (our count of FOI/2026.500 ticket data). Contains public sector information provided by the Lake District National Park Authority and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Vehicles are left at their owner’s risk: we list places people park and cannot vouch for any of them. Take valuables with you and leave nothing on show.
Buses
The 508 and 509 stop at Hartsop, in road end, a 20 m walk from the start of Finishing of the Far Eastern Fells — a route we rate Severe overall (hardest: distance). 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; that timetable runs to 1 November 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.
Notes from the Finishing of the Far Eastern Fells route
If you need to get off (the leg from The Nab): From Satura Crag, you can head south to the descent path into the Hartsop valley.
Quoted from the route page: the note for the leg that reaches Brock Crags (Wainwright).
We have not written a hazard card for this fell yet, and that is not a sign that it is low-hazard. Read the warnings on the route pages that climb it, check the forecast, carry a map and compass, and turn back in cloud if the ground is not what you expected. The National Park Authority’s What to pack page, AdventureSmart’s hill walking kit list and Mountain Rescue England and Wales’s safety page are linked from our what to carry guide.
Navigating in cloud
Fewer traps in cloud
Of the three things our terrain model measures, the highest reading here is the amount of walkable ground near the summit that lies close to steep ground or crag. This top is in the lowest of the index’s four bands, and a low band never means “safe”: carry map and compass and know how to use them.
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 Brock Crags (Wainwright) compares with all 214: the Clag Index (experimental).
If you need Mountain Rescue
Dial 999 or 112 and ask for the Police, then Mountain Rescue.
Before you call, have ready: where you are (a grid reference if you can – the OS Locate app shows yours on your phone), what has happened, how many of you there are, and your mobile number.
Then stay where you are until the rescue team contacts you.
If you cannot make a voice call because of a hearing or speech impairment, emergency SMS works only if you have registered first: text “register” to 999.
This is the antidote to Helvellyn on an August Saturday. The Nab is one of the least-visited Wainwrights, 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 GPXWalked in part, August 2026 · km 0.3–1.7, km 19.4–22.1 from the map
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. The Dalemain Estate says the deer forest may be closed between September and February, so check with the estate before an autumn or winter walk.
Warnings:The Nab is in the Martindale deer forest, owned by the Dalemain Estate. The estate says the area may be closed between September and February for deer management, and at other times as needed, and asks walkers to check before they visit. It asks everyone to keep away from the deer, especially at calving time. This route reaches The Nab along the ridge from Rest Dodd and comes back the same way. It does not go down into Rampsgill or Bannerdale. The top of The Nab is open access land. On open access land, dogs must be on a lead of no more than 2 m from 1 March to 31 July, and near livestock at any time (GOV.UK: use your right to roam). 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 and remote: carry what you need to get yourself out.
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 GPXWalked in part, August 2026 · km 2.8–3.3, km 10.0–14.9, km 16.7–19.3 from the map
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 ground can be confusing in mist — carry map and compass. Livestock on the lower fells and valleys; keep dogs under close control.
Warnings:The Nab is in the Martindale deer forest, owned by the Dalemain Estate. The estate says the area may be closed between September and February for deer management, and at other times as needed, and asks walkers to check before they visit. It asks everyone to keep away from the deer, especially at calving time. The top of The Nab is open access land. On open access land, dogs must be on a lead of no more than 2 m from 1 March to 31 July, and near livestock at any time (GOV.UK: use your right to roam).
Our routes climb it from Hartsop, on rounds with Angletarn Pikes, Beda Fell and Place Fell, one of them with Rest Dodd and The Nab. A pleasant fell that rewards those who explore the ridges above Patterdale.
Field notes
This is a summit that I always thought was a cheap bag as it's so close to many routes in the shape of the honesty car park to the east of Hartsop, or even the bus stop in the village. But it now holds higher esteem than my original estimations now I've visited it. The clear view you have over Brothers Water is pleasant, it's got its own tarn, albeit much smaller and less interesting than Angle Tarn but as a one-Wainwright route this would be relatively unchallenging for most and much less trafficked than Place Fell or Angletarn Pikes.
