Heron Pike (Glenridding)
Heron Pike at 612m (2,008ft) — distinct from the Heron Pike above Grasmere — is a Birkett top on Sheffield Pike's south-east ridge above Glenridding in the Eastern Fells, giving fine views across Ullswater and towards the main Helvellyn massif.
Summit conditions on Heron Pike (Glenridding)
On the summit on Tuesday 27 October: 11° to 5°C, gusts to 53 mph, 21.2 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 Heron Pike (Glenridding)
Hand-mapped, with GPX to download — full maps further down.
A hard round above Glenridding by every measure the site records — 1,269 m of ascent in 15.6 km.
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 Heron Pike (Glenridding)?
The shortest way up we hold is Glenridding Dodd, Sheffield Pike, Catstye Cam, Birkhouse Moor — 15.58 km, 1269 m of ascent, ~5–7 h. On our scale its hardest axes are distance, steepness, terrain, navigation and exposure — Hard.
All axes: length: Hard · steepness: Hard · terrain: Hard · navigation: Hard · exposure: Hard.
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 612 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 Heron Pike (Glenridding)
Parking
Route starts first, then the car parks nearest the summit, which are not always a way up.
2 more places to park near Heron Pike (Glenridding)
Positions are approximate.
Of the pay-and-display machine tickets sold at Glenridding from 17 August 2024 to 31 March 2026, 34% were bought before 10am (our count of FOI/2026.500 ticket data). Contains public sector information provided by the Lake District National Park Authority and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
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 508, 509 and 559 stop at Glenridding, at Bus Shelter, a 140 m walk from the start of Glenridding Dodd, Sheffield Pike, Catstye Cam, Birkhouse Moor — a route we rate Hard overall (hardest: distance, steepness, terrain, navigation and exposure). The last bus is 19:41 towards Windermere (508) and 17:55 towards Penrith (508) and 17:45 towards Grasmere (559) and 17:29 towards Patterdale (509) and 16:00 towards Keswick (509) and 15:04 towards Hartsop (509), every day. 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 Heron Pike (Glenridding)
Notes from the Glenridding Dodd, Sheffield Pike, Catstye Cam, Birkhouse Moor route
If you need to get off (the leg from Glenridding Dodd): From the col between the two fells, take the obvious path dropping south directly back down to Greenside Road.
Quoted from the route page: the note for the leg that reaches Heron Pike (Glenridding).
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 Heron Pike (Glenridding)
These Birkett tops are not Wainwright summits. Distances are straight lines: check the ground and access on a map before adding one.
Routes over Heron Pike (Glenridding)
Download GPX Walked by Lee, September 2023
Route guide: Glenridding Dodd, Sheffield Pike, Catstye Cam, Birkhouse Moor →
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 Heron Pike (Glenridding)
Water & shelter on the way up
On the Glenridding Dodd, Sheffield Pike, Catstye Cam, Birkhouse Moor route:
On-route facilities © OpenStreetMap contributors, per route — an absent marker doesn’t mean none.
About Heron Pike (Glenridding)
My Strava hikes over Heron Pike (Glenridding)
1 logged hike pass over this summit:
- A great, quiet walk until it wasn't. (opens in new tab) — 15.4 km · 1217 m ascent · 4h 19m moving · 2 September 2023
Data from Strava.
Classifications & hill data
Is Heron Pike (Glenridding) a Wainwright?
Heron Pike (Glenridding) 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
- Greenbank Farm Bed and Breakfast (opens in new tab) guest houseabout 2.5 km
Also nearby, but not independent
- YHA Helvellyn (opens in new tab) hostelabout 2.0 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).