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

Thorn Crag - a grassy fellside with a small cairn below the craggy Langdale Pikes rising against a blue sky
Birkett — Central (not a Wainwright summit)Birkett top

Thorn Crag

Thorn Crag at 644m (2,113ft) is a Birkett top on the rough fell above the Langstrath valley and Stonethwaite in the Central Fells, giving views into the wild Langstrath valley and across to the Glaramara ridge.

644 m
Height
+7
Bonus Birketts
See routes & download GPX →

Home › Fells › Thorn Crag

Written and walked by Lee McCoy · Last reviewed

644 mBirkett — Central (not a Wainwright summit)+7 bonus Birketts within 3 km

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

Modelled guidance for the 644 m summit. Always check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.

On the summit today (Tue 28 Jul): 15° to 13°C, gusts to 38 mph, 11.8 mm of rain forecast.

Tue 28 Jul
🌧️
15° / 13°
💨 38 mph
🌧 11.8 mm (100%)
Wed 29 Jul
🌧️
14° / 11°
💨 27 mph
🌧 5.0 mm (100%)
Thu 30 Jul
🌦️
12° / 5°
💨 28 mph
🌧 1.3 mm (78%)
Fri 31 Jul
🌤️
14° / 2°
💨 24 mph
🌧 0.0 mm (78%)
Sat 1 Aug
🌦️
14° / 4°
💨 15 mph
🌧 3.6 mm (54%)
Sun 2 Aug
🌫️
16° / 6°
💨 19 mph
🌧 0.0 mm (24%)
Mon 3 Aug
🌦️
15° / 6°
💨 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 644 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

Thorn Crag

Thorn Crag - a grassy fellside with a small cairn below the craggy Langdale Pikes rising against a blue sky
© Lee McCoy

Thorn Crag at 644m (2,113ft) is a Birkett top on the rough fell above the Langstrath valley and Stonethwaite in the Central Fells, giving views into the wild Langstrath valley and across to the Glaramara ridge. Part of the fell country between the Langdale Pikes and Glaramara. A dramatic position above one of Lakeland's finest remote valleys.

Routes up Thorn Crag

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.
Langdale Pikes Round
12.3 km · ~3.9 hr · Moderate
A grand round of the Langdale Pikes and the fells behind them. From Great Langdale it climbs past Stickle Tarn to take in Pavey Ark (by the walkers' line, not Jack's Rake), Harrison Stickle, Pike of Stickle and Loft Crag, then loops over Thunacar Knott, High Raise and Sergeant Man before dropping back to the valley. It's a simpler line than my previous version, which added Blea Rigg — boggy on the approach from Sergeant Man. Handily, there are toilets at the car park at the end.
Classifications & hill data
Birkett
Synge
644 m
Height
2,113 ft
In feet
NY 2796 0713
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 1.4 km from the summit (straight line). Full parking, toilets and bus details are below.

Birketts near Thorn 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.

2.1 km NNECodale Head732 m · Central
2.2 km WSWWhite Stones - The Band568 m · Southern
2.2 km SESide Pike362 m · Central
2.6 km WNWBlack Crags (Mickleden)588 m · Southern
2.8 km WNWBuck Pike (Mickleden)606 m · Southern
2.8 km ECastle How (Raw Pike)498 m · Central
2.9 km NLow White Stones731 m · Central

Routes over Thorn Crag

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.

Langdale Pikes RoundRevised
12.34 km · ~830 m ascent · loop · ~3.5–5 h · Clockwise · Moderate
Summits: Sergeant ManHigh Raise (High White Stones)Thunacar KnottPavey ArkHarrison SticklePike of StickleLoft CragThorn Crag

⬇️ Download GPX

Best season: Any season in good conditions; the plateau behind the Pikes is featureless in cloud.

⚠️ Warnings: Avoid Jack's Rake on Pavey Ark unless you're a confident scrambler — the walkers' route reaches the same summit.; Boggy ground and confusing navigation on the High Raise and Sergeant Man plateau in mist.; Steep, rocky ground around the Pikes.

Full route guide ↗

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

Best parking to hike Thorn Crag

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

Old Dungeon Ghyll (NT, paid) — 1.4 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
Stickle Ghyll / New Dungeon Ghyll (NT, paid) — 1.5 km from summit (straight line)
Direct start up Stickle Ghyll for the Langdale Pikes.
Directions
🚺 Public toilets (640m) — Free🚺 Public toilets (770m) — Free

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)

On the Langdale Pikes Round route:

💧 possible water source (7 m)🛖 map (6 m)🚌 New Dungeon Ghyll (110 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 Thorn Crag 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.

My hikes over Thorn Crag (Strava)

1 logged hike pass over this summit:

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

Other fells near Thorn Crag

Maps & guidebooks for Thorn Crag

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