Robin Hood
Robin Hood at 492m (1,614ft) is an Outlying Fell on the moorland between Crookdale and Borrowdale, south-west of Shap, giving views across the Shap Fells and the Bannisdale valley. Wainwright included it in his Outlying Fells guide.
Summit conditions on Robin Hood
On the summit on Tuesday 27 October: 12° to 6°C, gusts to 55 mph, 11.8 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 Robin Hood
Both start from Whatshaw Common (layby) (free); the last two rows give its parking and bus. Full maps further down.
| Compared | Crookdale Birketts | Borrowdale Birketts |
|---|---|---|
| Starts from | Shap Summit | A6 Shap summit (layby) |
| Distance and climb | 20.95 km, 666 m of climb | 21.21 km, 857 m of climb |
| Time, fast to steady | ~5¼–7¼ h | ~5½–7¾ h |
| Scrambling | Not mentioned in the route’s notes | Not mentioned in the route’s notes |
| Exposure | Not assessed | Not assessed |
| Navigation | Hard | Hard |
| Steepest stretch | Descent of about 18% at 18.6 km (Moderate) | Descent of about 27% at 13.2 km (Hard) |
| After the summit | Over Lord's Seat (Crookdale) (Lord's Seat - High House Fell), Harrop Pike, Great Saddle Crag, Wasdale Pike, Sleddale Pike, Great Yarlside, Little Yarlside and Whatshaw Common | Over Lord's Seat (Crookdale) (Lord's Seat - High House Fell), Ancrow Brow North Top, White Howe (Bannisdale), The Forest (Borrowdale Head) and Lamb Pasture |
| Walked or planned | Planned: drawn, not yet walked | Planned: drawn, not yet walked |
| Car park at the start | Whatshaw Common (layby) (free) | Whatshaw Common (layby) (free) |
| Bus to the start | Nearest stop 17.9 km on foot | Nearest stop 17.9 km on foot |
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 Robin Hood?
The shortest way up we hold is Crookdale Birketts — 20.95 km, 666 m of ascent, ~5¼–7¼ h. On our scale its hardest axis is distance — Severe.
All axes: length: Severe · navigation: Hard · steepness: 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 492 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 Robin Hood
Parking
Route starts first, then the car parks nearest the summit, which are not always a way up.
2 more places to park near Robin Hood
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 nearest bus stop we hold is the 6 and 555 stop at Staveley, outside Abbey Square, 17.9 km of walking from the start — no bus route we hold serves it.
Getting there across the Lake District: Buses · Parking map · By train · By boat
Hazards on Robin Hood
Notes from a planned route, not walked: Borrowdale Birketts
If you need to get off (the leg from High House Bank): No way down into Crookdale from this ridge has been checked for this guide; if the bogs or the weather turn against you, the way back is the way you came.
Quoted from the route page of a planned route, drawn from the map and not yet walked: the note for the leg that reaches Robin Hood.
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 Robin Hood
No bonus Birketts within 3 km.
Routes over Robin Hood
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.
About Robin Hood
Classifications & hill data
Is Robin Hood a Wainwright?
Robin Hood is one of Wainwright's Outlying Fells, not one of the 214 in the Pictorial Guides. It is also 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.
The summit is also a Birkett.
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
- Shap Fell Bothy (opens in new tab)about 0.4 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).