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899 m · Wainwright — Western Fells · Birketts to bag nearby, parking, buses, my hikes and live summit weather.

Wainwright — Western FellsAlso a Birkett

Great Gable

Great Gable at 899m (2,949ft) is perhaps the most beloved mountain in Lakeland — its profile appears on the badge of the Lake District National Park, and its summit is the site of an annual Remembrance Sunday service by the Fell and Rock Climbing Club.

899 m
Height
~5–6 h
Typical time
+4
Bonus Birketts
See routes & download GPX → Parking & buses →
899 mWainwright — Western Fells✓ summit is also a Birkett+4 bonus Birketts within 3 km Severe in cloud

Is it worth going? — Today’s conditions & 7-day summit forecast

Modelled guidance for the 899 m summit. Always check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.

On the summit today (Sat 12 Sep): 12° to 6°C, gusts to 47 mph, 42.7 mm of rain forecast.

Sat 12 Sep
🌧️
12° / 6°
💨 47 mph
🌧 42.7 mm (100%)
Sun 13 Sep
☁️
12° / 6°
💨 17 mph
🌧 0.0 mm (6%)
Mon 14 Sep
🌧️
13° / 10°
💨 39 mph
🌧 9.4 mm (100%)
Tue 15 Sep
🌧️
12° / 7°
💨 39 mph
🌧 16.5 mm (98%)
Wed 16 Sep
🌧️
9° / 6°
💨 31 mph
🌧 7.6 mm (70%)
Thu 17 Sep
🌧️
8° / 6°
💨 35 mph
🌧 25.8 mm (100%)
Fri 18 Sep
🌧️
9° / 6°
💨 37 mph
🌧 19.2 mm (92%)

Forecast snapshot from 12 Sep 2026, 15:36 UTC — refreshed nightly and updated live in your browser. Temperatures and gusts adjusted to the 899 m summit altitude via Open-Meteo. Summit conditions are always harsher than the valley — check the professional mountain forecasts before you go.

Great Gable at a glance

Great Gable

Height
899 m (2,949 ft)
How long
~5–6 h
How hard
Great Gable is a hard mountain day with no scrambling on the walkers’ line — and the thing that catches people is navigation, not exposure.
Weather today
🌧️ 12°/6°C, gusts 47 mph
Parking
Car park for Yewbarrow (free)
Great Gable, a Lake District fell
Photo: Phillip Capper from Wellington, New Zealand, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Great Gable at 899m (2,949ft) is perhaps the most beloved mountain in Lakeland — its profile appears on the badge of the Lake District National Park, and its summit is the site of an annual Remembrance Sunday service by the Fell and Rock Climbing Club. Wainwright was passionate about it, noting the incomparable view from the Westmorland Cairn looking south to Wasdale Head and its surrounding ring of fells. The ascent from Wasdale via Sty Head is a classic Lakeland mountain day. The summit gives outstanding views in every direction, particularly north to the Ennerdale fells and south across Wastwater.

How hard is Great Gable, really?

Short version: Great Gable is a hard mountain day with no scrambling on the walkers’ line — and the thing that catches people is navigation, not exposure. That is our own field assessment of the route, not a hunch: we grade its exposure only Moderate, because there is no hands-on ground to cross, while terrain and navigation both grade harder. Rough, bouldery going over Brandreth and Green Gable, then a steep stony pull to a summit that is a broad, featureless plateau ringed by crags. In cloud that plateau is the whole problem: there is no obvious line off it, and the wrong bearing takes you toward the crags. Know your bearing off the top before you need it.

Can a beginner do it? Conditionally — a fit walker on a clear day, yes, and the start from Honister is much the kindest way, beginning around 350 m up and saving you the worst of the climb. Not a first mountain in cloud or winter, though: this is a fell where poor visibility changes the job entirely. Our grading of that route is not yet personally walked.

Against Scafell Pike? Comparable days out, differing on closely matched on every axis we grade. Neither is a walk in the park, and the choice should come down to conditions and your navigation rather than a league table.

And the Napes? Worth knowing what they are, because people see them named and wonder whether they are on the way: they are not. The Napes are the steep rock buttresses on Gable’s south face — climbers’ ground, not a walking route — and nothing on the walkers’ line goes near them. Admire them from Wasdale and leave them to people with ropes.

