hikes.guideLake District

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

Birkett — Western (not a Wainwright summit)Birkett top

Yewbarrow North Top (Stirrup Crag)

Yewbarrow North Top at 617m (2,024ft) is a high Birkett top on the Yewbarrow ridge above Wasdale Head, forming the dramatic rocky crest of Stirrup Crag at the northern end of the fell.

617 m
Height
+3
Bonus Birketts
See routes & download GPX →
617 mBirkett — Western (not a Wainwright summit)+3 bonus Birketts within 3 km

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

Modelled guidance for the 617 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 34 mph, 5.4 mm of rain forecast.

Tue 28 Jul
🌧️
14° / 13°
💨 34 mph
🌧 5.4 mm (99%)
Wed 29 Jul
🌧️
14° / 11°
💨 29 mph
🌧 9.9 mm (100%)
Thu 30 Jul
🌦️
12° / 6°
💨 29 mph
🌧 2.8 mm (87%)
Fri 31 Jul
🌤️
14° / 2°
💨 23 mph
🌧 0.0 mm (86%)
Sat 1 Aug
🌦️
14° / 4°
💨 15 mph
🌧 4.5 mm (82%)
Sun 2 Aug
☁️
15° / 6°
💨 19 mph
🌧 0.0 mm (35%)
Mon 3 Aug
🌦️
15° / 6°
💨 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 617 m summit altitude via Open-Meteo. Summit conditions are always harsher than the valley — check the professional mountain forecasts before you go.

About the walk

Key information

Yewbarrow North Top (Stirrup Crag)

Yewbarrow North Top at 617m (2,024ft) is a high Birkett top on the Yewbarrow ridge above Wasdale Head, forming the dramatic rocky crest of Stirrup Crag at the northern end of the fell. The summit gives outstanding views across Wast Water — England's deepest lake — and towards Great Gable and the Scafell group. Part of one of Wasdale's most exciting ridge walks.

Routes up Yewbarrow North Top (Stirrup Crag)

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

Classifications & hill data
Birkett
Synge
Nuttall
617 m
Height
2,024 ft
In feet
NY 1757 0919
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 2.6 km from the summit (straight line). Full parking, toilets and bus details are below.

Birketts near Yewbarrow North Top (Stirrup 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.

2.7 km NNWBlack Crag828 m · Western
2.8 km NNELooking Stead (Pillar)628 m · Western

Routes over Yewbarrow North Top (Stirrup Crag)

16.55 km · ~1303 m ascent · loop · ~5.5–7.5 h

⬇️ Download GPX

Full route guide ↗

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

26.76 km · ~1743 m ascent · loop · ~8–11 h

⬇️ Download GPX

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 Yewbarrow North Top (Stirrup Crag)

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

Wasdale Head (NT car park) — 2.6 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 (opens in new tab)
Overbeck Bridge, Wastwater (NT, free) — 3.2 km from summit (straight line)
Small free NT car park at the foot of Yewbarrow on the lakeshore road.
Directions (opens in new tab)

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

💧 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 Yewbarrow North Top (Stirrup Crag) 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 (opens in new tab) or Traveline before relying on a last bus.

Maps & guidebooks for Yewbarrow North Top (Stirrup Crag)

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