Mellbreak North Top
Mellbreak North Top at 509m (1,670ft) is a Birkett top on the dramatic Mellbreak ridge above Crummock Water in the North Western Fells, its summit giving views across the lake to the Buttermere fells and Grasmoor.
Summit conditions on Mellbreak North Top
On the summit on Tuesday 27 October: 12° to 7°C, gusts to 56 mph, 3.1 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 Mellbreak North Top
Choose the way up before the car park: these two routes start from two places, and the last two rows give the parking and bus at each route’s own start. Full maps further down.
| Compared | Mellbreak and Crummock Water | Scale Fell and Mellbreak |
|---|---|---|
| Starts from | Maggie's Bridge, Loweswater (NT, paid) | Buttermere village |
| Distance and climb | 11.71 km, 535 m of climb | 14.68 km, 572 m of climb |
| Time, fast to steady | ~3–4½ h | ~3¾–5¼ h |
| Scrambling | Hands for a few steps: the scree climb onto Mellbreak's north top, and the direct ascent of its south top (km 0.0–2.8 and km 3.5–4.0). Mellbreak (Mellbreak South Top): The direct ascent climbs a very steep, sustained slope of loose scree threading through crags, with a slippery scramble where hands are needed. | Hands for a few steps: Mellbreak's south-east face (km 4.6–5.6). The direct ascent climbs a very steep, sustained slope of loose scree threading through crags, with a slippery scramble where hands are needed. |
| Exposure | Not assessed | Not assessed |
| Navigation | Moderate | Hard |
| Steepest stretch | Climb of about 42% at 2.3 km (Severe) | Descent of about 39% at 7.5 km (Severe) |
| After the summit | Over Mellbreak (Mellbreak South Top) | No further tops |
| Walked or planned | Planned: drawn, not yet walked | Planned: drawn, not yet walked |
| Car park at the start | Maggie's Bridge, Loweswater (NT, paid) | Buttermere village (NT, paid) |
| Bus to the start | 77, 3.2 km walk from Lanthwaite Green Farm (opposite). Seasonal: the 77 does not run all year. 1 November 2026 is its last day. | 77, 460 m walk from Buttermere, outside Court Hotel. The 77A runs until 1 November 2026, the last day of its season. Seasonal: the 77 does not run all year. 1 November 2026 is its last day. |
Times run from fast to steady pace (Naismith’s rule). Scrambling quotes each route’s own notes; “not mentioned” means they do not say, not that the ground has none. Each route’s page has its map, stages and GPX.
Distance, climb and the steepest stretch are measured from each route’s GPX track; the other grades are set on the ground, judged from the map or estimated from OpenStreetMap, and each route page says which. How we check →
How hard is Mellbreak North Top?
The shortest way up we hold is Mellbreak and Crummock Water — 11.71 km, 535 m of ascent, ~3–4½ h. On our scale its hardest axis is steepness — Severe.
All axes: steepness: Severe · length: Moderate · navigation: Moderate · terrain: Not assessed · exposure: Not assessed.
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 509 m summit (Open-Meteo). Check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.
Full 7-day forecast
Taken 27 October 2026, 20:59 UTC; the live forecast replaces it when it loads. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com (opens in new tab)
Parking & buses for Mellbreak North Top
Parking
Route starts first, then the car parks nearest the summit, which are not always a way up.
3 more places to park near Mellbreak North Top
Positions are approximate.
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 77 and 77A stop at Buttermere, outside Court Hotel, a 460 m walk from the start of Scale Fell and Mellbreak — a route we rate Severe overall (hardest: steepness). The 77A runs until 1 November 2026, the last day of its season. Seasonal: the 77 does not run all year. 1 November 2026 is its last day. It returns on 22 March 2027. Confirmed with the operator: its last day on 29 August 2026, its return on 16 October 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, 12 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 Mellbreak North Top
Notes from a planned route, not walked: Mellbreak and Crummock Water
If you need to get off (the leg from the start): Decide at the foot of the chute. Loose scree is harder to go down than to come up, so if you are unsure, turn back before you start it. We have no reviewed alternative from part-way up; if you cannot go on or back safely, stay put and call 999 or 112 for the Police, then Mountain Rescue.
Quoted from the route page of a planned route, drawn from the map and not yet walked: the note for the leg that reaches Mellbreak North Top.
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 Mellbreak North Top
These Birkett tops are not Wainwright summits. Distances are straight lines: check the ground and access on a map before adding one.
Routes over Mellbreak North Top
Download GPX Planned route · not yet walked
Download GPX Planned route · not yet walked
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 Mellbreak North Top
Water & shelter on the way up
On the Scale Fell and Mellbreak route:
On-route facilities © OpenStreetMap contributors, per route — an absent marker doesn’t mean none.
About Mellbreak North Top
Classifications & hill data
Is Mellbreak North Top a Wainwright?
Mellbreak North Top 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
- Crummockwater Cottages (opens in new tab) guest houseabout 0.9 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).