Routes up Great Gable

Hand-mapped, with GPX to download — full maps further down.

Classifications & hill data

Wainwright
Western
Birkett
Fellranger
Synge
Nuttall
Marilyn
899 m
Height
2,949 ft
In feet
NY 2109 1032
Grid ref

The short answers

Is Great Gable a Wainwright?

Great Gable is a Wainwright. It is also on the Birkett list, the Synge list, the Nuttall list, the Fellranger list and the Marilyn list.

Parking & buses for Great Gable

Best parking to hike Great Gable

Where we have the data, each parking spot also shows the nearest public toilets and facilities (cafés, pubs, shops).

Car park for Yewbarrow (free) — 3.0 km from summit (straight line)
1.3 km from Yewbarrow. Added from the 5 Aug 2026 OSM candidate review.
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?
Seathwaite Farm, Borrowdale (free verge) — 3.2 km from summit (straight line)
Free verge parking on the Seathwaite lane — the honeypot start for the Scafells, Great Gable and Glaramara. Arrive very early.
🕑 Typically full before 09:00 on fine weekends, Apr-Oct — Lee McCoy, local observation, 2026-08-09.
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?
If it is full: Honister Pass (paid, slate mine) (1.8 km); Seatoller (NT, paid) (2.0 km); Rosthwaite (NT, paid) (3.8 km)
🚺 Public toilets (opens in new tab) (~188 m straight line) — Free
Thornythwaite Fell (layby) — 3.3 km from summit (straight line)
Walking base for Allen Crags, High House Tarn Top (High House - Allen Crags), Red Beck Top (Glaramara South Top) (Lincomb Head - Glaramara) and Looking Steads (Glaramara) — the 'Allan Crags & Glaramara' route starts 135 m away. Also serves 'Scafell Pike via the Corridor Route'. Free (OSM-tagged). Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged).
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?
Thornythwaite Fell, north-west (layby) — 3.5 km from summit (straight line)
Walking base for Allen Crags, High House Tarn Top (High House - Allen Crags), Red Beck Top (Glaramara South Top) (Lincomb Head - Glaramara) and Looking Steads (Glaramara) — the 'Allan Crags & Glaramara' route starts 255 m away. Free (OSM-tagged). Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged).
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?
Honister Pass (paid, slate mine) — 3.5 km from summit (straight line)
Pay & display at the top of the pass — Dale Head, Fleetwith Pike, Grey Knotts with minimal ascent. This is the slate mine's own car park, the WESTERN one; the National Trust car park 170 m east is a separate one. Fees: Day parking GBP 5 per day for visitors; free for all Honister activity guests (honister.com/your-visit/). Overnight parking GBP 15 a night in the large bottom car park, open to campervans, motorhomes and vans, no tent camping, no facilities, no electric hook-ups; book online or pay by QR code on arrival and display confirmation on the dashboard (honister.com/your-visit/overnight-parking) (operator, checked Aug 2026). You pay by card, inside the building, not at a machine in the car park. The posted opening is 9am but it is often later; the mine is content for you to arrive before it and pay on the way out, and the car park is covered by cameras (Lee McCoy, local observation, recorded 12 Aug 2026). Pay and display (LDNPA, checked Aug 2026).
🕑 Typically full before 10:00 on fine weekends, Apr-Oct — Lee McCoy, local observation, 2026-08-09.
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?
If it is full: Seatoller (NT, paid) (2.3 km)
🚺 Public toilets (opens in new tab) (~136 m straight line) — Free🚺 Public toilets (opens in new tab) (~1825 m straight line) — FreeSky Hi Cafe (opens in new tab)

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 Great Gable by bus

The 77 stops at Honister Youth Hostel (near), 140 m from the start of Great Gable from Honister Slate Mine — a route we rate Hard. Seasonal: the 77 does not run all year. 1 November 2026 is its last day, and it is not daily before then — a bus on 31 of the 56 days from 7 September. We don’t know when it returns. Confirmed with the operator, 29 August 2026. The last bus is 18:33 towards Keswick (77), every day. 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 – Hawse 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 (roughly Easter–October). 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.

