Ling Fell
Ling Fell at 374m (1,227ft) is a small, heathery summit above Wythop Mill near Bassenthwaite Lake, its modest top giving pleasant views across the lake and north to the Solway.
Is it worth going? — Today’s conditions & 7-day summit forecast
Modelled guidance for the 374 m summit. Always check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.
On the summit today (Tue 28 Jul): 17° to 15°C, gusts to 34 mph, 2.9 mm of rain forecast.
Forecast snapshot from 28 Jul 2026, 04:58 UTC — refreshed nightly and updated live in your browser. Temperatures and gusts adjusted to the 374 m summit altitude via Open-Meteo. Summit conditions are always harsher than the valley — check the professional mountain forecasts before you go.
About the walk
Ling Fell
Routes up Ling Fell
Hand-mapped, with GPX to download — full maps further down.
Map & nearby Birketts
Skip mapFree mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap (switch layers top-right). Parking positions are approximate.
Nearest parking: Whinlatter Visitor Centre (paid), about 4.8 km from the summit (straight line). Full parking, toilets and bus details are below.
Birketts near Ling Fell (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.
Routes over Ling Fell
A planned line is a suggestion, not a guarantee — conditions change. Navigate independently and carry a map & compass.
The View from Ling Fell
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.
What you can see from Ling Fell, by direction
- North-east: Lowthwaite Fell (12 km), Frozen Fell (12 km), Longlands Fell (12 km), Little Sca Fell (12 km), Great Sca Fell (12 km), Brae Fell (13 km)
- East: Dodd (7 km), Long Side (7 km), Carl Side (8 km), Skiddaw South Top (8 km), Skiddaw (8 km), Skiddaw Middle Top (8 km), Skiddaw North Top (8 km), Broad End (8 km), Skiddaw Little Man (9 km), Skiddaw Lesser Man (9 km), Knott (12 km), Clough Head (16 km), Gowbarrow Fell (24 km), Bonscale Pike (29 km), Arthur's Pike (29 km)
- South: Ladyside Pike (6 km), Grisedale Pike (6 km), Gasgale Crags (6 km), Hopegill Head (6 km), Whiteside East Top (6 km), Hobcarton Crag (7 km), Sand Hill (7 km), Whiteside (7 km), Eel Crag (8 km), Grasmoor (8 km), Crag Hill (8 km)
- South-west: Loweswater End (10 km), Carling Knott (10 km), Burnbank Fell (10 km), Blake Fell (11 km), Sharp Knott (11 km), Gavel Fell (11 km), Gavel Fell (12 km)
- North-west: Criffel (40 km)
On the clearest days the far horizon adds: Slieve Donard (180 km, Ireland), Merrick (94 km, Scotland), Snaefell (88 km, Isle of Man), Cairnsmore of Carsphairn (91 km, Scotland), Cairnsmore of Fleet (78 km, Scotland), Corserine (90 km, Scotland), Lamachan Hill (89 km, Scotland), Green Lowther (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.
What you can see from Ling Fell
On a clear day — computed sightlines, curvature- and refraction-corrected.On the clearest days the view reaches across to Scotland and the Isle of Man.
- Merrick Scotland
- Snaefell Isle of Man
- Criffel Scotland
- Solway Firth bay/estuary
- Irish Sea open water
All 28 Wainwrights in clear view (nearest first)
Sale Fell, Graystones (Graystones North Top), Whinlatter (Brown How - Whinlatter), Grisedale Pike, Hopegill Head, Ullock Pike, Dodd (Skiddaw), Whiteside (Whiteside West Top), Long Side, Low Fell, Carl Side, Skiddaw, Grasmoor, Crag Hill (Eel Crag), Binsey, Skiddaw Little Man, Burnbank Fell, Great Cockup, Blake Fell, Meal Fell, Longlands Fell, Gavel Fell, Knott, Great Sca Fell, Brae Fell, Gowbarrow Fell (Wainwright summit), Bonscale Pike, Arthur's Pike
How Ling Fell’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 Ling Fell
Where we have the data, each parking spot also shows the nearest public toilets and facilities (cafés, pubs, shops).
