Wainwright — Western FellsAlso a Birkett

High Crag (Buttermere)

High Crag at 744m (2,441ft) is the south-eastern anchor of the Buttermere ridge, its dramatic Gamlin End providing the steepest descent in the three-peak circuit.

745 m

Height

~5–6 h

Typical time

Bonus Birketts

See routes & download GPX → Parking & buses →

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745 mWainwright — Western Fells✓ summit is also a Birkett+7 bonus Birketts within 3 km Severe in cloud

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

Modelled guidance for the 745 m summit. Always check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.

On the summit today (Fri 11 Sep): 11° to 8°C, gusts to 26 mph, 1.1 mm of rain forecast.

Fri 11 Sep

🌦️

11° / 8°

💨 26 mph

🌧 1.1 mm (100%)

Sat 12 Sep

🌧️

13° / 8°

💨 49 mph

🌧 37.2 mm (100%)

Sun 13 Sep

🌦️

11° / 7°

💨 15 mph

🌧 0.1 mm (74%)

Mon 14 Sep

🌧️

13° / 6°

💨 33 mph

🌧 18.7 mm (96%)

Tue 15 Sep

🌧️

12° / 7°

💨 32 mph

🌧 13.2 mm (100%)

Wed 16 Sep

🌦️

9° / 8°

💨 34 mph

🌧 6.0 mm (96%)

Thu 17 Sep

🌦️

9° / 7°

💨 38 mph

🌧 11.6 mm (98%)

Forecast snapshot from 11 Sep 2026, 08:30 UTC — refreshed nightly and updated live in your browser. Temperatures and gusts adjusted to the 745 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

High Crag (Buttermere) at a glance

High Crag (Buttermere)

High Crag at 744m (2,441ft) is the south-eastern anchor of the Buttermere ridge, its dramatic Gamlin End providing the steepest descent in the three-peak circuit. Wainwright described the ascent from Scarth Gap via Gamlin End as one of the best ridge approaches in the Western Fells — steep, direct and immediately rewarding with views of Haystacks opposite. The traverse from High Crag to High Stile and Red Pike via the Buttermere ridge is one of the classic full-day walks in the western Lake District.

Routes up High Crag (Buttermere)

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

High Stile, Seat via Buttermere

13 km · ~4 hr

Five tops along the High Stile ridge with Buttermere below you the whole way. 836 m of ascent in 13 km, and a stage averaging 20% to gain the ridge in the first place. Exposure is rated hard where the crags drop straight to the lake. Roughly 4 hours.

The Buttermere Ridge

13.4 km · ~4.3 hr

One of the finest ridge walks in the Lakes — Seat, High Crag, High Stile and Red Pike strung above Buttermere, with plunging drops into Ennerdale on one side and the lake on the other. Earned by the loose, relentless grind of Gamlin End and paid for again on the red scree chute off Red Pike: 13.4 km, 975 m of climbing, and severe for steepness.

Classifications & hill data

Wainwright

Western

Birkett

Fellranger

Synge

Nuttall

745 m

Height

2,444 ft

In feet

NY 1804 1399

Grid ref

The short answers

Is High Crag (Buttermere) a Wainwright?

High Crag (Buttermere) is a Wainwright. It is also on the Birkett list, the Synge list, the Nuttall list and the Fellranger list.

Where do you park for High Crag (Buttermere)?

The nearest car park we hold is Gatesgarth Farm, Buttermere (paid), about 1.7 km from the summit in a straight line. The next is High Snockrigg car park (free), 2.0 km out. We only look within 2.5 km, measured straight-line: over longer distances a road may cross a pass and the drive bears no relation to the line.

Parking & buses for High Crag (Buttermere)

Best parking to hike High Crag (Buttermere)

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

Gatesgarth Farm, Buttermere (paid) — 1.7 km from summit (straight line)

Farm car park at the foot of Haystacks, Fleetwith Pike and the High Stile ridge.

Directions Something changed here?

