Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle
High Saddle, at 675m (2,215ft), is the higher of the two Saddle tops on Coldbarrow Fell, 0.4 km south-south-east of Low Saddle and 0.8 km north-north-west of Ullscarf, above Langstrath, its open top giving views west to Derwent Water and east to the Helvellyn range.
Summit conditions on Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle
On the summit on Tuesday 27 October: 11° to 5°C, gusts to 58 mph, 17.0 mm of rain forecast over the whole day, midnight to midnight.
The forecast figures are Open-Meteo’s, worked out for the summit’s height. How we check →
Routes up Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle
Hand-mapped, with GPX to download — full maps further down.
Distance and climb are measured from the route’s GPX track, and the time from them by Naismith’s rule; the route page says what each grade rests on. How we check →
How hard is Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle?
The shortest way up we hold is Birketts West of Thirlmere — 23.11 km, 1241 m of ascent, ~6½–9 h. On our scale its hardest axis is distance — Severe.
All axes: length: Severe · steepness: Hard · terrain: Hard · navigation: Moderate · exposure: Not assessed.
These are the route page’s grades, set by the rules on how we grade: length and steepness measured from its GPX track, the others set on the ground, judged from the map or estimated from OpenStreetMap. The route page says which. How we check →
Conditions and 7-day summit forecast
Modelled for the 675 m summit (Open-Meteo). Check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.
Full 7-day forecast
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)
Parking & buses for Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle
Parking
2 more places to park near Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle
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 555 stops at Thirlmere, at Armboth turn. From there it is 1.8 km and 54 m of ascent to the start of Birketts West of Thirlmere — a route we rate Severe overall (hardest: distance) — a walk in before the walk. And the same back: about 26.8 km in all, with the walk. Last bus: Monday to Friday 20:55 towards Keswick (555); Saturday 20:55 towards Keswick (555); Sunday 18:46 towards Keswick (555). 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.
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 Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle
Notes from a planned route, not walked: Birketts West of Thirlmere
If you need to get off (the leg from Standing Crag): Dropping west into the Langstrath/Greenup valleys is steep and commits you miles away from Thirlmere. Your best bailout is to retrace your steps to Standing Crag and use the Harrop Tarn descent route.
Quoted from the route page of a planned route, drawn from the map and not yet walked: the note for the leg that reaches Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle.
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.
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
Skip mapFree mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap, with SRTM elevation data (switch layers top-right).
Parking, toilets and buses: Parking & buses ↑.
Birketts within 3 km of Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle
These Birkett tops are not Wainwright summits. Distances are straight lines: check the ground and access on a map before adding one.
Routes over Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle
Download GPX Planned route · not yet walked
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.
On the hill: terrain and water on Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle
Water & shelter on the way up
On the Birketts West of Thirlmere route:
On-route facilities © OpenStreetMap contributors, per route — an absent marker doesn’t mean none.
About Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle
Classifications & hill data
Is Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle a Wainwright?
Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle is not a Wainwright. It is on the Birkett list.
Selected lists
This is the summit’s grid reference. If you call from anywhere else, give your own position, not this one.
Other tops of Coldbarrow Fell - High Saddle
- Low Saddle
- 656 m (2,153 ft)Our routes over it: Birketts West of Thirlmere
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 →
Places to stay near this fell
- Dale Head Hall Lakeside Hotel (opens in new tab) hotelabout 3.5 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).