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Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

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601 mWainwright — Southern Fells+8 bonus Birketts within 3 km Serious in Clag

Seathwaite Fell at 601m (1,972ft) sits above the head of Borrowdale on the watershed between Styhead Gill and Grains Gill. Wainwright included it in his Southern Fells guide.

Summit conditions on Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

On the summit on Tuesday 27 October: 11° to 5°C, gusts to 63 mph, 9.7 mm of rain forecast over the whole day, midnight to midnight.

Against our lines, Tuesday 27 October: wind, cold and cloud from the Met Office UKV 2 km model (daylight hours, as in the verdict above); rain from the summit line’s forecast (the whole day). A tile is large when this top is past its line.

Wind on the top

Past the line

61 mph, our estimate for the open top in the worst daylight hour

The Met Office 2 km model’s gust of 54 mph times our exposure factor of 1.13. The summit line above gives Open-Meteo’s highest gust for the whole day, 63 mph, before any exposure factor.

The line Our line: 25 mph, where our wind Scale begins its 25–35 band: “balance affected; buffeting on exposed ground”. MWIS describes what wind does to a walker across a range rather than at a line: from about 20–25 mph it starts to affect your balance.

Estimated: it is not calibrated against summit readings, and the two forecasts can disagree by more than a band.

Cloud on the top

Past the line

14 out of 100, the clear-top reading

Averaged over the daylight hours, from the forecast’s humidity and low cloud.

The line Our line: a clear-top reading under 20 out of 100, where our scorer says “summit likely clagged in”. There is no outside threshold to cite; it is our estimate. What cloud does to finding the way: navigating in cloud.

Not an observation: cloud lifts and drops within the hour.

Rain, and the becks

Past the line

9.7 mm of rain over the whole day, midnight to midnight

The same figure as the summit line above and the 7-day forecast.

The line Our line: 6 mm in the day, where our scorer counts a day as soaking. We read rainfall, never river levels: becks in spate.

Open-Meteo’s forecast. It says nothing about rain already in the ground.

Also checked cold: feels like 1 °C, no ice or snow forecast. Under a line is not the same as fine: it means only that these figures are under the lines we use.

Not in these tiles Lightning, river levels, snow or ice already lying, and the ground under your feet. A tile cannot see them, so an empty space here never means they are absent.

Snow figures with a second opinion: Powered by Met Office data

Full 7-day summit forecast ↓

Wainwrights are scored for walking conditions each morning from the Met Office’s UK forecast model, read for each summit through Open-Meteo; the forecast figures are Open-Meteo’s, worked out for the summit’s height. How we check →

Weather data by Open-Meteo.com

Routes up Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

Hand-mapped, with GPX to download — full maps further down.

Seathwaite, Green Gable, Base Brown Planned, not yet walked
15.85 km · ~960 m ascent · ~4¾–6½ h · loop · 4 summits
Hard effort Severe: steepness
Park: Seatoller, south-east field car park (paid) · Bus: 78, 820 m walk from Seatoller, at National Trust car park

Both Seathwaite Fell tops with Green Gable and Base Brown — four summits in 15.9 km and 960 m, rated hard for terrain, navigation and exposure and severe for steepness. About 4¾–6½ hours on properly rough ground.

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 →

Is Seathwaite Fell hard to navigate?

More than almost anything of its height. The summit ridge is a confusing jumble of rocky knolls and small tarns with no obvious high point, and it rises above Seathwaite — the wettest inhabited place in England, which tells you what the ground underfoot is usually doing.

There is no real climbing difficulty. Our route over it with Green Gable and Base Brown is 15.9 km with 960 m of ascent, and we grade its navigation hard. Save this one for a day you can see the knolls, or you will spend a long time deciding which of them you are standing on.

How we check →

Conditions and 7-day summit forecast

Modelled for the 601 m summit (Open-Meteo). Check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.