Hazards on Great Gable

Hazard & Incident Information for Great Gable

Hazard: High

A steep-sided mountain that is rocky on every flank, with a boulder-strewn summit that is genuinely hard to navigate off in cloud. Most incidents involve walkers losing the line on the descent into dangerous ground, or slipping on the steep, loose scree paths. The Napes on the south face are climbing terrain, not for walkers.

  • Summit plateau in cloud: A featureless boulder dome; walkers regularly set off down the wrong side into steep ground. A compass and the ability to hold a bearing are essential.
  • Descents to Sty Head and Beck Head: Steep, loose and stony — a frequent spot for slips and turned ankles. Descend slowly and deliberately.
  • The Napes / Napes Needle: Famous rock-climbing buttresses on the south face. Not a walking route — the walkers' path (Breast Route) keeps below them.
Who should attempt this fell: Hugely popular, but a serious mountain in poor visibility — the summit is one of the trickiest in the Lakes to leave on the right bearing. Strong navigation is essential; if you are not confident with map and compass, save it for a clear day.

Most common causes: Navigation errors off the summit in cloud · Slips on steep, loose ground · Benightment on a longer-than-expected day

Local Mountain Rescue: Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team (opens in new tab) · Reviewed 13 Jun 2026

Safety: Hazard guidance compiled from published Mountain Rescue reports and well-documented accident history - editorial background, not a live feed of callouts. Always check current conditions, carry proper navigation equipment, and seek qualified instruction before heading onto the fells. In an emergency, call 999, ask for Police, then Mountain Rescue.

Report incorrect information (opens in new tab)

Navigating Great Gable in cloud

Severe

A rough, rocky summit ringed by crags, with no single obvious way off in poor visibility. 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.

From walking it — not from the terrain model

What catches people out: The summit dome is a boulder maze where the Westmorland Cairn side drops to crags and the tracks between shelters look like paths off.

The line to take: The safe exits are the marked NW line to Beck Head and NE to Windy Gap — find the summit cairn first, then bearing-and-pace; nothing else off the dome is a walkers' line.

First-hand knowledge of this top, written by Lee. It adds to the computed grade above — it never changes it, and its absence on another fell means only that it has not been written yet.

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 Great Gable compares with all 214 — the Clag Index: navigating in cloud. A relative, deliberately cautious guide; the site can’t navigate for you.

Map & nearby Birketts

Free mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap (switch layers top-right). Parking positions are approximate.

Nearest parking: Car park for Yewbarrow (free), about 3.0 km from the summit (straight line). Full parking, toilets and bus details are below.

Birketts near Great Gable (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.

1.7 km ESESeathwaite Fell (Great Slack)631 m · Southern
2.9 km SSEBroad Crag935 m · Southern
2.9 km WNWLooking Stead (Pillar)628 m · Western

Routes over Great Gable

9.61 km · ~690 m ascent · loop · ~3–4 h · Hard

⬇️ Download GPX

⚠️ Warnings: The summit plateau in cloud. Gable’s top is a broad sea of boulders with crags on several sides and no handrails. Take a bearing off the summit and follow it precisely — this is where the callouts start. Do not drift towards the Napes. The southern face is a climbers’ playground of crags and gullies, not a walkers’ descent. The Windy Gap descent is loose and steep. Take it slowly, especially in the wet.

Full route guide ↗

✎️ Planned route — drawn but not personally walked or checked yet.

A planned line is a suggestion, not a guarantee — conditions change. Navigate independently and carry a map & compass. How to use this guide.

14.12 km · ~1146 m ascent · loop · ~4.5–6.5 h
Summits: Great GableKirk Fell

⬇️ Download GPX

Full route guide ↗

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 Great Gable

Water & shelter on the way up

💧 Treat water from the fell before you drink it. A mapped point is usually a tap or public supply, but never drink untreated from a beck, stream or tarn — even clear-looking hill water can carry giardia or cryptosporidium from livestock or a carcass upstream and leave you seriously ill. Run it through a filter or purifier (a LifeStraw, Sawyer Squeeze or HydraPak) or bring it to a rolling boil first.

