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660 m · Wainwright — North Western Fells · Birketts to bag nearby, parking, buses, my hikes and live summit weather.

Wainwright — North Western FellsAlso a Birkett

Whiteless Pike

Whiteless Pike at 660m (2,165ft) is the southern sentinel of the Grasmoor ridge above Buttermere, a sharp, pointed summit giving excellent views of the Buttermere valley and Crummock Water.

660 m
Height
~3–4 h
Typical time
+6
Bonus Birketts
See routes & download GPX →

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660 mWainwright — North Western Fells✓ summit is also a Birkett+6 bonus Birketts within 3 km Severe in cloud

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

Modelled guidance for the 660 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 38 mph, 4.8 mm of rain forecast.

Tue 28 Jul
🌧️
14° / 13°
💨 38 mph
🌧 4.8 mm (99%)
Wed 29 Jul
🌧️
14° / 11°
💨 28 mph
🌧 14.0 mm (100%)
Thu 30 Jul
🌦️
12° / 4°
💨 29 mph
🌧 3.0 mm (87%)
Fri 31 Jul
🌤️
14° / 2°
💨 22 mph
🌧 0.0 mm (86%)
Sat 1 Aug
🌦️
14° / 5°
💨 15 mph
🌧 2.7 mm (82%)
Sun 2 Aug
☁️
15° / 5°
💨 17 mph
🌧 0.0 mm (35%)
Mon 3 Aug
🌦️
14° / 5°
💨 16 mph
🌧 0.4 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 660 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

Whiteless Pike

Whiteless Pike, a Lake District fell
Photo: Abbagliato, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Whiteless Pike at 660m (2,165ft) is the southern sentinel of the Grasmoor ridge above Buttermere, a sharp, pointed summit giving excellent views of the Buttermere valley and Crummock Water. Wainwright noted the dramatic view looking down to both lakes from the summit ridge. The ascent from Buttermere village via Whiteless Breast is direct and rewarding. Most naturally combined with Wandope and Grasmoor for the full western circuit above Buttermere and Crummock Water. The lake views are excellent throughout.

Routes up Whiteless Pike

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

The Grasmoor round: Whiteside, Hopegill Head and Whiteless Pike
16.2 km · ~5 hr · Hard
Ten tops and the finest ridge walking in the North Western Fells — up Whiteside, along the narrow crest of Gasgale Crags to Hopegill Head, over the great whaleback of Grasmoor, then out along Wandope and down the elegant cone of Whiteless Pike to Rannerdale. Sixteen kilometres, a thousand metres of climbing, and views over Crummock Water all the way round.
High Snockrigg, Eel Crag & Lad Hows
15.7 km · ~5.5 hr
Classifications & hill data
Wainwright
North Western
Birkett
Fellranger
Synge
Nuttall
660 m
Height
2,165 ft
In feet
NY 1801 1897
Grid ref

Map & nearby Birketts

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

Nearest parking: Buttermere village (NT, paid), about 2.0 km from the summit (straight line). Full parking, toilets and bus details are below.

Birketts near Whiteless Pike (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.

0.7 km NNEThirdgill Head Man734 m · North Western
0.9 km WNWLad Hows426 m · North Western
2.0 km EIll Crag (Newlands) (Knott Rigg North Top)546 m · North Western
2.0 km NNEEel Crag (Birkett)807 m · North Western
2.2 km SSEHigh Snockrigg526 m · North Western
3.0 km NNESand Hill756 m · North Western

Routes over Whiteless Pike

The Grasmoor round: Whiteside, Hopegill Head and Whiteless PikePlanned
16.17 km · ~1068 m ascent · loop · ~5–6.5 h · Hard
Summits: Whiteside (Whiteside West Top)Whiteside East Top (Whiteside) (Gasgale Crags)Gasgale CragsHopegill HeadSand HillGrasmoorWandopeThirdgill Head ManWhiteless PikeRannerdale Knotts

✎️ If you only do one round in the North Western Fells, this is it. Grasmoor is a bigger, wilder mountain than its modest reputation suggests, and the ridge from Whiteside over Gasgale Crags to Hopegill Head is as good as ridge walking gets outside the Langdales. Whiteless Pike at the end is a perfect little peak — and a punishing descent.

⬇️ Download GPX

Best season: Late spring to autumn, in clear conditions. Gasgale Crags is narrow and rocky, and Grasmoor’s summit plateau is a blank, stony expanse that is thoroughly disorientating in cloud.

⚠️ Warnings: The climb straight up Whiteside from Lanthwaite is brutally steep — a relentless, loose, eroded pull with little respite. It is the hardest 500 m on this route and it comes first.; Gasgale Crags is a narrow, rocky ridge. It is not a scramble in the Sharp Edge sense, but it is airy, the rock is loose in places, and it wants care in wind or wet.; Grasmoor’s summit is a featureless stony plateau with crags on three sides. In cloud it is a genuine navigation trap — take a bearing before you leave the cairn.; The descent off Whiteless Pike is a knee-breaker — steep, sustained and relentless, right at the end of a long day. It is one of the steepest sustained descents in the Lakes.; A long day with 1,068 m of ascent and ten tops. Navigation is graded hard: the high ground is broad and the drops are real.