Full 7-day forecast
Tue 27 Oct
11° / 5°
63 mph
9.7 mm (100%)
Wed 28 Oct
9° / 6°
47 mph
13.5 mm (100%)
Thu 29 Oct
9° / 7°
28 mph
0.9 mm (26%)
Fri 30 Oct
8° / 6°
27 mph
0.1 mm (31%)
Sat 31 Oct
10° / 1°
9 mph
0.0 mm (25%)
Sun 1 Nov
8° / 1°
7 mph
0.0 mm (12%)
Mon 2 Nov
7° / 1°
17 mph
0.0 mm (0%)

Taken 27 October 2026, 08:13 UTC; the live forecast replaces it when it loads. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com

Pro mountain forecasts: MWIS · Met Office mountain forecast

Parking & buses for Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

Parking

Route starts first, then the car parks nearest the summit, which are not always a way up.

Seatoller, south-east field car park (paid) — 0.1 km from the start of Seathwaite, Green Gable, Base Brown (straight line)
A paid field by the River Derwent, 0.5 km south-east of Seatoller; operator not identified. The 'Seathwaite, Green Gable, Base Brown' route starts 78 m away. Paid parking (OSM-tagged).
Directions Something changed here?
Seathwaite Farm, Borrowdale (farm field, paid) — 2.2 km from summit (straight line)
The farm’s own field, signed off the lane — £5 all day, £10 overnight, no booking needed (the farm’s own page, read 21 September 2026; its notice is still headed 2025). A different place from the free verge on the same lane, and the reason not to race for a verge space. The farm opened it to ease the parking problems in the busy period.
Directions Something changed here?
Seathwaite Farm, Borrowdale (free verge) — 2.3 km from summit (straight line)
Free verge parking on the Seathwaite lane — the honeypot start for the Scafells, Great Gable and Glaramara. It fills early; the farm’s own field just down the lane takes the pressure off, and the lane needs to stay clear for residents, farm traffic and emergency vehicles.
Typically full before 09:00 on fine weekends, Apr-Oct — Lee McCoy, local observation, 9 August 2026.
Directions Something changed here?
If it is full: Honister Pass (paid, slate mine) (1.8 km); Seatoller (NT, paid) (2.0 km); Rosthwaite (NT, paid) (3.8 km)
Public toilets (~188 m straight line) — Free
3 more places to park near Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)
Thornythwaite Fell (layby) — 2.4 km from summit (straight line)
Walking base for Allen Crags, High House Tarn Top (High House - Allen Crags), Red Beck Top (Glaramara South Top) (Lincomb Head - Glaramara) and Looking Steads (Glaramara) — the 'Allan Crags & Glaramara' route starts 135 m away. Also serves 'Scafell Pike via the Corridor Route'. Free (OSM-tagged). Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged).
Directions Something changed here?
Thornythwaite Fell, north-west (layby) — 2.5 km from summit (straight line)
Walking base for Allen Crags, High House Tarn Top (High House - Allen Crags), Red Beck Top (Glaramara South Top) (Lincomb Head - Glaramara) and Looking Steads (Glaramara) — the 'Allan Crags & Glaramara' route starts 255 m away. Free (OSM-tagged). Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged).
Directions Something changed here?
Honister (NT, paid) — 3.4 km from summit (straight line)
Walking base for Great Gable, Green Gable, Brandreth and Grey Knotts — the 'Great Gable from Honister Slate Mine' route starts 61 m away. Also serves 'Haystacks'. Paid National Trust car park - the prices we used to show here came from an aggregator rather than the Trust, so we no longer publish a figure; check the machine on arrival, and members should bring their card (National Trust car-park list, checked August 2026). The machine takes cards, and National Trust members park free on production of their membership card (Lee McCoy, local observation, recorded 12 August 2026).
Directions Something changed here?

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 78 stop at Seatoller, at National Trust car park, an 820 m walk from the start of Seathwaite, Green Gable, Base Brown — a route we rate Severe overall (hardest: steepness). The 77 runs until 1 November 2026, the last day of its season. As timetabled from 27 October to 1 November. Towards Keswick (78): Tuesday to Sunday 20:00. Checked against the operator’s timetable, 12 September 2026. Times here are a guide, not a promise — leave yourself more than the minute.

