Glade How
Glade How at 440m (1,444ft) is a Birkett top in the Western Fells, 0.3 km north-west of Buckbarrow, above the hamlet of Greendale (1.2 km to the south-east) in Wasdale.
Summit conditions on Glade How
On the summit on Tuesday 27 October: 13° to 7°C, gusts to 58 mph, 5.9 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 Glade How
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.
| Compared | Very Long Day Out | The Greendale Horseshoe | Middle Fell, Haycock Seatallan and Buckbarrow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starts from | Overbeck Bridge | Greendale | Low Greendale Car Park |
| Distance and climb | 26.63 km, 1,810 m of climb | 8.56 km, 789 m of climb | 17.8 km, 1,298 m of climb |
| Time, fast to steady | ~8¼–11¼ h | ~3–4¼ h | ~5½–7¾ h |
| Scrambling | Graded scramble: Stirrup Crag, at Yewbarrow's north end (km 2.9–3.2). Yewbarrow: The north end drops in a steep set of ledges and chimneys — a genuine scramble that catches people out, especially as a descent. | Not mentioned in the route’s notes | Not mentioned in the route’s notes |
| Exposure | Moderate | Not assessed | Not assessed |
| Navigation | Hard | Hard | Hard |
| Steepest stretch | Climb of about 49% at 1.2 km (Severe) | Climb of about 38% at 3.6 km (Severe) | Climb of about 38% at 5.6 km (Severe) |
| After the summit | Over Buckbarrow | Over Buckbarrow | Over Buckbarrow |
| Walked or planned | Planned: drawn, not yet walked | Planned: drawn, not yet walked | Planned: drawn, not yet walked |
| Car park at the start | Overbeck Bridge, Wastwater (NT, paid) | Greendale (layby) (free) | Greendale (layby) (free) |
| Bus to the start | Not measured | Not measured | Not measured |
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 →
How hard is Glade How?
The shortest way up we hold is The Greendale Horseshoe — 8.56 km, 789 m of ascent, ~3–4¼ h. On our scale its hardest axis is steepness — Severe.
All axes: steepness: Severe · navigation: Hard · length: Moderate · terrain: Not assessed · 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 440 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 Glade How
Parking
Route starts first, then the car parks nearest the summit, which are not always a way up.
3 more places to park near Glade How
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
We don’t know yet. Wasdale Explorer (seasonal) serves this area, but we don’t hold its stop positions, so we can’t measure the walk from it — and we won’t tell you to drive on the strength of a gap in our own data. The Wasdale Action Group lists it as running Saturdays, Sundays and bank holiday Mondays from the start of May to the end of August (read 30 September 2026): check before you travel.
Getting there across the Lake District: Buses · Parking map · By train · By boat
Hazards on Glade How
Notes from a planned route, not walked: Middle Fell, Haycock Seatallan and Buckbarrow
If you need to get off (the leg from Seatallan): You are now on the descent back to the start. The better option is to continue along the ridge toward Buckbarrow and the valley floor.
Quoted from the route page of a planned route, drawn from the map and not yet walked: the note for the leg that reaches Glade How.
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 Glade How
No bonus Birketts within 3 km.
Routes over Glade How
Download GPX Planned route · not yet walked
Route guide: Middle Fell, Haycock Seatallan and Buckbarrow →
A planned line, drawn from the map; not yet walked. From Buckbarrow it comes down to Greendale by the same path as our longer Middle Fell, Haycock, Seatallan and Buckbarrow round.
Download GPX Planned route · not yet walked
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.
About Glade How
Classifications & hill data
Is Glade How a Wainwright?
Glade How 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.
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
- Church Stile Farm And Holiday Park (opens in new tab) campsiteabout 2.3 km
Also nearby, but not independent
- YHA Wasdale Hall (opens in new tab) hostelabout 1.1 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).