Codale Head
Codale Head at 730m (2,395ft) is the high moorland ridge between High Raise and Ullscarf, its broad top giving views across the Central Fells plateau.
Is it worth going? — Today’s conditions & 7-day summit forecast
Modelled guidance for the 732 m summit. Always check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.
On the summit today (Fri 11 Sep): 11° to 8°C, gusts to 26 mph, 2.4 mm of rain forecast.
Forecast snapshot from 11 Sep 2026, 08:30 UTC — refreshed nightly and updated live in your browser. Temperatures and gusts adjusted to the 732 m summit altitude via Open-Meteo. Summit conditions are always harsher than the valley — check the professional mountain forecasts before you go.
Codale Head at a glance
Codale Head
Routes up Codale Head
Hand-mapped, with GPX to download — full maps further down.
Classifications & hill data
The short answers
Is Codale Head a Wainwright?
Codale Head is not a Wainwright. It is on the Birkett list, the Synge list and the Nuttall list.
Where do you park for Codale Head?
We hold no car park within 2.5 km of the summit, so there is no short walk-in to recommend here. 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 Codale Head?
The shortest way up we hold is West of Grasmere — 15.4 km, 806 m of ascent, about 4.4 hours. On our scale its hardest axis is steepness — Hard.
All axes: steepness: Hard · length: Hard · exposure: Moderate · navigation: Moderate · terrain: Moderate.
My hikes over Codale Head (Strava)
2 logged hikes pass over this summit:
- Sunrise Summit Stroll with Chris (opens in new tab) — 17.6 km · 850 m ascent · 4h 59m moving · 23 Mar 2025
- 8 Wainwrights today - had some catching up to do! (opens in new tab) — 14.5 km · 1013 m ascent · 4h 23m moving · 1 Jun 2024
Interactive route maps and photos load here for visitors with JavaScript. Data from Strava.
Parking & buses for Codale Head
Best parking to hike Codale Head
Where we have the data, each parking spot also shows the nearest public toilets and facilities (cafés, pubs, shops).
Positions are approximate — zoom the map to confirm.
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 Codale Head by bus
The 555 stops at Grasmere, opposite Heaton Cooper Studio, 320 m from the start of West of Grasmere. Last bus: Monday to Friday 23:01 towards Kendal (555) and 21:53 towards Ambleside (555) and 20:53 towards Windermere (555) and 19:15 towards Bowness on Windermere (599); Saturday 23:01 towards Kendal (555) and 21:53 towards Ambleside (555) and 20:53 towards Windermere (555) and 19:15 towards Bowness on Windermere (599); Sunday 20:00 towards Windermere (555) and 19:30 towards Kendal (555) and 19:15 towards Bowness on Windermere (599). Checked against the operator’s timetable, 7 September 2026. Times here are a guide, not a promise — leave yourself more than the minute.
Rural routes change seasonally — confirm on stagecoachbus.com (opens in new tab) or Traveline before relying on a last bus.
Hazards on Codale 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.
Map & nearby Birketts
Skip mapFree mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap (switch layers top-right). Parking positions are approximate.
Nearest parking: New Dungeon Ghyll (LDNPA, paid), about 2.8 km from the summit (straight line). Full parking, toilets and bus details are below.
Birketts near Codale 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.
Routes over Codale Head
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 Codale Head
Water & shelter on the way up
On the West of Grasmere route:
On-route facilities © OpenStreetMap contributors, per route — an absent marker doesn’t mean none.
Places to stay near this fell
From Grasmere: 10 places
Other fells near Codale Head
- Armboth Fell (Armboth Fell South Top)
- Blea Rigg
- Bleaberry Fell
- Calf Crag
- Eagle Crag
- Gibson Knott
- Grange Fell (Brund Fell)
- Great Crag (Stonethwaite)
- Harrison Stickle
- Helm Crag
- High Raise (High White Stones)
- High Rigg (Naddle Fell)
- High Seat
- High Tove
- Loft Crag
- Loughrigg Fell
- Pavey Ark
- Pike of Stickle
- Raven Crag
- Sergeant Man
- Sergeant's Crag
- Silver How
- Steel Fell (Dead Pike)
- Tarn Crag (Easedale)
- Thunacar Knott
- Ullscarf
- Walla Crag