Stagecoach 78 “Borrowdale Rambler”
Keswick – Lodore – Grange – Rosthwaite – Seatoller
Catch it from: Keswick (connect via 555 or X4/X5)
Year-round, frequent in season. Serves all the Borrowdale starts — Glaramara, the Scafells and Great Gable via Seathwaite (alight Seatoller, about 2 km up the lane).

Rural routes change seasonally — confirm on stagecoachbus.com or Traveline before relying on a last bus.

Getting there across the Lake District: Buses · Parking map · By train · By boat

Hazards on Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

Hazard & Incident Information for Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

Checked by Lee McCoy, . Draws on published material from Keswick Mountain Rescue Team. Editorial background, not a live callout feed.

Hazard: Moderate

A knobbly, tarn-dotted fell rising above Seathwaite in Borrowdale — the wettest inhabited place in England. Its summit ridge is a confusing jumble of rocky knolls, small tarns and bog, almost surrounded by water (Sprinkling and Styhead Tarns, Grains Gill). The walking is gentle, but finding a safe way off the fell is the real challenge: the path all but disappears among the knolls. Keswick Mountain Rescue Team covers this Borrowdale ground.

  • Descent & navigation among the knolls: Getting safely down is the hardest part — the path is faint to non-existent, and the rocky knolls and outcrops hide the line (only a couple of shallow gullies give a way through). In cloud it is very easy to get disorientated or to drift onto steeper ground. Navigate carefully by compass and pick your descent line with care.
  • Deep bog & many tarns: This is exceptionally wet ground, with deep bog around the numerous tarns — give the tarn margins a wide berth and expect slow, tiring going. The bog is disorientating in mist.
  • Rocky knolls & flanking steep ground: The knolly top has steep, rocky drops on its flanks toward Grains Gill and Styhead. Keep to the higher ground and don't wander toward the edges in poor visibility.
Who should attempt this fell: Seathwaite Fell is gentle on top but a genuine navigation puzzle — its real difficulty is finding a safe way down through the maze of knolls, so be confident with map and compass and choose your descent line carefully, especially in cloud. Expect deep bog and a lot of water, allow extra time, and remember you're under the wettest skies in England — dress and plan accordingly.

What to watch for: Navigation errors and trouble finding a safe descent among the rocky knolls · Floundering in deep bog around the many tarns · Drifting onto steep flanking ground in cloud · Being caught out by relentless wet weather (the wettest spot in England)

Local Mountain Rescue: Keswick Mountain Rescue Team

Safety: Always check current conditions, carry proper navigation equipment, and seek qualified instruction before heading onto the fells. In an emergency, call 999, ask for Police, then Mountain Rescue.

Report incorrect information

Navigating in cloud

Serious in cloud

Of the three things our terrain model measures, the highest reading here is the amount of steep ground within half a kilometre of the summit. A serious place to be caught in cloud: carry map and compass (or GPS) and know how to use them, or save it for a clear day.

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 Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit) compares with all 214: the Clag Index (experimental).

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 (read 26 October 2026).

Map, GPX and nearby Birketts

Free mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap, with SRTM elevation data (switch layers top-right).

Parking, toilets and buses: Parking & buses ↑.

Birketts within 3 km of Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

These Birkett tops are not Wainwright summits. Distances are straight lines: check the ground and access on a map before adding one.

0.5 km SSWSeathwaite Fell (Great Slack)631 m · Southern
1.4 km ESERed Beck Top (Glaramara South Top) (Lincomb Head - Glaramara)720 m · Southern
1.4 km SEHigh House Tarn Top (High House - Allen Crags)683 m · Southern
1.7 km ELooking Steads (Glaramara)775 m · Southern
2.2 km ENECombe Head735 m · Southern
2.3 km NEThornythwaite Fell574 m · Southern
2.8 km SSWBroad Crag935 m · Southern
2.9 km SIll Crag931 m · Southern

Routes over Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

Seathwaite, Green Gable, Base Brown
15.85 km · ~960 m ascent · loop · ~4¾–6½ h
Hard effort Severe: steepness
Summits: Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)Seathwaite Fell (Great Slack - Seathwaite Fell)Green GableBase Brown

Download GPX Planned route · not yet walked

Warnings: Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit): Getting safely down is the hardest part — the path is faint to non-existent, and the rocky knolls and outcrops hide the line (only a couple of shallow gullies give a way through). In cloud it is very easy to get disorientated or to drift onto steeper ground. Navigate carefully by compass and pick your descent line with care.