On-route facilities © OpenStreetMap contributors, per route — an absent marker doesn’t mean none.

The view from Great Gable

The 360° skyline from Great Gable

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
Computed 360-degree skyline from Great Gable36 labelled tops shown (26 distant behind the far-horizon toggle). Theoretical visibility in perfect clarity; computed from terrain, not photographed.eye levelNNEESESSWWNWScafell Pike · 3 kmScafell · 4 kmHelvellyn · 14 kmSkiddaw · 19 kmGreat End · 2 kmPillar · 4 kmHigh Crag · 14 kmRaise · 15 kmFairfield · 15 kmBlencathra · 21 kmGreat Dodd · 17 kmGrasmoor · 11 kmScoat Fell · 5 kmCrag Hill · 10 kmRed Pike · 5 kmSwirl How · 12 kmThornthwaite Crag · 22 kmIll Bell · 23 kmJenkin Hill · 18 kmClough Head · 17 kmBroad Crag · 3 kmIll Crag · 3 kmMiton Hill · 27 kmBlack Combe · 26 kmHigh Stile · 6 kmKirk Fell East Top · 1 kmAllen Crags · 3 kmHarrison Stickle · 8 kmCriffel · 58 km · clear daysHindscarth · 6 kmSeatallan · 7 kmScar Crags · 10 kmStarling Dodd · 9 kmYewbarrow · 4 kmLooking Stead · 3 kmWhernside · 60 km · clear daysEsk Pike · 4 kmSkiddaw Little Man · 18 kmDollywaggon Pike · 14 kmStybarrow Dodd · 16 kmHigh Street · 23 kmGrisedale Pike · 12 kmLong Side · 18 kmCarrock Fell · 27 kmHigh Pike · 27 kmGreen Gable · 0 kmPillar Rock · 4 kmWandope · 10 kmHigh Crag · 5 kmSergeant Man · 8 kmThirdgill Head Man · 10 kmThunacar Knott · 7 kmPike of Stickle · 7 kmRest Dodd · 22 kmCalfhow Pike · 16 kmYewbarrow North Top · 4 kmGreat Borne · 11 kmIllgill Head · 7 kmHaystacks · 3 kmBleaberry Fell · 12 kmThornythwaite Fell · 4 kmBlake Fell · 14 kmWhin Rigg · 9 kmBlake Rigg · 10 kmSallows · 23 kmMellbreak · 10 kmStainton Pike · 17 kmSeat How · 15 kmHesk Fell · 16 kmLingmoor Fell · 11 kmBarrow · 12 kmLad Hows · 10 kmBuckbarrow · 9 kmRannerdale Knotts · 9 kmSwainson Knott · 13 kmBoat How · 8 kmNine Standards Rigg · 62 km · clear daysIrton Pike · 13 kmSnowdon · 167 km · a handful of days a yearSlieve Donard · 179 km · a handful of days a yearMerrick · 109 km · a rare clear dayAran Fawddwy · 191 km · a handful of days a yearBroad Law · 113 km · a rare clear daySnaefell · 84 km · a rare clear dayCairnsmore of Carsphairn · 107 km · a rare clear dayCairnsmore of Fleet · 91 km · a rare clear dayWindlestraw Law · 134 km · a handful of days a yearTinto · 127 km · a handful of days a yearSlieve Croob · 180 km · a handful of days a yearYr Eifl · 186 km · a handful of days a yearDivis · 182 km · a handful of days a yearBoulsworth Hill · 104 km · a rare clear dayCairn Table · 124 km · a handful of days a yearBeneraird · 127 km · a handful of days a yearPen-y-ghent · 73 km · a rare clear daySighty Crag · 81 km · a rare clear dayGreat Whernside · 87 km · a rare clear dayAgnew's Hill · 180 km · a handful of days a yearFair Snape Fell · 74 km · a rare clear dayBogrie Hill · 86 km · a rare clear dayRogan's Seat · 71 km · a rare clear dayEllson Fell · 90 km · a rare clear dayLarriston Fells · 89 km · a rare clear dayMull Hill · 111 km · a rare clear day
What you can see from Great Gable, by direction
  • North: Crag Hill (10 km), Grasmoor (11 km), Skiddaw Lesser Man (18 km), Skiddaw Little Man (18 km), Skiddaw South Top (19 km), Skiddaw Middle Top (19 km), Skiddaw (19 km)
  • North-east: White Side (14 km), Raise (15 km), Stybarrow Dodd (16 km), Green Side (16 km), Great Dodd (17 km), Knowe Crags (20 km), Gategill Fell Top (20 km), Blencathra (21 km), Atkinson Pike (21 km)
  • East: Helvellyn Lower Man (14 km), High Crag (14 km), Nethermost Pike (14 km), Dollywaggon Pike (14 km), Helvellyn (14 km), Fairfield (15 km), Cofa Pike (15 km), Hart Crag (16 km), St Sunday Crag (16 km), Dove Crag (16 km), High Street (23 km), High Raise (24 km)
  • South-east: Great End (2 km), Esk Pike (4 km), Bowfell (5 km), Swirl How (12 km)
  • South: Scafell Pike (3 km), Scafell (4 km)
  • West: Red Pike (5 km), Black Crag (5 km), Scoat Fell (5 km), Steeple (6 km), Haycock (7 km)
  • North-west: Pillar (4 km)

