hikes.guideLake District

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

Wainwright — Southern FellsAlso a Birkett

Slight Side

Slight Side at 762m (2,500ft) forms the south-western shoulder of Scafell, a long, grassy ridge that extends the fell's bulk towards the Eskdale valley.

762 m
Height
~5.5–7 h
Typical time
+13
Bonus Birketts
See routes & download GPX →

Home › Fells › Slight Side

762 mWainwright — Southern Fells✓ summit is also a Birkett+13 bonus Birketts within 3 km Care needed in cloud

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

Modelled guidance for the 762 m summit. Always check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.

On the summit today (Tue 28 Jul): 14° to 13°C, gusts to 39 mph, 11.9 mm of rain forecast.

Tue 28 Jul
🌧️
14° / 13°
💨 39 mph
🌧 11.9 mm (99%)
Wed 29 Jul
🌧️
13° / 10°
💨 33 mph
🌧 11.9 mm (100%)
Thu 30 Jul
🌧️
11° / 5°
💨 29 mph
🌧 2.9 mm (87%)
Fri 31 Jul
🌤️
13° / 1°
💨 23 mph
🌧 0.0 mm (86%)
Sat 1 Aug
🌦️
13° / 4°
💨 15 mph
🌧 4.5 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 762 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

Slight Side

Slight Side, a Lake District fell
Photo: Mick Knapton, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Slight Side at 762m (2,500ft) forms the south-western shoulder of Scafell, a long, grassy ridge that extends the fell's bulk towards the Eskdale valley. Wainwright described it as the finest approach to Scafell from Eskdale — the long ridge walk from Boot via Catcove Beck offers superb views of the upper Esk and the whole southern arc of the Lake District fells. The summit itself is a small cairn on a broad ridge with commanding views towards the sea and across Eskdale. Rarely visited in its own right, it is best appreciated as part of the Scafell ascent from the south, one of Lakeland's quieter mountain routes.

Routes up Slight Side

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

Slight Side & Sca Fell
14.9 km · ~4.5 hr
Classifications & hill data
Wainwright
Southern
Birkett
Fellranger
Synge
762 m
Height
2,500 ft
In feet
NY 2098 0501
Grid ref

Map & nearby Birketts

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

Nearest parking: Wasdale Head (NT car park), about 3.2 km from the summit (straight line). Full parking, toilets and bus details are below.

Birketts near Slight Side (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.

0.8 km SEHigh Scarth487 m · Southern
1.6 km SWGreat How - Eskdale Fell522 m · Western
1.6 km EScar Lathing439 m · Southern
1.6 km SESilverybield Crag395 m · Southern
1.8 km ESEThrostlehow Crag404 m · Southern
2.1 km NNEPen762 m · Southern
2.1 km SWEskdale Fell - Whinscales425 m · Western
2.1 km ENEHigh Gait Crags572 m · Southern
2.4 km SSWDawsonground Crags397 m · Southern
2.7 km NNEBroad Crag935 m · Southern
2.7 km NNEIll Crag931 m · Southern
2.9 km SSWWhin Crag (Eskdale)358 m · Southern
2.9 km SEYew Bank499 m · Southern

Routes over Slight Side

Slight Side & Sca FellLive
14.88 km · ~933 m ascent · loop · ~4.5–6 h
Summits: Slight SideScafell