From the hazard notes for Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit), each with its sources.

Route guide →

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 Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

Water & shelter on the way up

On the Seathwaite, Green Gable, Base Brown route:

toilets (39 m off the line)

On-route facilities © OpenStreetMap contributors, per route — an absent marker doesn’t mean none.

About Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit), a Lake District fell
Photo: Philip Halling, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Its top is a confusing spread of rocky knolls, small tarns and bog, with good views north down Borrowdale and west to the Great Gable group. The ascent from Seathwaite farm is short but damp in places. More commonly visited as part of the approach to the Scafell group via Aaron Crags or as an add-on from Styhead. Its Wainwright summit is the 601m top at the north end of the fell; the higher ground at Great Slack (631m) is about half a kilometre to the south-south-west.

Classifications & hill data

Is Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit) a Wainwright?

Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit) is a Wainwright. It is also on the Birkett list, the Synge list and the Fellranger list.

Selected lists

Wainwright
Southern
Birkett
Fellranger
Synge
601 m
Height
1,972 ft
In feet
NY 2291 1017
Grid ref

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 →

The view from Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

The 360° skyline from Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

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.

drag to pan · arrow keys
Computed 360-degree skyline from Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)23 labelled tops shown (3 distant behind the far-horizon toggle). Theoretical visibility in perfect clarity; computed from terrain, not photographed.eye levelNNEESESSWWNWScafell Pike · 3 kmSkiddaw · 19 kmGreat End · 2 kmEsk Pike · 3 kmBlencathra · 20 kmGreat Dodd · 15 kmDale Head · 5 kmJenkin Hill · 18 kmClough Head · 16 kmBrandreth · 2 kmGrey Knotts · 3 kmHigh Pike · 26 kmGreat Gable · 2 kmMiddle Fell · 8 kmLingmell · 3 kmGreen Gable · 2 kmAllen Crags · 2 kmGlaramara · 2 kmCombe Head · 2 kmRed Beck Top · 1 kmHigh House Tarn Top · 1 kmBinsey · 25 kmBase Brown · 1 kmBroad Crag · 3 kmSkiddaw Little Man · 18 kmStybarrow Dodd · 14 kmLong Side · 18 kmHindscarth · 6 kmMungrisdale Common · 21 kmHigh Seat · 10 kmBleaberry Fell · 11 kmThornythwaite Fell · 2 kmEttrick Pen · 98 km · a rare clear dayDun Rig · 121 km · a handful of days a yearMull Hill · 112 km · a rare clear day
The skyline as a list, by direction
  • North: Dale Head (5 km), High Spy (6 km), Hindscarth (6 km), Skiddaw Lesser Man (18 km), Jenkin Hill (18 km), Lonscale Fell (18 km), Skiddaw Little Man (18 km), Carl Side (18 km), Lonscale Pike (18 km), Long Side (18 km), Skiddaw South Top (19 km), Skiddaw Middle Top (19 km), Skiddaw (19 km), Great Calva (22 km), Knott (24 km), Coomb Height (24 km), High Pike (26 km)
  • North-east: High Seat (10 km), Bleaberry Fell (11 km), Watson's Dodd (14 km), Stybarrow Dodd (14 km), Little Dodd (15 km), Calfhow Pike (15 km), Great Dodd (15 km), Clough Head (16 km), Knowe Crags (19 km), Gategill Fell Top (19 km), Blencathra (20 km), Doddick Fell (20 km), Scales Fell (20 km), Mungrisdale Common (21 km)
  • South: Great End (2 km), Broad Crag (3 km), Esk Pike (3 km)
  • South-west: Lingmell (3 km), Scafell Pike (3 km)
  • West: Great Gable (2 km), Middle Fell (8 km)
  • North-west: Brandreth (2 km), Grey Knotts (3 km)

On the clearest days the far horizon adds: Ettrick Pen (98 km, Scotland), Dun Rig (121 km, Scotland), Turner Cleuch Law (110 km, Scotland), Ward Law (106 km, Scotland), Grange Fell (72 km, Scotland), Mull Hill (112 km, Isle of Man).