This is the summit’s grid reference. If you call from anywhere else, give your own position, not this one.
The summit is also a Birkett.
Lists, height and summit position from the Database of British and Irish Hills; the feet are converted from its metres and the grid reference from that position. How we check →
The view from Brock Crags (Wainwright)
The 360° skyline from Brock Crags (Wainwright)
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
The skyline as a list, by direction
North: Little Mell Fell (10 km)
North-east: Red Crag (4 km), Wether Hill (5 km), Loadpot Hill (6 km), Swarth Fell (7 km)
East: Rampsgill Head (3 km), High Raise (3 km)
South-east: The Knott (2 km)
South: Hartsop Dodd (2 km), Caudale Moor (4 km), Thornthwaite Crag (4 km), Red Screes (5 km), Ill Bell (6 km)
South-west: Little Hart Crag (5 km), Dove Crag (5 km), Hart Crag (5 km), High Pike (6 km)
West: Gavel Pike (4 km), St Sunday Crag (5 km), Cofa Pike (6 km), Fairfield (6 km), Catstye Cam (7 km), Nethermost Pike (7 km), Helvellyn (8 km), Helvellyn Lower Man (8 km), White Side (8 km)
North-west: Birkett Fell (8 km), Green Side (8 km), Raise (8 km), Hart Side (8 km), Stybarrow Dodd (9 km), Great Dodd (10 km), Scales Fell (17 km), Blencathra (17 km), Gategill Fell Top (17 km), Knowe Crags (17 km), Atkinson Pike (17 km), Bannerdale Crags (17 km), Bowscale Fell (19 km), Tarn Crags Top (19 km)
On the clearest days the far horizon adds: Wisp Hill (86 km, Scotland), Roan Fell (80 km, Scotland), Cauldcleuch Head (87 km, Scotland), Dun Rig (119 km, Scotland), Pikethaw Hill (84 km, Scotland), Peel Fell (89 km, England), Blackwood Hill (83 km, Scotland), Law Kneis (100 km, Scotland).
Brock Crags (Wainwright) waits for the sun. Its longest wait of the modelled year falls at midwinter, when the sun is up for 44 minutes before it clears this skyline — first light 09:16 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 (140.8°), and the skyline on that bearing stands at 4.02°.
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
06:46 GMT ±5.0 min
06:15
+31 min
Midwinter
09:16 GMT ±5.0 min
08:32
+44 min
A low, open northern horizon — the ground falls away northwards (mean 0.22°).
Last light — when the sun leaves Brock Crags (Wainwright)
Brock Crags (Wainwright) loses the sun early. Its earliest evening of the modelled year falls at the March equinox, when last light is 24 minutes before almanac sunset — 18:02 against 18:26. The sun goes down to the west from here (266.6°), and the skyline on that bearing stands at 3.09°.
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
21:36 BST ±5.0 min
21:52
-16 min
Equinox
18:02 GMT ±5.0 min
18:26
-24 min
Midwinter
15:33 GMT ±5.0 min
15:48
-15 min
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 Brock Crags (Wainwright)
On a clear day — computed sightlines, curvature- and refraction-corrected.
How the view from Brock Crags (Wainwright) compares with all 214 — the View Report: every Wainwright ranked by what you can see from the top.
How the skyline, light and sightlines are computed
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 Brock Crags (Wainwright). 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.
Sightlines from the Copernicus GLO-30 elevation model, which is a surface model: each 30 m cell holds the top of whatever stands there, trees and buildings included, rather than bare ground. 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.
We have not stayed at any of them. We take no bookings or affiliate fees. Distances are straight lines from each route start, never walking times. Properties found via OpenStreetMap (opens in new tab).
Frequently asked questions about Brock Crags (Wainwright)