High Snockrigg car park (free) — 2.0 km from summit (straight line)

Nearest fells: High Snockrigg (1.0 km), Robinson (1.7 km). Free (OSM-tagged). Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged).

Directions Something changed here?

Fleetwith Pike (layby) — 2.2 km from summit (straight line)

Nearest fells: Fleetwith Pike (0.9 km), Honister Crag (Black Star) (1.4 km), Haystacks (Buttermere) (1.9 km). Free (OSM-tagged). Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged).

Directions Something changed here?

Buttermere village LDNP car park (east) (paid) — 3.0 km from summit (straight line)

The 'Buttermere lake circuit' route starts 49 m away. Also serves 'Crummock Water shore circuit'. Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged). Toilets on site. Fees: pay and display; coins and cards; RingGo ID 37311 (LDNPA, checked Aug 2026).

Directions Something changed here?

Buttermere (free) — 3.0 km from summit (straight line)

Walking base for Red Pike (Buttermere), High Stile, High Stile (Grey Crag - High Stile) and High Crag (Buttermere) — the 'High Stile, Seat via Buttermere' route starts 5 m away. Also serves 'Great Bourne & Starling Dodd'. Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged).

Directions Something changed here?

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.

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 High Crag (Buttermere) by bus

The 77 stops at Buttermere, outside Court Hotel, 100 m from the start of High Stile, Seat via Buttermere. 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. Last bus: Monday to Friday 19:23 towards Cockermouth (77A) and 18:20 towards Keswick (77); Saturday 19:23 towards Cockermouth (77A) and 18:20 towards Keswick (77); Sunday 18:20 towards Keswick (77). Checked against the operator’s timetable, 7 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 High Crag (Buttermere)

No hazard card for this fell. The usual open-fell rules apply: check the forecast, carry a map and compass, and turn back in cloud if the ground is not what you expected.

Navigating High Crag (Buttermere) 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.

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 High Crag (Buttermere) 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: Gatesgarth Farm, Buttermere (paid), about 1.7 km from the summit (straight line). Full parking, toilets and bus details are below.

Birketts near High Crag (Buttermere) (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.

0.8 km SESeat561 m · Western

1.3 km NWHigh Stile (Grey Crag)806 m · Western

1.9 km SSWPillar Rock780 m · Western

2.3 km SSELooking Stead (Pillar)628 m · Western

2.4 km NWDodd (Buttermere)641 m · Western

2.7 km SSWBlack Crag828 m · Western

3.0 km NNEHigh Snockrigg526 m · North Western

Routes over High Crag (Buttermere)

High Stile, Seat via ButtermereLive

12.97 km · ~836 m ascent · loop · ~4–5.5 h

Summits: Red Pike (Buttermere)High Stile High Stile (Grey Crag - High Stile)High Crag (Buttermere)Seat

⬇️ 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.

The Buttermere RidgePlanned

13.39 km · ~975 m ascent · loop · ~4–5.5 h

Summits: SeatHigh Crag (Buttermere)High Stile (Grey Crag - High Stile)High Stile Red Pike (Buttermere)Dodd (Buttermere)

⬇️ Download GPX

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.

On the hill: terrain and water on High Crag (Buttermere)

Water & shelter on the way up

On the High Stile, Seat via Buttermere route:

🚌 Bridge Hotel (6 m)🚌 The Fish Hotel (62 m)🚌 Mountain Road junction (153 m)🚌 Buttermere Youth Hostel (N bound) (312 m)⛺ Syke Farm Campsite (217 m)

On the The Buttermere Ridge route:

🚌 Bridge Hotel (307 m)🚌 The Fish Hotel (324 m)🚌 Mountain Road junction (398 m)⛺ Syke Farm Campsite (232 m)

The view from High Crag (Buttermere)

The 360° skyline from High Crag (Buttermere)

