Burnbank Fell

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475 mWainwright — Western Fells+13 bonus Birketts within 3 km Serious in Clag

Burnbank Fell at 475m (1,558ft) is a heathery moorland summit above Loweswater giving fine views of the lake below and the Grasmoor massif above. A Wainwright and a Birkett, on the lower western slopes above Loweswater.

Summit conditions on Burnbank Fell

On the summit on Tuesday 27 October: 12° to 7°C, gusts to 64 mph, 2.5 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

55 mph, our estimate for the open top in the worst daylight hour

The Met Office 2 km model’s gust of 52 mph times our exposure factor of 1.05. The summit line above gives Open-Meteo’s highest gust for the whole day, 64 mph, before any exposure factor.

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.

Also checked cold: feels like 3 °C, no ice or snow forecast; cloud: a clear-top reading of 40 out of 100, over our in-cloud line of 20; rain: 2.5 mm in the day, under our 6 mm line. 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

Full 7-day summit forecast ↓

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 →

Weather data by Open-Meteo.com (opens in new tab)

Routes up Burnbank Fell

All three start from Maggie's Bridge, Loweswater (NT, paid); the last two rows give its parking and bus. Full maps further down.

Compared	Around Loweswater	Blake Fell, Gavel Fell, Hen Comb	Birketts by Loweswater
Starts from	Maggie's Bridge, Loweswater (NT, paid)	Maggie's Bridge, Loweswater (NT, paid)	Maggie's Bridge, Loweswater (NT, paid)
Distance and climb	19.13 km, 1,068 m of climb	14.03 km, 764 m of climb	18.69 km, 1,082 m of climb
Time, fast to steady	~5½–7½ h	~4–5½ h	~5½–7½ h
Scrambling	Not mentioned in the route’s notes	Not mentioned in the route’s notes	Not mentioned in the route’s notes
Exposure	Moderate	Not assessed	Not assessed
Navigation	Moderate	Hard	Hard
Steepest stretch	Climb of about 35% at 2.1 km (Severe)	Climb of about 29% at 2.9 km (Hard)	Climb of about 31% at 2.1 km (Hard)
After the summit	Over Blake Fell and Gavel Fell	Over Blake Fell, Gavel Fell, Hen Comb and Little Dodd (Loweswater)	No further tops
Walked or planned	Planned: drawn, not yet walked	Planned: drawn, not yet walked	Planned: drawn, not yet walked
Car park at the start	Maggie's Bridge, Loweswater (NT, paid)	Maggie's Bridge, Loweswater (NT, paid)	Maggie's Bridge, Loweswater (NT, paid)
Bus to the start	77, 3.2 km walk from Lanthwaite Green Farm (opposite). Seasonal: the 77 does not run all year. 1 November 2026 is its last day.	77, 3.2 km walk from Lanthwaite Green Farm (opposite). Seasonal: the 77 does not run all year. 1 November 2026 is its last day.	77, 3.3 km walk from Lanthwaite Green Farm (opposite). Seasonal: the 77 does not run all year. 1 November 2026 is its last day.

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 Burnbank Fell a hard walk?

Not on the top. It is a low fell on the edge of the Loweswater group with forest on its flanks and easy slopes above, though the climb to it on our round has a steep stretch of about 27%.

Our round with Blake Fell and Hen Comb is 14.0 km with 764 m of ascent, and we grade its steepness and navigation hard. Forest tracks change with felling and the boundary between plantation and open fell may not be where the map shows it, so give yourself a little more time here than the contours suggest.

How we check →

Conditions and 7-day summit forecast

Modelled for the 475 m summit (Open-Meteo). Check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.

Full 7-day forecast

Tue 27 Oct

12° / 7°

64 mph

2.5 mm (100%)

Wed 28 Oct

10° / 7°

44 mph

3.2 mm (100%)

Thu 29 Oct

10° / 8°

25 mph

0.4 mm (18%)

Fri 30 Oct

10° / 7°

25 mph

0.3 mm (29%)

Sat 31 Oct

12° / 3°

6 mph

0.0 mm (29%)

Sun 1 Nov

9° / 2°

7 mph

0.0 mm (12%)

Mon 2 Nov

8° / 0°

11 mph

0.0 mm (0%)

Taken 27 October 2026, 08:13 UTC; the live forecast replaces it when it loads. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com (opens in new tab)

Pro mountain forecasts: MWIS · Met Office mountain forecast

Parking & buses for Burnbank Fell

Parking

Route starts first, then the car parks nearest the summit, which are not always a way up.

