Sale Fell
Sale Fell at 359m (1,178ft) is a pleasant little summit above Bassenthwaite Lake, its low summit giving fine views of the lake and across to Skiddaw above.
Is it worth going? — Today’s conditions & 7-day summit forecast
Modelled guidance for the 359 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 32 mph, 2.5 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 359 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
Sale Fell
Routes up Sale 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: Dodd Wood (paid), about 4.6 km from the summit (straight line). Full parking, toilets and bus details are below.
Birketts near Sale 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 Sale Fell
A planned line is a suggestion, not a guarantee — conditions change. Navigate independently and carry a map & compass.
✎️ 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.
The View from Sale 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 Sale Fell, by direction
- North-east: Little Sca Fell (10 km), Great Sca Fell (11 km), Brae Fell (11 km)
- East: Long Side (6 km), Skiddaw (7 km), Skiddaw North Top (7 km), Skiddaw Middle Top (7 km), Skiddaw South Top (7 km), Broad End (7 km), Skiddaw Little Man (8 km), Skiddaw Lesser Man (8 km), Little Calva (9 km), Frozen Fell (10 km), Knott (11 km)
- South-east: High Seat (15 km), Clough Head (16 km), Little Dodd (17 km), Great Dodd (17 km), Watson's Dodd (17 km), Randerside (18 km), Stybarrow Dodd (18 km), Raise (19 km), White Side (19 km), Helvellyn Lower Man (20 km), Catstye Cam (21 km), Nethermost Pike (22 km), High Crag (22 km), Dollywaggon Pike (22 km), Seat Sandal (24 km), Great Rigg (25 km)
- South: Lord's Seat (3 km), Ladyside Pike (7 km), Grisedale Pike (7 km), Hopegill Head (8 km), Sand Hill (8 km), Whiteside East Top (8 km), Whiteside (8 km), Grasmoor (10 km), Iron Crag (19 km)
- South-west: Blake Fell (13 km)
On the clearest days the far horizon adds: Slieve Donard (181 km, Ireland), Merrick (95 km, Scotland), Snaefell (90 km, Isle of Man), Cairnsmore of Carsphairn (91 km, Scotland), Cairnsmore of Fleet (79 km, Scotland), Corserine (90 km, Scotland), Lamachan Hill (90 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 Sale 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 41 Wainwrights in clear view (nearest first)
Ling Fell, Broom Fell, Lord's Seat, Barf, Graystones (Graystones North Top), Ullock Pike, Dodd (Skiddaw), Long Side, Carl Side, Skiddaw, Binsey, Grisedale Pike, Skiddaw Little Man, Hopegill Head, Whiteside (Whiteside West Top), Fellbarrow - Mosser Fell, Great Cockup, Grasmoor, Meal Fell, Latrigg, Longlands Fell, Great Sca Fell, Knott, Brae Fell, Walla Crag, Burnbank Fell, Blake Fell, Bleaberry Fell, High Rigg (Naddle Fell), Clough Head, Great Dodd, Watson's Dodd, Stybarrow Dodd, Raise, White Side, Catstye Cam, Helvellyn, Nethermost Pike, Dollywaggon Pike, Seat Sandal, Great Rigg
How Sale 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 Sale 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 Sale 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 Sale 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 Sale 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 Sale 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 Sale Fell
How long does it take to walk Sale Fell?
Around an hour up and down, or 1.5–2 hours as a gentle circuit — at 359 m (1,178 ft) it's one of the smallest and kindest Wainwrights, on grassy paths the whole way with no rough ground.
Where do you park for Sale Fell?
The classic start is near the Pheasant Inn at the foot of Bassenthwaite Lake, or from the lane by Wythop church (St Margaret's) on the fell's south side — both informal and limited, so park considerately and don't block the lane or gateways.
Is Sale Fell a Wainwright?
Yes — one of the gentlest in the book, in the North Western Fells above the Wythop valley. Wainwright wrote of it with real affection as an evening stroll of a fell. Its natural partner is Ling Fell, the matching heather dome just across the valley — baggers usually take both in an afternoon — and both count towards more than one Lakeland list.
Is Sale Fell good for families and dogs?
One of the best: short, grassy, safe underfoot and full of interest, with lovely views over Bassenthwaite Lake. It's sheep country end to end, so dogs on leads — and lambing time deserves extra care.
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 Sale 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
- Ling Fell
- Lord's Seat
- Maiden Moor
- Outerside
- Rannerdale Knotts
- Robinson
- Sail
- Scar Crags
- Wandope
- Whinlatter (Brown How - Whinlatter)
- Whiteless Pike
- Whiteside (Whiteside West Top)
Maps & guidebooks for Sale Fell
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