On the clearest days the far horizon adds: Snowdon (167 km, Wales), Slieve Donard (179 km, Ireland), Carnedd Llewelyn (155 km, Wales), Merrick (109 km, Scotland), Aran Fawddwy (191 km, Wales), Broad Law (113 km, Scotland), Snaefell (84 km, Isle of Man), Moel Siabod (164 km, Wales).

Computed from terrain in perfect clarity, not photographed · distances are straight-line.

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

Sunrise and sunset on Great Gable

Great Gable catches the sun before the valley does. On not one of the sixteen dates modelled does this summit wait for first light — the eastern horizon falls away rather than standing over you, and at midsummer the light reaches it 6 minutes before almanac sunrise.

30°40°50°60°04:32
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 lightAlmanac sunriseDifference
Midsummer04:32 BST ±5.0 min04:38-6 min
Equinox06:14 GMT ±5.0 min06:16-2 min
Midwinter08:27 GMT ±5.0 min08:33-6 min

A low, open northern horizon — the ground falls away northwards (mean -0.55°).

Last light — when the sun leaves Great Gable

Great Gable 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 5 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 lightAlmanac sunsetDifference
Midsummer21:58 BST ±5.0 min21:53+5 min
Equinox18:33 GMT ±5.0 min18:27+6 min
Midwinter15:58 GMT ±5.0 min15:50+8 min

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 Great Gable. 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. 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 Great Gable

On a clear day — computed sightlines, curvature- and refraction-corrected.
113Wainwrights in view+12 marginal
167 kmFurthest sightlineSnowdon (Yr Wyddfa) · possible under favourable refraction
2Sea in viewIrish Sea, Solway Firth

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

Far horizons
  • Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa) WalesSSW · 167 km clear
  • Carnedd Llewelyn WalesSSW · 152 km clear
  • Merrick ScotlandNW · 110 km clear
  • Snaefell Isle of ManWSW · 85 km clear
  • Ingleborough Yorkshire DalesSE · 65 km clear
  • Whernside Yorkshire DalesESE · 60 km clear
  • Criffel ScotlandNNW · 58 km clear
  • Cross Fell North PenninesENE · 53 km clear
  • Solway Firth bay/estuaryNNW · 47 km in view
  • Irish Sea open waterWNW · 32 km in view
All 113 Wainwrights in clear view (nearest first)

How Great Gable’s view compares with all 214 — the View Report: every Wainwright ranked by what you can see from the top.

Sightlines from a bare-earth terrain model (forests and buildings not included), 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

Seatoller House (opens in new tab) guest house

about 2.0 km from the start, in a straight line

The nearest serviced bed to the top of Honister with a kitchen behind it. It is the only property inside 3 km whose own page answers evening meal, breakfast time, parking, dogs and a family room together - and two of its ten rooms are downstairs, which matters to a walker who has just come off Haystacks on wrecked knees.

Worth knowing: “Well behaved dogs are allowed, they are not allowed in the dining room at any time,Please clean and dry all dogs on entering Seatoller via the back door.”