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 Ling Fell from Penrith / Ambleside / Windermere
Rural routes change seasonally — confirm on stagecoachbus.com (opens in new tab) or Traveline before relying on a last bus.
My hikes over Ling Fell (Strava)
1 logged hike pass over this summit:
- Ling Fell & Sale Fell: Won't be rushing to do these again (opens in new tab) — 4.9 km · 408 m ascent · 1h 23m moving · 27 Jul 2024
Interactive route maps and photos load here for visitors with JavaScript. Data from Strava.
Navigating Ling Fell in cloud
StraightforwardA 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 Ling Fell compares with all 214 — the Clag Index: navigating in cloud. A relative, deliberately cautious guide; the site can’t navigate for you.
Frequently asked questions about Ling Fell
How hard is Ling Fell, and how long does it take?
It is one of the easiest Wainwrights. Ling Fell is a rounded, heathery dome of 374 m (1,227 ft) above the Wythop valley, and a typical round takes about an hour and a half — less if you go straight up and straight back down.
There is no scrambling and nothing exposed: the ground rises steadily on grass and heather from whichever side you start. The one honest caveat is underfoot — we rate it 0.55 for bogginess on a 0–1 scale, so the lower slopes and the saddle can be soft after wet weather. Boots rather than trainers if it has been raining.
Is Ling Fell a Wainwright?
Yes — one of the smallest, in the North Western Fells above Bassenthwaite Lake. It is also a Birkett, a Fellranger and a Synge, so a single short walk ticks four lists at once.
Its natural partner is Sale Fell, the matching dome on the other side of the Wythop valley — most people bag the two together.
Can you do Ling Fell and Sale Fell together?
Yes, and it is the usual way to walk them. The two sit either side of the Wythop valley and share the same approach lanes, so an afternoon covers both comfortably — roughly three hours for the pair at an unhurried pace, allowing for the drop back into the valley between them.
If you only have time for one, Sale Fell is the slightly shorter climb with the better view down Bassenthwaite; Ling Fell is the quieter top.
Where do you park for Ling Fell?
The usual start is the lane by Wythop church (St Margaret's), on the south side of the valley, which also serves Sale Fell. There is no car park — parking is informal roadside space and there is very little of it.
Park considerately, keep gateways and passing places clear, and if the verge is full, come back another day rather than squeezing in. These are working farm lanes.
Is Ling Fell a good fell for a poor-weather day?
It is one of the better choices when the high tops are in cloud. At 374 m it usually stays below the murk, the climb is short, and the view over Bassenthwaite and north towards the Solway is often clear when Skiddaw is not.
Lower-risk is not risk-free. It is a rounded, featureless top, so in genuinely thick cloud it is easier to walk off the wrong side than the modest height suggests — carry a map and compass and know how to use them. Check the live conditions before you set off.
Questions drawn from real Google “People also ask” searches; answers written and fact-checked by us. · Reviewed 2026-07-27 · Suggest a question or correction (opens in new tab)
Other fells near Ling Fell
- Ard Crags
- Barf
- Barrow
- Broom Fell
- Castle Crag
- Cat Bells (Catbells)
- Causey Pike
- Crag Hill (Eel Crag)
- Dale Head
- Grasmoor
- Graystones (Graystones North Top)
- Grisedale Pike
- High Spy
- Hindscarth
- Hopegill Head
- Knott Rigg
- Lord's Seat
- Maiden Moor
- Outerside
- Rannerdale Knotts
- Robinson
- Sail
- Sale Fell
- Scar Crags
- Wandope
- Whinlatter (Brown How - Whinlatter)
- Whiteless Pike
- Whiteside (Whiteside West Top)
Maps & guidebooks for Ling Fell
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