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

Wainwright — Western FellsAlso a Birkett

Hen Comb

Hen Comb at 509m (1,670ft) is a distinctively shaped ridge above Loweswater, its narrow summit giving fine views of Loweswater and Crummock Water.

506 m
Height
~3.5–4.5 h
Typical time
+13
Bonus Birketts
See routes & download GPX →

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506 mWainwright — Western Fells✓ summit is also a Birkett+13 bonus Birketts within 3 km Straightforward in cloud

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

Modelled guidance for the 506 m summit. Always check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.

On the summit today (Tue 28 Jul): 15° to 14°C, gusts to 34 mph, 2.2 mm of rain forecast.

Tue 28 Jul
🌦️
15° / 14°
💨 34 mph
🌧 2.2 mm (99%)
Wed 29 Jul
🌧️
15° / 12°
💨 27 mph
🌧 12.8 mm (100%)
Thu 30 Jul
🌦️
13° / 5°
💨 28 mph
🌧 2.8 mm (87%)
Fri 31 Jul
🌤️
15° / 3°
💨 22 mph
🌧 0.0 mm (86%)
Sat 1 Aug
🌦️
15° / 6°
💨 15 mph
🌧 1.2 mm (82%)
Sun 2 Aug
🌤️
16° / 5°
💨 16 mph
🌧 0.0 mm (35%)
Mon 3 Aug
🌦️
16° / 5°
💨 17 mph
🌧 0.4 mm (23%)

Forecast snapshot from 28 Jul 2026, 04:58 UTC — refreshed nightly and updated live in your browser. Temperatures and gusts adjusted to the 506 m summit altitude via Open-Meteo. Summit conditions are always harsher than the valley — check the professional mountain forecasts before you go.

Pro mountain forecasts: MWIS · Met Office mountain forecast

About the walk

Key information

Hen Comb

Hen Comb, a Lake District fell
Photo: Mick Knapton, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Hen Comb at 509m (1,670ft) is a distinctively shaped ridge above Loweswater, its narrow summit giving fine views of Loweswater and Crummock Water. Wainwright included it as a separate fell, praising the excellent view of Loweswater from the summit. The ascent from Loweswater is short. Combined naturally with Mellbreak for a circuit of the Loweswater fells. The lake views are a highlight.

Routes up Hen Comb

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

Blake Fell, Gavel Fell, Hen Comb
14 km · ~4 hr
Classifications & hill data
Wainwright
Western
Birkett
Fellranger
Synge
HuMP
506 m
Height
1,660 ft
In feet
NY 1321 1812
Grid ref

Map & nearby Birketts

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

Nearest parking: Maggie's Bridge, Loweswater (NT, free), about 2.9 km from the summit (straight line). Full parking, toilets and bus details are below.

Birketts near Hen Comb (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.

1.1 km NLittle Dodd (Loweswater)362 m · North Western
1.2 km SWFloutern Cop451 m · Western
1.4 km WNWGavel Fell - High Nook (Gavel Fell North Top)488 m · North Western
1.7 km NEMellbreak North Top509 m · North Western
1.7 km SGale Fell518 m · Western
1.8 km WSWBanna Fell455 m · Western
1.8 km EScale Knott338 m · Western
2.3 km SWHerdus562 m · Western
2.3 km WNWHigh Pen475 m · North Western
2.7 km NWCarling Knott544 m · North Western
2.7 km NNWLoweswater End - Carling Knott519 m · Western
2.8 km SWBrown How (Ennerdale)330 m · Western
2.9 km WNWLow Pen435 m · North Western

Routes over Hen Comb

Blake Fell, Gavel Fell, Hen CombLive
14.03 km · ~732 m ascent · loop · ~4–5.5 h
Summits: Burnbank FellBlake FellGavel FellHen CombLittle Dodd (Loweswater)