The house is 400 years old, has taken guests for more than a century, and is the biggest building in the hamlet of Seatoller.

  • Dogs “Well behaved dogs are allowed, they are not allowed in the dining room at any time,Please clean and dry all dogs on entering Seatoller via the back door.”
  • Family rooms “Rabbit Large Family room, Private bathroom directly opposite, great views of garden & Fells”
  • Evening meal “The dining room has two large traditional oak tables creating a friendly atmosphere where guests are served a set meal at 7 pm (excluding Wednesdays).”
  • Parking “There are 10 bedrooms all with private bathrooms, a large award winning garden surrounding the house and ample private car parking.”

YHA Wasdale Hall (opens in new tab) hostel

about 4.8 km from the start, in a straight line

The only roofed, catered bed in the cluster we can evidence, and it answers the wet-walker columns the campsite cannot: a shared drying room, breakfast from 07:30 (which gets you to Wasdale Head for a Scafell Pike start), meals from 17:00 when you come back off Gable, a licensed bar, a self-catering kitchen, and free parking on the premises. For the family who are not walking, it has a cot, a highchair, an outdoor play area, a games room and rooms sleeping 5, 6 and 8 - and it sits on the shore of Wastwater with the lake in front of it. Ranked 2 only because it is 4.79 km from the trailhead, at the far end of the lake: you drive to the start, and the road in is the narrow one. Two caveats that must render with it, not be tucked away: no dogs unless you take the whole building, and under-12s cannot go in dorm rooms, so a family with young children needs a private room.

Worth knowing: “Pets - including dogs - are not permitted in our hostels when staying in a dorm or a private room.”

Built in 1829 for a Yorkshire banker, Stansfield Rawson, who chose a late-medieval style; the lounge fireplace surround came out of York Minster; it has been a youth hostel since 1969 and was renamed from YHA Wastwater in 2015.

  • Drying room “Shared drying room”
  • Family rooms “Two rooms that sleep up to 5 people each. They include a single high-sleeper bunk with a double bed underneath and a set of bunk beds.”
  • Evening meal “Meals are also available from 17:00”
  • Packed lunch “With tasty breakfasts, packed lunches and evening meals, groups are sure to find something delicious to eat at YHA Wasdale Hall”
  • Parking “Free parking on premises”
  • Children “Under 12s are not permitted in dorm rooms. Children under 3 can stay with us for free.”

YHA Borrowdale (opens in new tab) hostel

about 3.1 km from the start, in a straight line

The only bed in the cluster whose own page states a cot, a highchair, ground-floor rooms, wheelchair access, a drying room, a self-catering kitchen and a 07:30 breakfast. For a family where one adult walks Great Gable and the rest do not, nothing else in the radius answers as many of their questions - which is why it earns a row despite not being independent.

Worth knowing: “Dogs: Pets are not permitted at YHA Borrowdale, except in our Camping & Cabins accommodation. Assistance dogs are welcome - please notify us at the time of booking.”

There has been a youth hostel in this valley since before the war - the present one opened at Longthwaite at Easter 1939, after an earlier hostel at Grange-in-Borrowdale closed in 1937.

  • Drying room “Self-catering kitchen Shared drying room Shared lounge Sole use available Unlimited breakfast Water refill station Wheelchair accessible WiFi”
  • Family rooms “YHA Borrowdale offers a variety of accommodation options including rooms of varying sizes, camping pods and camping pitches.”
  • Evening meal “With tasty breakfasts, packed lunches and evening meals, groups are sure to find something delicious to eat at YHA Borrowdale (see sample menu ).”
  • Packed lunch “With tasty breakfasts, packed lunches and evening meals, groups are sure to find something delicious to eat at YHA Borrowdale (see sample menu ).”
  • Parking “Parking: This hostel has on-site parking (subject to availability). Charges apply though overnight guests benefit from a discounted rate of £5 per vehicle for 24 hours.”
  • Children “Accessible rooms available Bed linen Central heating Cot available Ground floor rooms available Heating Hot water Lock on doors Smoke alarm”

What each place says about itself, quoted from their own site. We have not stayed at any of them, and there are no prices, no booking and no affiliate links. Distances are straight lines from each route start, never walking times. Properties found via OpenStreetMap (opens in new tab).