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

What you can see from High Crag (Buttermere), by direction

North: Grasmoor (6 km), Crag Hill (6 km), Eel Crag (7 km)
North-east: Skiddaw Lesser Man (16 km), Skiddaw Little Man (16 km), Skiddaw South Top (17 km), Skiddaw Middle Top (17 km), Skiddaw (17 km), Broad End (18 km), Knowe Crags (18 km), Gategill Fell Top (19 km), Blencathra (20 km), Atkinson Pike (20 km)
East: Helvellyn Lower Man (16 km), White Side (16 km), Helvellyn (16 km), Nethermost Pike (16 km), High Crag (16 km), Watson's Dodd (16 km), Raise (17 km), Dollywaggon Pike (17 km), Catstye Cam (17 km), Stybarrow Dodd (17 km), Great Dodd (17 km), Cofa Pike (18 km), Green Side (18 km), Fairfield (18 km), Dove Crag (20 km), Red Screes (22 km)
South-east: Green Gable (5 km), Great Gable (5 km), Glaramara (7 km), Broad Crag (8 km), Scafell Pike (8 km), Ill Crag (8 km)
South: Kirk Fell (4 km), Scafell (8 km)
South-west: Pillar (2 km), Scoat Fell (3 km), Haycock (5 km)

On the clearest days the far horizon adds: Slieve Donard (176 km, Ireland), Snaefell (82 km, Isle of Man), Cairnsmore of Carsphairn (102 km, Scotland), South Barrule (100 km, Isle of Man), Slieve Croob (177 km, Ireland), Green Lowther (102 km, Scotland), Divis (178 km, Ireland), Queensberry (88 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 (opens in new tab) (CC BY 4.0). See how we compute the view · and the summit intervisibility report below.

Sunrise and sunset on High Crag (Buttermere)

High Crag (Buttermere) sits close to the flat-horizon case. Even on its longest wait of the modelled year (at the March equinox) first light is only 3 minutes after almanac sunrise, so the published sunrise time is a fair guide here.

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 light	Almanac sunrise	Difference
Midsummer	04:39 BST ±5.0 min	04:38	+1 min
Equinox	06:19 GMT ±5.0 min	06:16	+3 min
Midwinter	08:36 GMT ±5.0 min	08:34	+2 min

A low, open northern horizon — the ground falls away northwards (mean -0.03°).

Last light — when the sun leaves High Crag (Buttermere)

High Crag (Buttermere) loses the sun early. Its earliest evening of the modelled year falls at midsummer, when last light is 23 minutes before almanac sunset — 21:30 against 21:53. The sun goes down to the north-west from here (310.3°), and the skyline on that bearing stands at 2.24°.

The evening of the same three days. A negative difference means a ridge takes the sun before the valley loses it.
	Last light	Almanac sunset	Difference
Midsummer	21:30 BST ±5.0 min	21:53	-23 min
Equinox	18:33 GMT ±5.0 min	18:27	+6 min
Midwinter	15:44 GMT ±5.0 min	15:50	-6 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 High Crag (Buttermere). 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 High Crag (Buttermere)

On a clear day — computed sightlines, curvature- and refraction-corrected.

74Wainwrights in view+7 marginal

83 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 · 83 km clear
Ingleborough Yorkshire DalesSE · 69 km clear
Criffel ScotlandNNW · 54 km clear
Solway Firth bay/estuaryNNW · 43 km in view
Irish Sea open waterW · 36 km in view

All 74 Wainwrights in clear view (nearest first)

