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571 m · Wainwright — Central Fells · Birketts to bag nearby, parking, buses, my hikes and live summit weather.

Sergeant's Crag - a rocky heathery top above a deep green valley, distant fells ranged across the horizon under blue sky
Wainwright — Central FellsAlso a Birkett

Sergeant's Crag

Sergeant's Crag at 571m (1,873ft) is a craggy, rocky summit above Langstrath in Borrowdale, its small crags giving a surprisingly dramatic profile for a modest summit.

571 m
Height
~2.5–3 h
Typical time
+10
Bonus Birketts
See routes & download GPX → Parking & buses →
571 mWainwright — Central Fells✓ summit is also a Birkett+10 bonus Birketts within 3 km Care needed in cloud

Is it worth going? — Today’s conditions & 7-day summit forecast

Modelled guidance for the 571 m summit. Always check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.

On the summit today (Fri 11 Sep): 12° to 9°C, gusts to 26 mph, 2.4 mm of rain forecast.

Fri 11 Sep
🌦️
12° / 9°
💨 26 mph
🌧 2.4 mm (100%)
Sat 12 Sep
🌧️
14° / 9°
💨 45 mph
🌧 37.8 mm (100%)
Sun 13 Sep
🌦️
12° / 8°
💨 22 mph
🌧 0.4 mm (62%)
Mon 14 Sep
🌧️
14° / 8°
💨 32 mph
🌧 13.3 mm (100%)
Tue 15 Sep
🌦️
14° / 8°
💨 34 mph
🌧 8.4 mm (89%)
Wed 16 Sep
🌦️
10° / 9°
💨 32 mph
🌧 3.8 mm (78%)
Thu 17 Sep
🌦️
10° / 8°
💨 36 mph
🌧 6.2 mm (92%)

Forecast snapshot from 11 Sep 2026, 08:30 UTC — refreshed nightly and updated live in your browser. Temperatures and gusts adjusted to the 571 m summit altitude via Open-Meteo. Summit conditions are always harsher than the valley — check the professional mountain forecasts before you go.

Sergeant's Crag at a glance

Sergeant's Crag

Sergeant's Crag - a rocky heathery top above a deep green valley, distant fells ranged across the horizon under blue sky
© Lee McCoy

Sergeant's Crag at 571m (1,873ft) is a craggy, rocky summit above Langstrath in Borrowdale, its small crags giving a surprisingly dramatic profile for a modest summit. Wainwright noted its fine position above the wild Langstrath valley and the excellent views it gives down Borrowdale. The ascent from Stonethwaite via Langstrath is a fine approach through one of Lakeland's grandest valleys. Combined naturally with Eagle Crag for a good Langstrath circuit. The views of the Scafell group from the ridge are excellent.

Routes up Sergeant's Crag

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

Classifications & hill data

Wainwright
Central
Birkett
Fellranger
Synge
571 m
Height
1,873 ft
In feet
NY 2739 1138
Grid ref

The short answers

Is Sergeant's Crag a Wainwright?

Sergeant's Crag is a Wainwright. It is also on the Birkett list, the Synge list and the Fellranger list.

Where do you park for Sergeant's Crag?

The nearest car park we hold is Stonethwaite (roadside, limited), about 2.4 km from the summit in a straight line. We only look within 2.5 km, measured straight-line: over longer distances a road may cross a pass and the drive bears no relation to the line.

How hard is Sergeant's Crag?

The shortest way up we hold is Ullscarf, Eagle Crag & Sergeant's Crag — 14.8 km, 720 m of ascent, about 4.2 hours. On our scale its hardest axis is steepness — Severe.

All axes: steepness: Severe · navigation: Hard · exposure: Hard · length: Hard · terrain: Moderate.

My hikes over Sergeant's Crag (Strava)

1 logged hike pass over this summit:

Interactive route maps and photos load here for visitors with JavaScript. Data from Strava.

Parking & buses for Sergeant's Crag

Best parking to hike Sergeant's Crag

Where we have the data, each parking spot also shows the nearest public toilets and facilities (cafés, pubs, shops).