Frequently asked questions about Great Gable

Is Great Gable a difficult climb?

Great Gable (899 m / 2,949 ft) is a strenuous but non-technical fell by its walkers' routes. There is no scrambling required to reach the summit, but every approach is steep, rough and sustained, and the boulder-strewn top is a genuine navigation challenge in cloud.

It is harder than it looks: the pyramidal shape means relentless climbing whichever way you go, and the summit is a chaos of rock with steep drops on several sides. Fit walkers comfortable with rough ground and basic navigation will enjoy it; it is not a good choice for a first-ever fell.

Sources: Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team (opens in new tab)

Is Great Gable a scramble?

The normal walkers' routes are not scrambles — they are rough, bouldery paths, but you reach the summit on your feet. However, Great Gable's dramatic south face, the Napes, is serious territory:

  • Napes Needle and the Napes Ridges are rock climbs, not walks — this is the birthplace of British rock climbing and should only be attempted by experienced climbers.
  • The Climbers' Traverse beneath the Napes is an exposed path that should not be confused with the ordinary routes.

Stick to the marked paths from Sty Head or Windy Gap unless you are a competent scrambler or climber.

Sources: Wasdale MRT — accident black spots (opens in new tab)

What is the easiest route up Great Gable?

There is no truly easy way up Great Gable, but the least steep approach is from Honister Pass, which starts high and crosses Grey Knotts, Brandreth and Green Gable before the final pull to the summit. It spreads the ascent out and is mostly straightforward walking.

The other popular routes are tougher: from Seathwaite (Borrowdale) via Sty Head and Aaron Slack, and the short but brutally steep direct climb from Wasdale Head up Gavel Neese. Whichever you choose, the last section to the summit is steep and bouldery.

Sources: Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team (opens in new tab)

How long does it take to walk up Great Gable?

Allow 4 to 6 hours for the round trip. The Honister route is around 5–6 miles (8–10 km) and typically takes 4 to 5 hours; the steep direct climb from Wasdale Head is shorter in distance but slow and tiring, also around 4 to 5 hours up and down.

Many people combine Great Gable with neighbouring fells such as Green Gable, Kirk Fell or the Scafells via Sty Head, which makes a longer and more committing day. Build in extra time for the rough ground and for navigating the summit.

Sources: Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team (opens in new tab)

Where do you park for Great Gable?

The three usual starting points each have parking nearby:

  • Honister Pass — the slate mine pay & display at the top of the pass (the highest, gentlest start).
  • Seathwaite, Borrowdale — roadside verge parking at the end of the lane (arrive very early; it fills fast).
  • Wasdale Head — the National Trust car park, for the steep direct ascent.

All fill quickly on fine weekends, so start early. See the parking section on this page for the nearest spots, distances and facilities.

What was Wainwright's favourite fell, and what is Great Gable known for?

Great Gable was one of Alfred Wainwright's best-loved fells, and it holds a special place in Lakeland affection for several reasons:

  • The war memorial: the summit carries a bronze plaque to members of the Fell & Rock Climbing Club who died in the First World War, and a Remembrance Sunday service is held there every November.
  • Napes Needle: the iconic rock pinnacle on its south face, whose ascent in 1886 is often called the birth of British rock climbing.
  • Its shape: the bold pyramid seen from Wasdale is one of the most recognisable mountain profiles in England — it inspired the Lake District National Park's logo.
How do I check conditions before climbing Great Gable?

Great Gable's exposed, rocky summit is a serious place in poor weather, so check a mountain forecast rather than the valley forecast before you set off:

  • Met Office Lake District mountain forecast.
  • Mountain Weather Information Service (MWIS).

Carry a map and compass — the boulder-strewn top is a known navigation trap in cloud — tell someone your plans, and be prepared to turn back. In an emergency call 999, ask for Police, then Mountain Rescue.

Sources: Met Office — Lake District mountain forecast (opens in new tab) · Mountain Weather Information Service (MWIS) (opens in new tab)

Questions drawn from real Google “People also ask” searches; answers written and fact-checked by us. · Reviewed 2026-06-14 · Suggest a question or correction (opens in new tab)

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