⬇️ Download GPX

Full route guide ↗

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

The View from Slight Side

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 Slight Side36 labelled tops shown (13 distant behind the far-horizon toggle). Theoretical visibility in perfect clarity; computed from terrain, not photographed.eye levelNNEESESSWWNWPillar · 8 kmCrinkle Crags · 4 kmScoat Fell · 8 kmHigh Street · 24 kmSwirl How · 8 kmThe Old Man of Coniston · 10 kmHaycock · 9 kmAllen Crags · 4 kmGrey Friar · 7 kmStonesty Pike · 4 kmWetherlam · 9 kmBuck Pike · 9 kmSeatallan · 8 kmScafell Pike · 2 kmScafell · 2 kmIll Crag · 3 kmBowfell · 4 kmBlack Combe · 21 kmEsk Pike · 4 kmShelter Crags · 4 kmPike de Bield · 3 kmHarter Fell · 5 kmWhite Maiden · 10 kmIllgill Head · 4 kmMiddle Fell · 6 kmWhin Rigg · 6 kmGreat How · 2 kmStainton Pike · 12 kmGreen Crag · 7 kmPikes · 11 kmGlade How · 8 kmEskdale Fell · 2 kmThrostlehow Crag · 2 kmDawsonground Crags · 2 kmStickle Pike · 12 kmBoat How · 4 kmCrinkle Crags · 4 kmBlack Crag · 8 kmRed Screes · 19 kmGreat How · 8 kmBlack Sails · 8 kmCaw Fell · 10 kmBrown Pike · 10 kmCrinkle Crags South Top · 4 kmPen · 2 kmWhernside · 58 km · clear daysWhite Pike · 10 kmBurn Moor · 14 kmLank Rigg · 14 kmHesk Fell · 11 kmBirker Fell · 8 kmWhite Pike · 11 kmHorsehow Crags · 4 kmGreat Worm Crag · 8 kmGreat Knoutberry Hill · 61 km · clear daysRaven's Crag · 12 kmMuncaster Fell · 12 kmSnowdon · 162 km · a handful of days a yearSlieve Donard · 178 km · a handful of days a yearAran Fawddwy · 186 km · a handful of days a yearSouth Barrule · 100 km · a rare clear daySlieve Croob · 179 km · a handful of days a yearYr Eifl · 181 km · a handful of days a yearMoel y Gamelin · 158 km · a handful of days a yearDivis · 182 km · a handful of days a yearGreat Whernside · 85 km · a rare clear dayAgnew's Hill · 181 km · a handful of days a yearMillfore · 102 km · a rare clear dayWinter Hill · 101 km · a rare clear dayBillinge Hill · 108 km · a rare clear day
What you can see from Slight Side, by direction
  • North: Scafell (2 km), Scafell Pike (2 km)
  • North-east: Ill Crag (3 km), Pike de Bield (3 km), Esk Pike (4 km), Allen Crags (4 km)
  • East: Bowfell (4 km), Crinkle Crags (4 km), Crinkle Crags (4 km), Crinkle Crags (4 km), Crinkle Crags South Top (4 km), Crinkle Crags (4 km), Shelter Crags (4 km), Stonesty Pike (4 km), Little Stand (4 km), Red Screes (19 km), Caudale Moor (21 km), Stony Cove Pike (21 km), Thornthwaite Crag (23 km), High Street (24 km)
  • South-east: Grey Friar (7 km), Great Carrs (7 km), Swirl How (8 km), Great How (8 km), Black Sails (8 km), Wetherlam (9 km), Brim Fell (9 km), Dow Crag (9 km), Buck Pike (9 km), The Old Man of Coniston (10 km), Brown Pike (10 km)
  • South: Black Combe (21 km), Black Combe South Top (21 km)
  • North-west: Red Pike (7 km), Seatallan (8 km), Black Crag (8 km), Pillar (8 km), Scoat Fell (8 km), Haycock (9 km), Caw Fell (10 km)

On the clearest days the far horizon adds: Snowdon (162 km, Wales), Slieve Donard (178 km, Ireland), Carnedd Llewelyn (150 km, Wales), Aran Fawddwy (186 km, Wales), Snaefell (83 km, Isle of Man), Moel Siabod (159 km, Wales), Arenig Fawr (172 km, Wales), South Barrule (100 km, Isle of Man).

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 (CC BY 4.0). See how we compute the view · and the summit intervisibility report below.

What you can see from Slight Side

On a clear day — computed sightlines, curvature- and refraction-corrected.
33Wainwrights in view+2 marginal
162 kmFurthest sightlineSnowdon (Yr Wyddfa) · possible under favourable refraction
2Sea in viewIrish Sea, Morecambe Bay

On the clearest days the view reaches across to Wales and the Isle of Man.

Far horizons
  • Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa) WalesSSW · 162 km clear
  • Carnedd Llewelyn WalesSSW · 147 km clear
  • Snaefell Isle of ManWSW · 83 km clear
  • Ingleborough Yorkshire DalesESE · 62 km clear
  • Whernside Yorkshire DalesESE · 57 km clear
  • Irish Sea open waterWSW · 39 km in view
  • Morecambe Bay bay/estuarySSE · 32 km in view
All 33 Wainwrights in clear view (nearest first)

Scafell, Scafell Pike, Hard Knott, Esk Pike, Bowfell, Crinkle Crags - Long Top (Second Crinkle), Illgill Head, Allen Crags, Yewbarrow, Harter Fell (Eskdale), Whin Rigg (Wasdale), Middle Fell, Grey Friar, Green Crag, Red Pike (Wasdale), Great Carrs, Buckbarrow, Swirl How, Seatallan, Scoat Fell (Little Scoat Fell), Haycock, Wetherlam, Brim Fell, Dow Crag, The Old Man of Coniston (Coniston Old Man), Caw Fell, Lank Rigg, High Pike (Scandale), Red Screes, Middle Dodd, Stony Cove Pike (Caudale Moor), Thornthwaite Crag, High Street

How Slight Side’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 Slight Side

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

Wasdale Head (NT car park) — 3.2 km from summit (straight line)
National Trust, pay & display (free for members). The classic base for Scafell Pike, Great Gable, Kirk Fell, Yewbarrow. Fills very early.
Directions
🍺 Wasdale Head Inn
Overbeck Bridge, Wastwater (NT, free) — 4.3 km from summit (straight line)
Small free NT car park at the foot of Yewbarrow on the lakeshore road.
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.

Buses to Slight Side from Penrith / Ambleside / Windermere

No regular bus serves the start points for this fell — this is one for the car (or a long approach from the nearest served valley). The nearest hubs are Penrith (X4/X5 & 508), Ambleside and Windermere (555, 505, 516).

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

Navigating Slight Side in cloud

Care needed

Walkable ground sits close to a lethal drop — in cloud it’s easy to walk straight onto steep ground. 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 Slight Side compares with all 214 — the Clag Index: navigating in cloud. A relative, deliberately cautious guide; the site can’t navigate for you.

Other fells near Slight Side

Maps & guidebooks for Slight Side

As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases — at no extra cost to you. How affiliate links work →