Stonethwaite (roadside, limited) — 2.4 km from summit (straight line)
Small roadside area near the hamlet — Eagle Crag, Sergeant's Crag, Langstrath approaches.
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?
Roadside parking for Great Crag (free) — 2.6 km from summit (straight line)
1.2 km from Great Crag. Added from the 5 Aug 2026 OSM candidate review.
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?
Great Crag (layby) — 2.9 km from summit (straight line)
Walking base for Lining Crag, Ullscarf, Sergeant's Crag and Eagle Crag — the 'Ullscarf, Eagle Crag & Sergeant's Crag' route starts 17 m away. Free (OSM-tagged). Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged).
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?
Great Crag, south-west (layby) — 2.9 km from summit (straight line)
Walking base for Lining Crag, Ullscarf, Sergeant's Crag and Eagle Crag — the 'Ullscarf, Eagle Crag & Sergeant's Crag' route starts 59 m away. Free (OSM-tagged). Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged).
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?
Rosthwaite Fell car park (paid) — 3.2 km from summit (straight line)
Walking base for Seathwaite Fell (Wainwright summit), Seathwaite Fell (Great Slack - Seathwaite Fell), Green Gable and Base Brown — the 'Seathwaite, Green Gable, Base Brown' route starts 78 m away. Paid parking (OSM-tagged).
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?

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.

Vehicles are left entirely at their owner’s risk. We list places people park; we cannot vouch for any of them. Judge it on the day: take valuables with you, leave nothing on show, and if a spot feels wrong when you get there, park somewhere else.

Getting to Sergeant's Crag by bus

The 77 stops at Rosthwaite, opposite Longthwaite road end, 420 m from the start of Ullscarf, Eagle Crag & Sergeant's Crag. The last bus is 20:03 towards Keswick (78), every day. Checked against the operator’s timetable, 7 September 2026. Times here are a guide, not a promise — leave yourself more than the minute.

Stagecoach 77 / 77A “Honister Rambler”
Keswick – Portinscale – Hawse End (Catbells) – Grange – Seatoller – Honister Pass – Buttermere – Lorton – Whinlatter – Keswick (circular)
Catch it from: Keswick (connect via 555 from Windermere/Ambleside or X4/X5 from Penrith)
Seasonal (roughly Easter–October). Brilliant for the North Western fells: Catbells, Dale Head from Honister, the Buttermere fells and Whinlatter.

Rural routes change seasonally — confirm on stagecoachbus.com (opens in new tab) or Traveline before relying on a last bus.

Hazards on Sergeant's Crag

Hazard & Incident Information for Sergeant's Crag

Hazard: Moderate

Eagle Crag's near neighbour above Langstrath in Borrowdale, with very steep crags falling to the valley and a direct line that involves a short, hands-on scramble through a gully with exposed rocky steps. Route-finding matters — it's no place to be in bad weather — and the plateau above toward Ullscarf is boggy and featureless. Keswick Mountain Rescue Team covers this ground.

  • Steep Langstrath crags & the scramble: The Langstrath face is steep everywhere, and the direct ascent goes through a short gully needing hands-and-feet scrambling, with exposed rocky steps where people sometimes haul on grass. Careful route-finding is essential; attempt it only in dry, calm, clear conditions and with scrambling confidence.
  • Route-finding / staying off the crags: The crags are easy to get drawn into off-route, and steep ground can leave you cragfast. Don't descend the steep Langstrath face — use the gentler grassy ground — and keep to the line if you take the scramble up.
  • Boggy featureless plateau toward Ullscarf: Above the crag the ground becomes boggy and largely featureless toward Ullscarf, a navigation challenge in cloud. Take a compass bearing and pick careful lines through the bog.
Who should attempt this fell: Sergeant's Crag is a small fell with a steep, craggy face — if you take the scramble line, treat it as a proper hands-on scramble for the experienced in dry, clear conditions, and stay on the line. Don't descend the Langstrath crags; use gentler ground. Above, navigate the boggy plateau toward Ullscarf by compass, and save the crag for good weather.

Most common causes: Scramblers off-route or cragfast on the steep Langstrath face · Slips on the exposed rocky steps, especially when wet · Dangerous attempts to descend the crags rather than the grassy ground · Navigation errors on the boggy plateau toward Ullscarf in cloud

Local Mountain Rescue: Keswick Mountain Rescue Team (opens in new tab) · Reviewed 14 Jun 2026

Safety: Hazard guidance compiled from published Mountain Rescue reports and well-documented accident history - editorial background, not a live feed of callouts. 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 (opens in new tab)

Navigating Sergeant's Crag in cloud

Care needed

A rough, rocky summit ringed by crags, with no single obvious way off in poor visibility. Take care in poor visibility — carry map and compass, and know how to use them.

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 Sergeant's Crag compares with all 214 — the Clag Index: navigating in cloud. A relative, deliberately cautious guide; the site can’t navigate for you.

Map & nearby Birketts

Free mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap (switch layers top-right). Parking positions are approximate.

Nearest parking: Stonethwaite (roadside, limited), about 2.4 km from the summit (straight line). Full parking, toilets and bus details are below.

Birketts near Sergeant's Crag (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.