High Stile, Haystacks (Buttermere), Pillar, Fleetwith Pike, Steeple, Scoat Fell (Little Scoat Fell), Robinson, Kirk Fell, Grey Knotts, Brandreth, Hindscarth, Dale Head, Rannerdale Knotts, Green Gable, Great Gable, Haycock, Whiteless Pike, Knott Rigg, Caw Fell, Wandope, Grasmoor, Ard Crags, Crag Hill (Eel Crag), Lingmell, Sail, Scar Crags, Glaramara, Scafell Pike, Causey Pike, Rosthwaite Fell - Bessyboot, Scafell, Hopegill Head, Crag Fell, Cat Bells (Catbells), Great Crag (Stonethwaite), Grike, Low Fell, Eagle Crag, High Raise (High White Stones), Ullscarf, Fellbarrow - Mosser Fell, Pike of Stickle, Armboth Fell (Armboth Fell South Top), Bleaberry Fell, Harrison Stickle, Harter Fell (Eskdale), Dodd (Skiddaw), Green Crag, Carl Side, White Side, Long Side, Ullock Pike, Helvellyn, Nethermost Pike, Skiddaw Little Man, Watson's Dodd, Raise, Dollywaggon Pike, Seat Sandal, Lonscale Fell, Catstye Cam, Stybarrow Dodd, Skiddaw, Great Dodd, Clough Head, Great Rigg, Fairfield, Heron Pike (Rydal), Dove Crag, Blencathra - Hallsfell Top, High Pike (Scandale), Red Screes, Bowscale Fell, Yoke

How High Crag (Buttermere)’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

Bridge Hotel (opens in new tab) hotel

about 0.0 km from the start, in a straight line

It is 20 m from where all five Buttermere routes begin and it is the only hotel in the valley that says it takes dogs, in a cluster where three of the other four beds state a pet restriction. It also states its own size - "21 EN-SUITE BEDROOMS AND 6 SELF-CATERING APARTMENTS" - and its own food and ales, so a party coming off Red Pike at six can eat and sleep without moving the car. Set against that: only its home page is in the cache and that page answers nothing about parking, drying, children or family rooms, and it publishes no email and no phone at all, so this is a place you book online or ring on OSM's number, not one you email.

The bedrooms are deliberately unwired - no television, no radio, and no mobile signal to lose.

Dogs “A true dog-friendly hotel in the Lake District”
Evening meal “Exceptionally friendly and professional service, homemade food, carefully selected local real ales with our staff who naturally go the extra mile to ensure your needs meet your expectations.”

Worth knowing before you book

These places state on their own site that they do not take children.

Buttermere Youth Hostel (YHA Buttermere) (opens in new tab) “Guests under the age of 16 must be accompanied by an adult aged 18 years or over to stay at YHA.”
YHA Ennerdale (opens in new tab) “Guests under the age of 16 must be accompanied by an adult aged 18 years or over to stay at YHA.”

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 High Crag (Buttermere)

Is High Crag hard to climb?

Yes, by one specific thing: the slope on its Buttermere side is steep, loose and unrelenting, and it is the hardest half hour on the whole Buttermere ridge. Going up it is hard work; coming down it is worse, and that is the decision to make before you set off.

Our Buttermere ridge round is 13.4 km with 975 m of ascent, graded severe for steepness and hard for navigation; the shorter High Stile and Seat round is 13.0 km and 836 m. Walking the ridge west to east puts that slope under your feet going up rather than down.

Questions drawn from real Google “People also ask” searches; answers written and fact-checked by us. · Reviewed 2026-08-30 · Suggest a question or correction (opens in new tab)

High Crag (Buttermere)

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

High Crag (Buttermere) at a glance

High Crag (Buttermere)

Routes up High Crag (Buttermere)

Classifications & hill data

The short answers

Is High Crag (Buttermere) a Wainwright?

Where do you park for High Crag (Buttermere)?

Parking & buses for High Crag (Buttermere)

Best parking to hike High Crag (Buttermere)

Getting to High Crag (Buttermere) by bus

Hazards on High Crag (Buttermere)

Navigating High Crag (Buttermere) in cloud

Map & nearby Birketts

Birketts near High Crag (Buttermere) (within 3 km)

Routes over High Crag (Buttermere)

On the hill: terrain and water on High Crag (Buttermere)

Water & shelter on the way up

The view from High Crag (Buttermere)

The 360° skyline from High Crag (Buttermere)

Sunrise and sunset on High Crag (Buttermere)

Last light — when the sun leaves High Crag (Buttermere)

What you can see from High Crag (Buttermere)

Places to stay near this fell

Bridge Hotel (opens in new tab) hotel

Worth knowing before you book

Frequently asked questions about High Crag (Buttermere)

Other fells near High Crag (Buttermere)