Ulthwaite Rigg
Ulthwaite Rigg at 502m (1,647ft) is an Outlying Fell on the moorland between Wet Sleddale and Mosedale, south-west of Shap, giving views across the Shap Fells and towards the Pennines. Wainwright included it in his Outlying Fells guide.
Summit conditions on Ulthwaite Rigg
On the summit on Tuesday 27 October: 12° to 6°C, gusts to 55 mph, 12.5 mm of rain forecast over the whole day, midnight to midnight.
The forecast figures are Open-Meteo’s, worked out for the summit’s height. How we check →
Routes up Ulthwaite Rigg
Hand-mapped, with GPX to download — full maps further down.
One top on the Shap fells, out and back in 12.6 km with 368 m of climbing averaging about 5% with one 22% descent over 250 m on the way back.
Distance and climb are measured from the route’s GPX track, and the time from them by Naismith’s rule; the route page says what each grade rests on. How we check →
How hard is Ulthwaite Rigg?
The shortest way up we hold is Ulthwaite Rigg — 12.62 km, 368 m of ascent, ~3–4¼ h. On our scale its hardest axis is navigation — Severe.
All axes: navigation: Severe · length: Moderate · steepness: Moderate · terrain: Not assessed · exposure: Not assessed.
These are the route page’s grades, set by the rules on how we grade: length and steepness measured from its GPX track, the others set on the ground, judged from the map or estimated from OpenStreetMap. The route page says which. How we check →
Conditions and 7-day summit forecast
Modelled for the 502 m summit (Open-Meteo). Check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.
Full 7-day forecast
Taken 27 October 2026, 08:13 UTC; the live forecast replaces it when it loads. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com (opens in new tab)
Parking & buses for Ulthwaite Rigg
Parking
Route starts first, then the car parks nearest the summit, which are not always a way up.
Positions are approximate.
Vehicles are left at their owner’s risk: we list places people park and cannot vouch for any of them. Take valuables with you and leave nothing on show.
Buses
The nearest bus stop we hold is the UB2 at Askham, outside Stores, 14.9 km of walking from the start — no bus route we hold serves it. It is a seasonal service too: 1 November 2026 is its last day of the year (confirmed with the operator, 9 October 2026); it returns on 22 March 2027.
Getting there across the Lake District: Buses · Parking map · By train · By boat
Hazards on Ulthwaite Rigg
Notes from a planned route, not walked: Ulthwaite Rigg
- Upper Mosedale is peat-hag and tussock country with no paths — short route, slow miles. The plotted line is indicative; pick your own dry ground.
If you need to get off (the leg from the start): The map shows no path from this stage that reaches a road sooner than going back down the bridleway the way you came, up to about 5.4 km from the top, where going on round the walk is about as far; not walked for this guide.
Quoted from the route page of a planned route, drawn from the map and not yet walked: its warnings and the note for the leg that reaches Ulthwaite Rigg.
We have not written a hazard card for this fell yet, and that is not a sign that it is low-hazard. Read the warnings on the route pages that climb it, check the forecast, carry a map and compass, and turn back in cloud if the ground is not what you expected. The National Park Authority’s What to pack page, AdventureSmart’s hill walking kit list and Mountain Rescue England and Wales’s safety page are linked from our what to carry guide.
If you need Mountain Rescue
Dial 999 or 112 and ask for the Police, then Mountain Rescue.
Before you call, have ready: where you are (a grid reference if you can – the OS Locate app shows yours on your phone), what has happened, how many of you there are, and your mobile number.
Then stay where you are until the rescue team contacts you.
If you cannot make a voice call because of a hearing or speech impairment, emergency SMS works only if you have registered first: text “register” to 999.
From Mountain Rescue England and Wales’s guidance on calling them out (opens in new tab) (read 26 October 2026).
Map, GPX and nearby Birketts
Skip mapFree mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap, with SRTM elevation data (switch layers top-right).
Parking, toilets and buses: Parking & buses ↑.
Birketts within 3 km of Ulthwaite Rigg
These Birkett tops are not Wainwright summits. Distances are straight lines: check the ground and access on a map before adding one.
Routes over Ulthwaite Rigg
Download GPX Planned route · not yet walked
Every line here is a guide, not a guarantee — conditions change. Navigate for yourself and carry a map and compass. How to use this guide.
About Ulthwaite Rigg
Classifications & hill data
Is Ulthwaite Rigg a Wainwright?
Ulthwaite Rigg is one of Wainwright's Outlying Fells, not one of the 214 in the Pictorial Guides. It is also on the Birkett list and the Synge list.
Selected lists
This is the summit’s grid reference. If you call from anywhere else, give your own position, not this one.
The summit is also a Birkett.
Lists, height and summit position from the Database of British and Irish Hills; the feet are converted from its metres and the grid reference from that position. How we check →
Places to stay near this fell
- New Ing Lodge (opens in new tab)about 4.2 km
- Shap Fell Bothy (opens in new tab)about 4.7 km
We have not stayed at any of them. We take no bookings or affiliate fees. Distances are straight lines from each route start, never walking times. Properties found via OpenStreetMap (opens in new tab).