0.9 km ELining Crag542 m · Central
1.6 km SSELow White Stones731 m · Central
1.9 km WNWRosthwaite Fell (Rosthwaite Cam)612 m · Southern
2.2 km NEColdbarrow Fell - High Saddle675 m · Central
2.4 km NELow Saddle656 m · Central
2.5 km WCombe Head735 m · Southern
2.7 km SECodale Head732 m · Central
2.9 km WThornythwaite Fell574 m · Southern
3.0 km NEStanding Crag611 m · Central

Routes over Sergeant's Crag

14.83 km · ~720 m ascent · loop · ~4–5.5 h
Summits: Lining CragUllscarfSergeant's CragEagle Crag

✎️ Walked and described first-hand by Lee. A serious round: the navigation over Ullscarf and Greenup Edge is boggy and featureless (a compass is essential in cloud), and the direct Eagle Crag line is steep and intricate — good-weather, sure-footed terrain. Carry OS Explorer OL4.

⬇️ Download GPX

⚠️ Warnings: The direct Eagle Crag route (described here in descent) is a steep, intricate line of rock terraces and a wet gully that guidebooks recommend for ascent only, and only in good weather — consider walking the round the other way to climb it, and avoid it altogether in the wet. On Eagle Crag's terraces, don't go too far right where the terrace narrows above steep drops; sight each terrace before committing. The Bleak How step-stile has a rotted lower step — a big step down; take care and lift or assist dogs. Lining Crag's north face is near-vertical into Greenup Gill with little warning from the grassy top — keep back from the lip. Greenup Edge and the Ullscarf plateau are boggy and featureless — serious navigation in mist; rely on the old fence posts, cairns and bearings.

Full route guide ↗

A planned line is a suggestion, not a guarantee — conditions change. Navigate independently and carry a map & compass. How to use this guide.

On the hill: terrain and water on Sergeant's Crag

Water & shelter on the way up

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

The view from Sergeant's Crag

The 360° skyline from Sergeant's Crag

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 Sergeant's Crag33 labelled tops shown (1 distant behind the far-horizon toggle). Theoretical visibility in perfect clarity; computed from terrain, not photographed.eye levelNNEESESSWWNWScafell Pike · 7 kmSkiddaw · 18 kmBowfell · 6 kmPillar · 10 kmEsk Pike · 5 kmBlencathra · 17 kmCrinkle Crags · 7 kmGrasmoor · 13 kmCrag Hill · 12 kmHigh Stile · 11 kmGreen Gable · 6 kmGrisedale Pike · 14 kmDow Crag · 14 kmLooking Steads · 3 kmHigh Raise · 2 kmJenkin Hill · 16 kmLow White Stones · 2 kmClough Head · 13 kmUllscarf · 2 kmKnott · 22 kmGrey Knotts · 6 kmGreat Knott · 7 kmUllock Pike · 18 kmColdbarrow Fell · 2 kmHonister Crag · 7 kmHigh Seat · 7 kmMaiden Moor · 8 kmCarling Knott · 18 kmSeat How · 16 kmLow Saddle · 2 kmRosthwaite Fell · 2 kmLining Crag · 1 kmKing's How · 6 kmGreat End · 6 kmHobcarton Crag · 13 kmCold Pike · 8 kmIll Crag · 6 kmBlake Fell · 18 kmSouther Fell · 20 kmGlaramara · 3 kmCombe Head · 2 kmPike of Stickle · 4 kmDovenest Top · 2 kmWhite Stones · 6 kmShivery Knott · 4 kmCat Bells · 9 kmGreen Lowther · 107 km · a rare clear day
What you can see from Sergeant's Crag, by direction
  • North: Knowe Crags (16 km), Jenkin Hill (16 km), Skiddaw Lesser Man (16 km), Skiddaw Little Man (16 km), Gategill Fell Top (17 km), Carl Side (17 km), Blencathra (17 km), Doddick Fell (17 km), Skiddaw South Top (17 km), Skiddaw Middle Top (18 km), Skiddaw (18 km), Skiddaw North Top (18 km)
  • South: High Raise (2 km), Crinkle Crags (7 km), Crinkle Crags (7 km), Crinkle Crags (7 km), Crinkle Crags (7 km), Crinkle Crags South Top (7 km), Grey Friar (11 km), Dow Crag (14 km), Buck Pike (14 km)
  • South-west: Looking Steads (3 km), Esk Pike (5 km), Great End (6 km), Bowfell (6 km), Broad Crag (7 km), Scafell Pike (7 km)
  • West: Green Gable (6 km), High Crag (10 km), Pillar (10 km), High Stile (11 km), High Stile (11 km), Red Pike (12 km)
  • North-west: Dale Head (6 km), Sail (12 km), Wandope (12 km), Crag Hill (12 km), Hobcarton Crag (13 km), Grasmoor (13 km), Grisedale Pike (14 km)

On the clearest days the far horizon adds: Green Lowther (107 km, Scotland), Queensberry (93 km, Scotland), Ballencleuch Law (100 km, Scotland), Hods Hill (102 km, Scotland), White Hill (76 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.