Maggie's Bridge, Loweswater (NT, paid) — at the start of Around Loweswater, Blake Fell, Gavel Fell, Hen Comb and Birketts by Loweswater

Small paid car park for Mellbreak, Hen Comb and the Loweswater fells. Free for NT members (checked August 2026).

Directions Something changed here?

If it is full: Car park for Loweswater Fell (free) (1.0 km, 38 m up); Lanthwaite Wood, Crummock Water (NT, paid) (1.7 km, 61 m up); Darling Fell (layby) (2.9 km, 141 m up)

Roadside Parking, Fangs Brow, Loweswater (free) — 1.7 km from summit (straight line)

Beside the road at Fangs Brow, west of Loweswater, where a bridleway leaves it. The nearest route starts are at Maggie's Bridge, among them 'Loweswater circuit', 3.8 km on foot. Free (community-reported).

Directions Something changed here?

Darling Fell (layby) — 1.7 km from summit (straight line)

Beside the road on the north side of Loweswater. With a phonebox. The nearest route start is 'Birketts North of Loweswater', 0.4 km on foot.

Directions Something changed here?

2 more places to park near Burnbank Fell

High Hows car park (free) — 2.1 km from summit (straight line)

Nearest fells: High Hows (Lamplugh) (0.9 km), Owsen Fell (1.2 km), Murton Fell (Knock Murton) (1.8 km). Free (OSM-tagged).

Directions Something changed here?

Fell Dyke (LDNPA, free) — 2.7 km from summit (straight line)

Nearest fells: High Hows (Lamplugh) (1.2 km), Murton Fell (Knock Murton) (1.2 km), Owsen Fell (1.9 km). Free (OSM-tagged). Compacted surface (OSM-tagged).

Directions Something changed here?

Positions are approximate.

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 77 stops at Lanthwaite Green Farm (opposite). From there it is 3.2 km and 118 m of ascent to the start of Around Loweswater — a route we rate Severe overall (hardest: steepness) — a walk in before the walk. And the same back: about 25.6 km in all, with the walk. Seasonal: the 77 does not run all year. 1 November 2026 is its last day. It returns on 22 March 2027. Confirmed with the operator: its last day on 29 August 2026, its return on 16 October 2026. As timetabled from 27 October to 1 November. Towards Keswick (77): Tuesday to Sunday 18:03. Checked against the operator’s timetable, 12 September 2026. Times here are a guide, not a promise — leave yourself more than the minute.

Stagecoach 77 / 77A “Honister Rambler”

Keswick – Portinscale – Hawes End (Catbells) – Grange – Seatoller – Honister Pass – Buttermere – Lorton – Whinlatter – Keswick (circular)

Catch it from: Keswick (connect via 555 from Windermere/Ambleside or X4/X5 from Penrith)

Seasonal (Summer 2026 timetable: 23 March to 1 November 2026). Brilliant for the North Western fells: Catbells, Dale Head from Honister, the Buttermere fells and Whinlatter.

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

Getting there across the Lake District: Buses · Parking map · By train · By boat

Hazards on Burnbank Fell

Notes from a planned route, not walked: Around Loweswater

If you need to get off (the leg from Fellbarrow - Mosser Fell): At Waterend the route crosses the valley road, the natural midpoint to cut the day short by the minor roads back to the start and miss the second set of fells; it is about 3 km by road back to the start, and the traffic has not been checked for this guide.

Quoted from the route page of a planned route, drawn from the map and not yet walked: the note for the leg that reaches Burnbank Fell.

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

Serious in cloud

Of the three things our terrain model measures, the highest reading here is the amount of near-level ground around the summit. A serious place to be caught in cloud: carry map and compass (or GPS) and know how to use them, or save it for a clear day.

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 Burnbank Fell 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.

