Best parking to hike Tarn Crags Top (Bowscale Fell East Top)
Where we have the data, each parking spot also shows the nearest public toilets and facilities (cafés, pubs, shops).
Mosedale / Bowscale (verge) — 1.3 km from summit (straight line)
Verge parking for Carrock Fell and the back o' Skiddaw fells via the Caldew valley.
Directions ↗ (opens in new tab)Something changed here?If it is full: Mungrisdale village hall (donation) (2.7 km); Mungrisdale (verge, by the village hall) (3.0 km); Roadside parking for The Tongue (free) (1.5 km, 81 m up) a few spaces only
Tarn Crags Top, north-east (layby) — 1.4 km from summit (straight line)
Nearest fells: Tarn Crags Top (Bowscale Fell East Top) (1.4 km), Carrock Fell (1.4 km), Round Knott (1.9 km). Free (OSM-tagged). Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged).
Directions ↗ (opens in new tab)Something changed here?Mosedale / Bowscale (verge, west) — 1.7 km from summit (straight line)
Verge parking on the Caldew valley road, 1.2 km west of the other Mosedale / Bowscale verge - for Carrock Fell, Round Knott and the back o' Skiddaw fells. Fee and capacity are unknown: this is a location Lee supplied, not a survey.
Directions ↗ (opens in new tab)Something changed here?Tarn Crags Top (layby) — 1.9 km from summit (straight line)
Walking base for Coomb Height, Knott, Great Calva and Carrock Fell — the 'Great Calva, Knott, High Pike and Carrock Fell' route starts 100 m away. Also serves 'Birketts by Carrock Fell'. Free (OSM-tagged). Unpaved surface (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 Tarn Crags Top (Bowscale Fell East Top) by bus
The 509 stops at Mungrisdale, adjacent to Road End. From there it is 3.2 km and 76 m of ascent to the start of Blencathra to Mungrisdale Common and over the back — a walk in before the walk. Last bus: Monday to Friday 22:11 towards Penrith (X5) and 17:07 towards Patterdale (509) and 14:42 towards Hartsop (509); Saturday 22:11 towards Penrith (X5) and 17:07 towards Patterdale (509) and 14:42 towards Hartsop (509); Sunday 18:38 towards Penrith (X5) and 17:07 towards Patterdale (509) and 14:42 towards Hartsop (509). Checked against the operator’s timetable, 7 September 2026. Times here are a guide, not a promise — leave yourself more than the minute.
Stagecoach 509
Penrith ↔ Keswick around Ullswater — calls at Pooley Bridge, Watermillock, Glenridding, Patterdale, Hartsop, Dockray, Matterdale, Mungrisdale and Threlkeld
Catch it from: Penrith · Keswick
The Ullswater side of the Penrith–Keswick corridor, and a second option where we previously showed only the 508. Reaches Helvellyn and Catstye Cam from Glenridding, Place Fell and Angletarn Pikes from Patterdale, the Hartsop fells, and Gowbarrow from Dockray. Frequency and season are not listed here because we have not verified a timetable — check Stagecoach before you rely on it. Note the Troutbeck on this route is the one on the A66 near Penrith, not the Troutbeck near Windermere.
Rural routes change seasonally — confirm on stagecoachbus.com (opens in new tab) or Traveline before relying on a last bus.