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.

High Snockrigg, Eel Crag & Lad HowsPlanned
15.69 km · ~1399 m ascent · loop · ~5.5–7.5 h
Summits: High SnockriggWhiteless PikeThirdgill Head ManCrag Hill (Eel Crag)Eel Crag (Birkett)GrasmoorLad Hows

⬇️ Download GPX

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.

The View from Whiteless Pike

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 Whiteless Pike35 labelled tops shown (8 distant behind the far-horizon toggle). Theoretical visibility in perfect clarity; computed from terrain, not photographed.eye levelNNEESESSWWNWScafell Pike · 12 kmHelvellyn · 17 kmGreat End · 12 kmPillar · 7 kmRaise · 16 kmFairfield · 19 kmGreat Dodd · 16 kmStybarrow Dodd · 16 kmHigh Stile · 4 kmKirk Fell · 9 kmHaycock · 9 kmGlaramara · 11 kmSail · 2 kmRed Pike · 4 kmHigh Crag · 5 kmRobinson · 3 kmHindscarth · 4 kmClough Head · 16 kmGrey Knotts · 7 kmColdbarrow Fell · 12 kmIron Crag · 9 kmCausey Pike · 4 kmStarling Dodd · 5 kmGreat Borne · 6 kmBlake Fell · 7 kmGrasmoor · 2 kmWandope · 1 kmThirdgill Head Man · 1 kmCarling Knott · 6 kmGavel Fell · 6 kmHen Comb · 5 kmFloutern Cop · 6 kmLad Hows · 1 kmLow Fell · 6 kmDarling Fell · 6 kmBowfell · 14 kmGreat Gable · 9 kmNethermost Pike · 17 kmCatstye Cam · 17 kmBlack Crag · 8 kmHigh Stile · 4 kmRed Screes · 24 kmRed Beck Top · 11 kmCalfhow Pike · 15 kmCross Fell · 53 km · clear daysLooking Stead · 7 kmKirk Fell East Top · 8 kmWhoap · 10 kmLittle Dodd · 5 kmCrag Fell · 10 kmLoweswater End · 6 kmGavel Fell · 6 kmScale Knott · 3 kmSlieve Donard · 177 km · a handful of days a yearMerrick · 100 km · a rare clear daySnaefell · 84 km · a rare clear dayCairnsmore of Fleet · 83 km · a rare clear daySlieve Croob · 177 km · a handful of days a yearDivis · 178 km · a handful of days a yearCairnharrow · 75 km · a rare clear dayAgnew's Hill · 175 km · a handful of days a year
What you can see from Whiteless Pike, by direction
  • North-east: Sail (2 km)
  • East: Watson's Dodd (16 km), Clough Head (16 km), White Side (16 km), Helvellyn Lower Man (16 km), Raise (16 km), Great Dodd (16 km), Stybarrow Dodd (16 km), Helvellyn (17 km), Nethermost Pike (17 km), Catstye Cam (17 km), High Crag (17 km), Dollywaggon Pike (18 km), Cofa Pike (19 km), Fairfield (19 km)
  • South-east: Robinson (3 km), Hindscarth (4 km), Glaramara (11 km), Looking Steads (11 km), Red Beck Top (11 km), Great End (12 km), Allen Crags (12 km), Esk Pike (13 km), Bowfell (14 km), Seat Sandal (18 km), Great Rigg (20 km), Red Screes (24 km)
  • South: High Stile (4 km), High Stile (4 km), High Crag (5 km), Pillar (7 km), Black Crag (8 km), Red Pike (8 km), Kirk Fell (9 km), Great Gable (9 km), Broad Crag (12 km), Scafell Pike (12 km), Scafell (13 km)
  • South-west: Red Pike (4 km), Haycock (9 km)

On the clearest days the far horizon adds: Slieve Donard (177 km, Ireland), Merrick (100 km, Scotland), Snaefell (84 km, Isle of Man), Cairnsmore of Fleet (83 km, Scotland), Corserine (96 km, Scotland), Lamachan Hill (94 km, Scotland), South Barrule (102 km, Isle of Man), Slieve Croob (177 km, Ireland).