From Mountain Rescue England and Wales’s guidance on calling them out (opens in new tab) (read 26 October 2026).

Map, GPX and nearby Birketts

Free mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap, with SRTM elevation data (switch layers top-right).

Parking, toilets and buses: Parking & buses ↑.

Birketts within 3 km of Burnbank Fell

These Birkett tops are not Wainwright summits. Distances are straight lines: check the ground and access on a map before adding one.

0.9 km SSWSharp Knott482 m · Western

0.9 km WOwsen Fell409 m · Western

1.0 km SECarling Knott544 m · Western

1.1 km ESELoweswater End - Carling Knott519 m · Western

1.6 km WSWHigh Hows (Lamplugh)313 m · Western

2.1 km SHigh Pen475 m · Western

2.1 km SSWLow Pen435 m · Western

2.3 km SSEGavel Fell - High Nook (Gavel Fell North Top)488 m · Western

2.4 km SWMurton Fell (Knock Murton)446 m · Western

2.5 km NEDarling Fell392 m · Western

2.8 km SELittle Dodd (Loweswater)362 m · Western

2.8 km SSWGodworth365 m · Western

2.9 km ENELoweswater Fell (Low Fell South Top)417 m · Western

Routes over Burnbank Fell

Around Loweswater

Summits: Darling Fell Smithy Fell Fellbarrow - Mosser FellBurnbank FellBlake Fell Gavel Fell

Download GPX Planned route · not yet walked

Route guide: Around Loweswater →

Birketts by Loweswater

Summits: High Pen Murton Fell (Knock Murton)Low Pen Carling Knott Loweswater End - Carling Knott Blake Fell Sharp Knott Owsen FellBurnbank Fell

Download GPX Planned route · not yet walked

Warnings: The Pen tops and the moor between them are only faintly pathed — expect trods that come and go rather than a continuous trail.

Route guide: Birketts by Loweswater →

Blake Fell, Gavel Fell, Hen Comb

Summits: Burnbank FellBlake Fell Gavel Fell Hen Comb Little Dodd (Loweswater)

Download GPX Planned route · not yet walked

Route guide: Blake Fell, Gavel Fell, Hen Comb →

Every line here is a guide, not a guarantee — conditions change. Navigate for yourself and carry a map and compass. How to use this guide.

About Burnbank Fell

Burnbank Fell, a Lake District fell — Photo: Mick Knapton, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The ascent from Loweswater is pleasant and gives steadily improving lake views throughout.

Classifications & hill data

Is Burnbank Fell a Wainwright?

Burnbank Fell is a Wainwright. It is also on the Birkett list and the Synge list.

Selected lists

475 m

Height

1,558 ft

In feet

NY 1100 2095

Grid ref

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 Burnbank Fell

The 360° skyline from Burnbank Fell

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: Criffel (44 km)
North-east: Graystones (9 km), Ullock Pike (16 km), Long Side (16 km), Carl Side (16 km), Skiddaw South Top (17 km), Skiddaw Middle Top (17 km), Skiddaw (17 km), Skiddaw Little Man (17 km), Skiddaw North Top (17 km), Skiddaw Lesser Man (17 km), Broad End (18 km), Great Cockup (20 km), Burn Tod (21 km), Frozen Fell (22 km), Lowthwaite Fell (22 km), Longlands Fell (22 km), Great Sca Fell (22 km), Little Sca Fell (22 km), Brae Fell (23 km)
East: Loweswater End (1 km), Whiteside (6 km), Grasmoor (6 km), Whiteside East Top (7 km), Thirdgill Head Man (8 km), Hopegill Head (8 km), Ladyside Pike (8 km), Sand Hill (8 km), Wandope (8 km), Eel Crag (8 km), Hobcarton End (9 km), Jenkin Hill (18 km), Lonscale Fell (19 km), Blencathra (22 km), Atkinson Pike (23 km)
South-east: Carling Knott (1 km)
South: Crag Fell (7 km), Grike (7 km), Lank Rigg (9 km), Haycock (11 km)

On the clearest days the far horizon adds: Slieve Donard (171 km, Ireland), Merrick (94 km, Scotland), Broad Law (103 km, Scotland), Snaefell (78 km, Isle of Man), Cairnsmore of Carsphairn (93 km, Scotland), Cairnsmore of Fleet (76 km, Scotland), Corserine (90 km, Scotland), Lamachan Hill (88 km, Scotland).