Sunrise and sunset on Sergeant's Crag

Sergeant's Crag waits for the sun. Its longest wait of the modelled year falls at midwinter, when the sun is up for 49 minutes before it clears this skyline — first light 09:22 against an almanac sunrise of 08:33. You are standing in shadow while the valley below is already lit. The sun comes up to the south-east from here (141.9°), and the skyline on that bearing stands at 4.52°.

40°50°60°70°05:16
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
Midsummer05:16 BST ±5.0 min04:37+39 min
Equinox06:35 GMT ±5.0 min06:16+19 min
Midwinter09:22 GMT ±5.0 min08:33+49 min

The northern horizon stands at about 0.51° from here.

Last light — when the sun leaves Sergeant's Crag

Sergeant's Crag loses the sun early. Its earliest evening of the modelled year falls on 1 January, when last light is 33 minutes before almanac sunset — 15:26 against 15:59. The sun goes down to the south-west from here (222.8°), and the skyline on that bearing stands at 3.05°.

The evening of the same three days. A negative difference means a ridge takes the sun before the valley loses it.
Last lightAlmanac sunsetDifference
Midsummer21:40 BST ±5.0 min21:53-13 min
Equinox18:16 GMT ±5.0 min18:26-10 min
Midwinter15:18 GMT ±5.0 min15:49-31 min

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 Sergeant's Crag. 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. 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 Sergeant's Crag

On a clear day — computed sightlines, curvature- and refraction-corrected.
60Wainwrights in view+6 marginal
Sea in viewnone from here
All 60 Wainwrights in clear view (nearest first)

How Sergeant's Crag’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.

Places to stay near this fell

Seatoller House B&B (opens in new tab) guest house

about 1.6 km from the start, in a straight line

Two named family rooms (Rabbit and Stag), both large with a private bathroom opposite, plus a dog policy precise enough to plan around — dogs in, but never in the dining room and dried off at the back door. The catch is timing: breakfast runs 8.00–8.30 only, which is late for a long Ullscarf day, and dinner is a single 7pm sitting that must be pre-booked 48 hours ahead if you did not book direct. It also shuts for the winter.

Worth knowing: “Well behaved dogs are allowed, they are not allowed in the dining room at any time,Please clean and dry all dogs on entering Seatoller via the back door.”

The house is 400 years old, has taken guests for more than a century, and is the largest building in the hamlet of Seatoller; every bedroom is named for a local animal — Badger, Eagle, Osprey, Otter, Owl, Rabbit, Squirrel, Stag, Hedgehog and the Bakehouse annexe.

  • Dogs “Well behaved dogs are allowed, they are not allowed in the dining room at any time,Please clean and dry all dogs on entering Seatoller via the back door.”
  • Family rooms “Rabbit Large Family room, Private bathroom directly opposite, great views of garden & Fells”
  • Evening meal “dinner is a set menu served at 7.00pm with the exception of Wednesdays, when Dinner is not served”
  • Parking “There are 10 bedrooms all with private bathrooms, a large award winning garden surrounding the house and ample private car parking.”

Worth knowing before you book

These places state on their own site that they do not take children.

What each place says about itself, quoted from their own site. We have not stayed at any of them, and there are no prices, no booking and no affiliate links. Distances are straight lines from each route start, never walking times. Properties found via OpenStreetMap (opens in new tab).

Frequently asked questions about Sergeant's Crag

Is Sergeant’s Crag a scramble?

It can be, and you get to choose. The direct line from Langstrath goes through a short gully with exposed rocky steps and needs hands and feet — a proper little scramble, and no place to be in bad weather. There is gentler grassy ground away from the crags for anyone who would rather walk up.

The Langstrath face is steep everywhere, and the mistake to avoid is being drawn into it off-route, either on the way up or by trying to descend it. Our round with Ullscarf and Eagle Crag is 14.8 km with 720 m of ascent, graded hard for navigation — above the crag the ground turns boggy and featureless toward Ullscarf, which is its own problem in cloud.

Questions drawn from real Google “People also ask” searches; answers written and fact-checked by us. · Reviewed 2026-08-30 · Suggest a question or correction (opens in new tab)

Other fells near Sergeant's Crag