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 Whiteless Pike

On a clear day — computed sightlines, curvature- and refraction-corrected.
60Wainwrights in view+7 marginal
102 kmFurthest sightlineMerrick · possible under favourable refraction
1Sea in viewIrish Sea

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

Far horizons
  • Merrick ScotlandNW · 102 km clear
  • Snaefell Isle of ManWSW · 84 km clear
  • Cross Fell North PenninesENE · 53 km clear
  • Irish Sea open waterW · 36 km in view
All 60 Wainwrights in clear view (nearest first)

Wandope, Grasmoor, Rannerdale Knotts, Knott Rigg, Sail, Ard Crags, Robinson, Mellbreak (Mellbreak South Top), Red Pike (Buttermere), Causey Pike, High Stile, Hen Comb, High Crag (Buttermere), Starling Dodd, Fleetwith Pike, Low Fell, Maiden Moor, Haystacks (Buttermere), High Spy, Great Borne, Gavel Fell, Cat Bells (Catbells), Pillar, Blake Fell, Grey Knotts, Brandreth, Red Pike (Wasdale), Kirk Fell, Green Gable, Great Gable, Crag Fell, Walla Crag, Bleaberry Fell, High Seat, Grike, Glaramara, Lingmell, Lank Rigg, Great End, Allen Crags, Scafell Pike, Scafell, Esk Pike, High Rigg (Naddle Fell), Bowfell, Watson's Dodd, Clough Head, White Side, Raise, Great Dodd, Stybarrow Dodd, Helvellyn, Nethermost Pike, Catstye Cam, Dollywaggon Pike, Seat Sandal, Fairfield, Great Rigg, Great Mell Fell, Red Screes

How Whiteless Pike’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 Whiteless Pike

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

Buttermere village (NT, paid) — 2.0 km from summit (straight line)
For Red Pike, High Stile, Robinson, Rannerdale Knotts.
Directions
🚺 Buttermere village (132m) — Accessible☕ Syke Farm Tea Room☕ Croft House Farm Café🍺 The Buttermere Court Hotel
Lanthwaite Green (NT) — 3.2 km from summit (straight line)
At the foot of Grasmoor and Whiteside, Crummock Water.
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 The Grasmoor round: Whiteside, Hopegill Head and Whiteless Pike route:

🛖 map (5 m)🚌 Lanthwaite Green Farm (58 m)

On the High Snockrigg, Eel Crag & Lad Hows route:

🛖 map (9 m)🛖 map (52 m)🚌 Mountain Road junction (11 m)🚌 Bridge Hotel (133 m)🚌 The Fish Hotel (184 m)🚌 Buttermere Youth Hostel (N bound) (209 m)⛺ Syke Farm Campsite (355 m)

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

Buses to Whiteless Pike from Penrith / Ambleside / Windermere

Stagecoach 77 / 77A “Honister Rambler”
Keswick – Portinscale – Hawse End (Catbells) – Grange – Seatoller – Honister Pass – Buttermere – Lorton – Whinlatter – Keswick (circular)
Catch it from: Keswick (connect via 555 from Windermere/Ambleside or X4/X5 from Penrith)
Seasonal (roughly Easter–October). Brilliant for the North Western fells: Catbells, Dale Head from Honister, the Buttermere fells and Whinlatter.

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

Hazard & Incident Information for Whiteless Pike

Hazard: Moderate

A shapely, conical peak above Buttermere that is steep on virtually every side, with a rocky little summit and the fine, airy crest of Whiteless Edge running off toward Wandope. There is no easy way up or down — every approach is a steep, rough pull — and the exposed ridge demands a steady head. Cockermouth Mountain Rescue Team covers this Buttermere ground.

  • Steep flanks and the rocky summit: Whiteless Pike is steep on all sides and the final climb to the rocky top is rough underfoot. A slip on the steep ascent or descent can run a long way; take care with footing, especially when wet, and pace the relentless climb.
  • Whiteless Edge (the airy ridge to Wandope): The crest south-west to Saddle Gate and Wandope is a fine but exposed, narrow ridge. Straightforward in calm dry conditions but unnerving and slippery in strong wind, wet or ice — take it steadily.
  • The long steep descent to Buttermere / Rannerdale: The descent off Whiteless Breast toward Buttermere and Rannerdale is steep and unrelenting, hard on tired legs. Don't hurry it, and in cloud keep to the path so you don't drift onto steeper ground.
Who should attempt this fell: Whiteless Pike is a steep little mountain with no soft option — expect a rough climb whichever way you go, and treat Whiteless Edge as genuinely exposed, taking it carefully in wind or wet. Keep to the path on the steep descent, and treat it as full winter ground when there is snow or ice. A steady head for heights helps on the ridge.

Most common causes: Slips on the steep, rough ascent and descent · Loss of footing or balance on the exposed Whiteless Edge in wind · Drifting off the path on the steep flanks in cloud · Winter ice on the steep ground and the ridge

Local Mountain Rescue: Cockermouth Mountain Rescue Team · Reviewed 14 Jun 2026

Safety: Hazard guidance compiled from published Mountain Rescue reports and well-documented accident history - editorial background, not a live feed of callouts. Always check current conditions, carry proper navigation equipment, and seek qualified instruction before heading onto the fells. In an emergency, call 999, ask for Police, then Mountain Rescue.

Report incorrect information

Navigating Whiteless Pike in cloud

Severe

A rough, rocky summit ringed by crags, with no single obvious way off in poor visibility. A serious place to be caught in cloud: carry map and compass (or GPS) and know how to use them, or save it for a clear day.

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 Whiteless Pike 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 Whiteless Pike

Maps & guidebooks for Whiteless Pike

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