⬇️ Download GPX

Full route guide ↗

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

The View from Hen Comb

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 Hen Comb30 labelled tops shown (10 distant behind the far-horizon toggle). Theoretical visibility in perfect clarity; computed from terrain, not photographed.eye levelNNEESESSWWNWScafell Pike · 14 kmRaise · 21 kmGreat Dodd · 21 kmGrasmoor · 5 kmCrag Hill · 6 kmBlack Crag · 7 kmHigh Stile · 5 kmHaycock · 8 kmGlaramara · 14 kmHopegill Head · 7 kmDale Head · 10 kmRobinson · 7 kmWhiteside East Top · 6 kmCaw Fell · 7 kmFleetwith Pike · 8 kmIron Crag · 6 kmGreat Borne · 2 kmBlake Fell · 3 kmCarling Knott · 3 kmGavel Fell · 2 kmLoweswater End · 3 kmBroom Fell · 11 kmGraystones · 10 kmBanna Fell · 2 kmFloutern Cop · 1 kmLow Fell · 4 kmFellbarrow · 6 kmDarling Fell · 4 kmCaermote Hill · 20 kmFlat Fell · 9 kmPillar · 7 kmStybarrow Dodd · 21 kmWandope · 6 kmSand Hill · 7 kmLittle Gowder Crag · 7 kmWhiteless Pike · 5 kmStarling Dodd · 3 kmSergeant's Crag · 16 kmMellbreak North Top · 2 kmKirk Fell · 9 kmDodd · 4 kmSourfoot Fell · 5 kmWhite Hill · 66 km · clear daysGrange Fell · 65 km · clear daysSlieve Donard · 172 km · a handful of days a yearBroad Law · 105 km · a rare clear daySnaefell · 79 km · a rare clear daySlieve Croob · 172 km · a handful of days a yearGreen Lowther · 97 km · a rare clear dayCulter Fell · 111 km · a rare clear dayWisp Hill · 85 km · a rare clear dayRoan Fell · 82 km · a rare clear dayDun Rig · 114 km · a rare clear dayPeel Fell · 95 km · a rare clear day
What you can see from Hen Comb, by direction
  • North-east: Grasmoor (5 km), Whiteside East Top (6 km), Gasgale Crags (6 km), Hopegill Head (7 km), Sand Hill (7 km), Broom Fell (11 km)
  • East: Whiteless Pike (5 km), Thirdgill Head Man (5 km), Wandope (6 km), Crag Hill (6 km), Robinson (7 km), Dale Head (10 km), Watson's Dodd (20 km), White Side (21 km), Little Dodd (21 km), Raise (21 km), Great Dodd (21 km), Stybarrow Dodd (21 km)
  • South-east: Starling Dodd (3 km), High Stile (5 km), Pillar Rock (7 km), Pillar (7 km), Black Crag (7 km), Fleetwith Pike (8 km), Honister Crag (9 km), Grey Knotts (10 km), Scafell Pike (14 km), Glaramara (14 km), Combe Head (14 km), Sergeant's Crag (16 km), High Raise (17 km)
  • South: Iron Crag (6 km), Caw Fell (7 km), Little Gowder Crag (7 km), Haycock (8 km)
  • South-west: Great Borne (2 km)
  • West: Gavel Fell (2 km)
  • North-west: Blake Fell (3 km), Carling Knott (3 km), Loweswater End (3 km)

On the clearest days the far horizon adds: Slieve Donard (172 km, Ireland), Broad Law (105 km, Scotland), Snaefell (79 km, Isle of Man), South Barrule (97 km, Isle of Man), Slieve Croob (172 km, Ireland), Green Lowther (97 km, Scotland), White Coomb (97 km, Scotland), Queensberry (83 km, Scotland).

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 (CC BY 4.0). See how we compute the view · and the summit intervisibility report below.

What you can see from Hen Comb

On a clear day — computed sightlines, curvature- and refraction-corrected.
36Wainwrights in view+5 marginal
80 kmFurthest sightlineSnaefell
2Sea in viewIrish Sea, Solway Firth

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

Far horizons
  • Snaefell Isle of ManWSW · 80 km clear
  • Criffel ScotlandNNW · 48 km clear
  • Solway Firth bay/estuaryNNW · 37 km in view
  • Irish Sea open waterWSW · 35 km in view
All 36 Wainwrights in clear view (nearest first)

Gavel Fell, Mellbreak (Mellbreak South Top), Great Borne, Starling Dodd, Blake Fell, Red Pike (Buttermere), Low Fell, Grasmoor, Whiteless Pike, Whiteside (Whiteside West Top), Wandope, Fellbarrow - Mosser Fell, Crag Hill (Eel Crag), Knott Rigg, Hopegill Head, Robinson, Caw Fell, Pillar, Haycock, Fleetwith Pike, Dale Head, Graystones (Graystones North Top), Grey Knotts, Maiden Moor, Broom Fell, Scafell Pike, Glaramara, Rosthwaite Fell - Bessyboot, Sergeant's Crag, High Raise (High White Stones), Binsey, Watson's Dodd, White Side, Raise, Great Dodd, Stybarrow Dodd

How Hen Comb’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.

Best parking to hike Hen Comb

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

Maggie's Bridge, Loweswater (NT, free) — 2.9 km from summit (straight line)
Small free car park for Mellbreak, Hen Comb and the Loweswater fells.
Directions
Bowness Knott, Ennerdale (Forestry, paid) — 3.5 km from summit (straight line)
Forestry England car park at the end of the Ennerdale valley road, on the lake's north shore (OS NY 110 154; parking charges apply since 2023) — Great Borne, Starling Dodd, and the long walk-ins to Pillar and Steeple.
Directions

Positions are approximate — zoom the map to confirm. Lakeland car parks fill before 9am on fine weekends.

Tip: pan and zoom the interactive map at the top of this page to spot other potential parking near your route.

Buses to Hen Comb from Penrith / Ambleside / Windermere

No regular bus serves the start points for this fell — this is one for the car (or a long approach from the nearest served valley). The nearest hubs are Penrith (X4/X5 & 508), Ambleside and Windermere (555, 505, 516).

Rural routes change seasonally — confirm on stagecoachbus.com or Traveline before relying on a last bus.

Navigating Hen Comb in cloud

Straightforward

A broad, gently-sloping top with little to steer by — easy to lose your bearings and hard to relocate in mist. Navigation here is relatively straightforward even in cloud — but carry map and compass and know how to use them; a low score never means “safe”.

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

Other fells near Hen Comb

Maps & guidebooks for Hen Comb

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