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815 m · Birkett — Southern (not a Wainwright summit) · Birketts to bag nearby, parking, buses, my hikes and live summit weather.

Birkett — Southern (not a Wainwright summit)Birkett top

Shelter Crags

Shelter Crags at 815m (2,674ft) is a high Birkett top on the Crinkle Crags ridge above Great Langdale, forming part of the dramatic series of summits on this celebrated ridge.

815 m
Height
+14
Bonus Birketts
See routes & download GPX →

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815 mBirkett — Southern (not a Wainwright summit)+14 bonus Birketts within 3 km

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

Modelled guidance for the 815 m summit. Always check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.

On the summit today (Tue 28 Jul): 13° to 12°C, gusts to 39 mph, 11.9 mm of rain forecast.

Tue 28 Jul
🌧️
13° / 12°
💨 39 mph
🌧 11.9 mm (99%)
Wed 29 Jul
🌧️
12° / 10°
💨 33 mph
🌧 11.9 mm (100%)
Thu 30 Jul
🌧️
11° / 4°
💨 28 mph
🌧 1.4 mm (87%)
Fri 31 Jul
🌤️
13° / 1°
💨 24 mph
🌧 0.0 mm (86%)
Sat 1 Aug
🌦️
13° / 3°
💨 15 mph
🌧 3.6 mm (82%)
Sun 2 Aug
🌫️
14° / 5°
💨 19 mph
🌧 0.0 mm (35%)
Mon 3 Aug
🌦️
14° / 5°
💨 16 mph
🌧 0.2 mm (23%)

Forecast snapshot from 28 Jul 2026, 04:58 UTC — refreshed nightly and updated live in your browser. Temperatures and gusts adjusted to the 815 m summit altitude via Open-Meteo. Summit conditions are always harsher than the valley — check the professional mountain forecasts before you go.

Pro mountain forecasts: MWIS · Met Office mountain forecast

About the walk

Key information

Shelter Crags

Shelter Crags at 815m (2,674ft) is a high Birkett top on the Crinkle Crags ridge above Great Langdale, forming part of the dramatic series of summits on this celebrated ridge. The rocky crags give views across Langdale and towards Bowfell. Part of one of the most exhilarating ridge walks in the Lake District.

Routes up Shelter Crags

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

Langdale Horseshoe
20.2 km · ~6.5 hr · Severe
The full Langdale Horseshoe — fifteen tops, 1,500 m of ascent and one of the hardest days in the Lakes that involves no rope. The Langdale Pikes, Bowfell, the whole Crinkle Crags ridge and Pike of Blisco in a single round. It is long, rough, and the Crinkles will try to lead you down the wrong side. Do not start it late.
Classifications & hill data
Birkett
Synge
Nuttall
815 m
Height
2,674 ft
In feet
NY 2497 0535
Grid ref

Map & nearby Birketts

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

Nearest parking: Old Dungeon Ghyll (NT, paid), about 3.7 km from the summit (straight line). Full parking, toilets and bus details are below.

Birketts near Shelter Crags (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.

0.2 km SCrinkle Crags - Gunson Knott (Fifth Crinkle)822 m · Southern
0.3 km SCrinkle Crags - Fourth Crinkle832 m · Southern
0.8 km SCrinkle Crags South Top (First Crinkle)834 m · Southern
1.2 km SStonesty Pike765 m · Southern
1.3 km NEWhite Stones - The Band568 m · Southern
1.4 km SEGreat Knott695 m · Southern
2.0 km SLittle Stand740 m · Southern
2.0 km WNWHigh Gait Crags572 m · Southern
2.0 km NWPike de Bield810 m · Southern
2.4 km WScar Lathing439 m · Southern
2.4 km NBuck Pike (Mickleden)606 m · Southern
2.5 km WSWThrostlehow Crag404 m · Southern
2.8 km NBlack Crags (Mickleden)588 m · Southern
2.9 km SWYew Bank499 m · Southern

Routes over Shelter Crags

Langdale HorseshoePlanned
20.2 km · ~1497 m ascent · loop · ~6.5–8.5 h · Severe
Summits: Pavey ArkHarrison StickleThorn CragLoft CragPike of StickleBlack Crags (Mickleden)Rossett PikeBowfellShelter CragsCrinkle Crags - Gunson Knott (Fifth Crinkle)Crinkle Crags - Fourth CrinkleCrinkle Crags - Long Top (Second Crinkle)Crinkle Crags South Top (First Crinkle)Cold PikePike of Blisco

⬇️ Download GPX

⚠️ Warnings: The Bad Step (Crinkle Crags, Long Top). A short, awkward rock step that turns a walk into a scramble and regularly stops people dead. There is a bypass path to the left — use it if you are unsure.; Do not attempt Jack’s Rake on Pavey Ark unless you know what you are taking on. It is a graded scramble with real exposure, not a path. The walkers’ line goes round.; 20 km, 1,497 m and fifteen tops. This is a full, committing day. Start early, and decide your turn-back time before you leave the car.; The Crinkles are the classic place to descend the wrong side in cloud. Know which valley you want before you are in it.

Full route guide ↗

✎️ 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.

Best parking to hike Shelter Crags

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

Old Dungeon Ghyll (NT, paid) — 3.7 km from summit (straight line)
Head of Great Langdale — Bowfell, Crinkle Crags, Pike o' Blisco, the Langdale Pikes.
Directions
🚺 Public toilets (510m) — Free🚺 Public toilets (649m) — Free🍺 Old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel🍺 Sticklebarn
Three Shire Stone, Wrynose Pass (verge) — 3.9 km from summit (straight line)
High-level start for Pike o' Blisco, Cold Pike, Wet Side Edge and the Greenburn fells.
Directions

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.

Water & shelter on the way up

On the Langdale Horseshoe route:

💧 possible water source (5 m)💧 possible water source (6 m)💧 possible water source (81 m)🚺 map (10 m)🚺 map (11 m)🚌 New Dungeon Ghyll (144 m)

💧 Treat water from the fell before you drink it. A mapped point is usually a tap or public supply, but never drink untreated from a beck, stream or tarn — even clear-looking hill water can carry giardia or cryptosporidium from livestock or a carcass upstream and leave you seriously ill. Run it through a filter or purifier (a LifeStraw, Sawyer Squeeze or HydraPak) or bring it to a rolling boil first.

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

Buses to Shelter Crags from Penrith / Ambleside / Windermere

Stagecoach 516 “Langdale Rambler”
Ambleside – Skelwith Bridge – Elterwater – New Dungeon Ghyll – Old Dungeon Ghyll
Catch it from: Ambleside · Windermere (change at Ambleside)
The Langdale bus — Pikes, Bowfell, Crinkle Crags, Pike o' Blisco all walkable from the Dungeon Ghyll stops. Seasonal frequency varies; check before relying on the last bus back.

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

Other fells near Shelter Crags

Maps & guidebooks for Shelter Crags

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