Goat Scar
Goat Scar at 626m (2,054ft) is a Birkett top on the ridge between Kentmere and Longsleddale, above the Longsleddale valley, its craggy character giving views across Longsleddale and east towards the Pennines. Part of the high ground between Kentmere and Longsleddale. A fine viewpoint.
Summit conditions on Goat Scar
On the summit on Tuesday 27 October: 11° to 5°C, gusts to 57 mph, 13.1 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 Goat Scar
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 Goat Scar?
The shortest way up we hold is Birketts by Kentmere Horseshoe — 17.58 km, 798 m of ascent, ~4¾–6½ h. On our scale its hardest axes are distance and navigation — Hard.
All axes: length: Hard · navigation: Hard · steepness: 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 626 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 Goat Scar
Parking
Route starts first, then the car parks nearest the summit, which are not always a way up.
2 more places to park near Goat Scar
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 nearest bus stop we hold is the 6 and 555 stop at Staveley, outside Abbey Square, 8.5 km of walking from the start — no bus route we hold serves it.
Getting there across the Lake District: Buses · Parking map · By train · By boat
Hazards on Goat Scar
Notes from a planned route, not walked: Birketts by Kentmere Horseshoe
If you need to get off (the leg from Shipman Knotts): Retreat west to the main ridge wall and retrace your steps south over Shipman Knotts. Under absolutely no circumstances should you attempt to descend the crags of Goat Scar directly into Longsleddale.
Quoted from the route page of a planned route, drawn from the map and not yet walked: the note for the leg that reaches Goat Scar.
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 Goat Scar
These Birkett tops are not Wainwright summits. Distances are straight lines: check the ground and access on a map before adding one.
Routes over Goat Scar
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 Goat Scar
My Strava hikes over Goat Scar
1 logged hike pass over this summit:
- Grey Crag, Tarn Crag, Kentmere Pike & Shipman Knotts (Needed that!) (opens in new tab) — 17.7 km · 1031 m ascent · 4h 33m moving · 5 May 2026
Data from Strava.
Classifications & hill data
Is Goat Scar a Wainwright?
Goat Scar is not a Wainwright. It is on the Birkett list and the Synge 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
We have not verified an independent place near this fell — these are the chains and charities that serve it.
- Mosedale Cottage (opens in new tab) hutabout 4.0 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).