Computed from Copernicus GLO-30 terrain; distant tops from the Database of British and Irish Hills v18.4 (CC BY 4.0). See how we compute the view · and the summit intervisibility report below.

Sunrise and sunset on Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit) waits for the sun. Its longest wait of the modelled year falls on 1 April, when the sun is up for 43 minutes before it clears this skyline — first light 07:29 against an almanac sunrise of 06:46. You are standing in shadow while the valley below is already lit. The sun comes up to the east from here (89.8°), and the skyline on that bearing stands at 5.9°.

0°30°40°50°60°04:45
Midsummer. The filled shape is the skyline as seen from the summit; the line is the sun’s path. Where they meet is first light — everything left of that point is the wait.
Times for 2026, in Lakeland clock time (GMT in winter, BST in summer) — and model outputs rather than observations.
First lightAlmanac sunriseDifference
Midsummer04:45 BST ±5.0 min04:37+8 min
Equinox06:50 GMT ±5.0 min06:16+34 min
Midwinter09:06 GMT ±5.0 min08:33+33 min

The northern horizon stands at about 0.91° from here.

Last light — when the sun leaves Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit) loses the sun early. Its earliest evening of the modelled year falls on 1 September, when last light is 61 minutes before almanac sunset — 19:04 against 20:05. The sun goes down to the west from here (273.0°), and the skyline on that bearing stands at 8.3°.

The evening of the same three days. A negative difference means a ridge takes the sun before the valley loses it.
Last lightAlmanac sunsetDifference
Midsummer21:03 BST ±5.0 min21:53-50 min
Equinox17:50 GMT ±5.0 min18:27-37 min
Midwinter15:17 GMT ±5.0 min15:50-33 min

These are daylight figures, not a descent plan: the light goes on fading for a good while after the sun leaves, and going down in it is a decision about your own ground and party, not about this table.

What you can see from Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

On a clear day — computed sightlines, curvature- and refraction-corrected.
35Wainwrights in view+4 marginal
—Sea in viewnone from here
All 35 Wainwrights in clear view (nearest first)

Base Brown, Green Gable, Glaramara, Great End, Great Gable, Allen Crags, Brandreth, Grey Knotts, Esk Pike, Lingmell, Scafell Pike, Dale Head, High Spy, Castle Crag, Hindscarth, Grange Fell (Brund Fell), Middle Fell, High Tove, High Seat, Bleaberry Fell, Walla Crag, Watson's Dodd, Stybarrow Dodd, Great Dodd, Latrigg, Clough Head, Lonscale Fell, Skiddaw Little Man, Carl Side, Skiddaw, Blencathra - Hallsfell Top, Mungrisdale Common, Great Calva, Knott, High Pike (Caldbeck)

How the view from Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit) compares with all 214 — the View Report: every Wainwright ranked by what you can see from the top.

How the skyline, light and sightlines are computed

Computed, not photographed. First light is the first minute the sun’s upper limb clears this summit’s own skyline and last light the last minute it is still clear of it, both solved against the 360° horizon profile behind The View from Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit). Almanac sunrise and sunset are the flat-horizon convention. Every time carries a ± band from the 30 m elevation model — it smooths arêtes and cornices, so nothing here claims better than five minutes.

Sightlines from the Copernicus GLO-30 elevation model, which is a surface model: each 30 m cell holds the top of whatever stands there, trees and buildings included, rather than bare ground. 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.

Places to stay near this fell

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.

Frequently asked questions about Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

Is Seathwaite Fell hard to navigate? Answered above.

Questions from Google’s “People also ask”. · Last updated 2026-08-30 · Suggest a question or correction

Other fells near Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit)

Places nearby: Taylor Gill Force