Computed from Copernicus GLO-30 terrain; distant tops from the Database of British and Irish Hills v18.4 (opens in new tab) (CC BY 4.0). See how we compute the view · and the summit intervisibility report below.

Sunrise and sunset on Burnbank Fell

Burnbank Fell waits for the sun. Its longest wait of the modelled year falls on 1 December, when the sun is up for 35 minutes before it clears this skyline — first light 08:48 against an almanac sunrise of 08:13. You are standing in shadow while the valley below is already lit. The sun comes up to the south-east from here (135.8°), and the skyline on that bearing stands at 3.48°.

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	04:33 BST ±5.0 min	04:38	-5 min
Equinox	06:40 GMT ±5.0 min	06:17	+23 min
Midwinter	09:07 GMT ±6.0 min	08:34	+33 min

A low, open northern horizon — the ground falls away northwards (mean -0.3°).

Last light — when the sun leaves Burnbank Fell

Burnbank Fell holds the light. On not one of the sixteen dates modelled does the sun leave this summit before almanac sunset — the ground falls away westward rather than standing over you, and at midsummer it is still in the sun 3 minutes after the valley has lost it.

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	21:57 BST ±5.0 min	21:54	+3 min
Equinox	18:32 GMT ±5.0 min	18:27	+5 min
Midwinter	15:56 GMT ±5.0 min	15:50	+6 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 Burnbank Fell

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

23Wainwrights in view+11 marginal

176 kmFurthest sightlineSlieve Binnian · possible under favourable refraction

2Sea in viewIrish Sea, Solway Firth

On the clearest days the view reaches across to Scotland, the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland.

Far horizons

Slieve Binnian Northern IrelandWSW · 176 km clear
Slieve Donard Northern IrelandWSW · 171 km clear
Merrick ScotlandNW · 95 km clear
Snaefell Isle of ManWSW · 79 km clear
Criffel ScotlandNNW · 45 km clear
Solway Firth bay/estuaryNNW · 33 km in view
Irish Sea open waterWNW · 19 km in view

All 23 Wainwrights in clear view (nearest first)

Blake Fell, Low Fell, Fellbarrow - Mosser Fell, Whiteside (Whiteside West Top), Grasmoor, Hopegill Head, Wandope, Graystones (Graystones North Top), Whinlatter (Brown How - Whinlatter), Ling Fell, Broom Fell, Lord's Seat, Sale Fell, Ullock Pike, Long Side, Carl Side, Skiddaw, Skiddaw Little Man, Lonscale Fell, Great Cockup, Longlands Fell, Great Sca Fell, Brae Fell

How the view from Burnbank Fell 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 Burnbank Fell. 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.

Places to stay near this fell

Crummockwater Cottages (opens in new tab) guest houseabout 0.9 km

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 Burnbank Fell

Is Burnbank Fell a hard walk? Answered above.

Questions from Google’s “People also ask”. · Last updated 2026-08-30 · Suggest a question or correction (opens in new tab)

Burnbank Fell

Summit conditions on Burnbank Fell

Wind on the top

Routes up Burnbank Fell

Is Burnbank Fell a hard walk?

Conditions and 7-day summit forecast

Parking & buses for Burnbank Fell

Parking

Buses

Hazards on Burnbank Fell

Notes from a planned route, not walked: Around Loweswater

Navigating in cloud

If you need Mountain Rescue

Map, GPX and nearby Birketts

Birketts within 3 km of Burnbank Fell

Routes over Burnbank Fell

About Burnbank Fell

Classifications & hill data

Is Burnbank Fell a Wainwright?

Selected lists

The view from Burnbank Fell

The 360° skyline from Burnbank Fell

Sunrise and sunset on Burnbank Fell

Last light — when the sun leaves Burnbank Fell

What you can see from Burnbank Fell

Places to stay near this fell

Frequently asked questions about Burnbank Fell

Other fells near Burnbank Fell