Scale Knott
Scale Knott at 338m (1,109ft) is a Birkett fell at the southern foot of Mellbreak, 0.7 km north of Scale Force and above the west side of Crummock Water. Our Scale Fell and Mellbreak route climbs it first, from Buttermere village.
Summit conditions on Scale Knott
On the summit on Tuesday 27 October: 14° to 8°C, gusts to 56 mph, 4.0 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 Scale Knott
Hand-mapped, with GPX to download — full maps further down.
Scale Knott and both Mellbreak tops — 14.7 km and 572 m, with a stage averaging 19%. Hard for length and navigation. About 3¾–5¼ hours.
Distance and climb are measured from the route’s GPX track, and the time from them by Naismith’s rule; the route page says what each grade rests on. How we check →
How hard is Scale Knott?
The shortest way up we hold is Scale Fell and Mellbreak — 14.68 km, 572 m of ascent, ~3¾–5¼ h. On our scale its hardest axis is steepness — Severe.
All axes: steepness: Severe · length: Hard · terrain: Hard · navigation: Hard · 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 338 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 Scale Knott
Parking
Route starts first, then the car parks nearest the summit, which are not always a way up.
2 more places to park near Scale Knott
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 Scale Knott
Notes from a planned route, not walked: Scale Fell and Mellbreak
- The direct ascent climbs a very steep, sustained slope of loose scree threading through crags, with a slippery scramble where hands are needed. Care and concentration with footing are essential; it's treacherous when wet and a poor way down. Save it for dry conditions.
If you need to get off (the leg from the start): This is the easiest section to retreat from. Simply turn around and follow the flat valley track back to your starting point. Do not attempt to short-cut up the sheer, craggy eastern flanks of Mellbreak overlooking Crummock Water.
Quoted from the route page of a planned route, drawn from the map and not yet walked: its warnings and the note for the leg that reaches Scale Knott.
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 Scale Knott
These Birkett tops are not Wainwright summits. Distances are straight lines: check the ground and access on a map before adding one.
Routes over Scale Knott
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 Scale Knott
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 Scale Knott
Classifications & hill data
Is Scale Knott a Wainwright?
Scale Knott 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 →