Ambleside, Todd Crag, Rydal Cave
Start Ambleside
Getting here Parking: Ambleside, Rydal Road (paid), 0.2 km from the start (straight line). Bus: the 555 and 599 stop at Ambleside, at Vicarage Road, a 70 m walk from this start. Getting there ↓ · Route map ↓
Hardest part Hard steepness: Steepest sustained descent about 28% around the 5.0 km mark.
Before you choose
Conditions on this route
We score every Lakeland Wainwright each morning on cloud, wind, rain and underfoot, and this route crosses 1 of them. The worst summit governs the verdict — a route is only as kind as its roughest top.
Modelled guidance — not a substitute for the mountain forecast or your own judgement. See how every fell ranks today →
Daylight & turnaround
Daylight is short from October to February — check today’s sunrise and sunset before you set off, and carry a head-torch and spare batteries. On short days, decide your turn-back time before you start.
See also walking in bad weather and today’s conditions.
Route map
1 Loughrigg Fell
Easy 83%Moderate 13%Hard 4%Severe
Heights on this chart and its high point are read from the track itself (a terrain model sampled along the line, or a GPS recording), so a top can differ from its listed height, usually reading lower.
Free mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap, with SRTM elevation data (switch layers top-right).
The elevation profile is under the map; the stage notes follow.
The walk, stage by stage
- 1
Start → Loughrigg Fell (4.4 km, 308 m)
Starting from Ambleside (typically Rothay Park), cross the footbridge over the River Rothay and begin the immediate, steep climb up the southern flanks toward Todd Crag. Once the initial height is gained, navigate the sprawling, lumpy plateau of the fell, weaving north-west past small tarns and rocky hummocks to reach the true summit of Loughrigg Fell.
WaypointsAmbleside (Rothay Park), Todd Crag, Lily Tarn, Loughrigg Fell summit (335 m).
Decision pointOn the initial climb, the sprawling view of Lake Windermere behind you is a fantastic orientation tool. On the plateau, maintaining a general north-west bearing is essential. The OS trig pillar at the true summit is the ultimate visual target, though it frequently disappears behind the endless false summits until you are right on top of it.
Easy to get wrongThe gentle 7% average gradient hides a steep, heavily stepped, breath-sapping initial climb out of Ambleside. The primary challenge on Loughrigg is the terrain of the plateau itself: it is a highly confusing maze of crags, hidden bogs, and crisscrossing sheep trots. In high summer, towering bracken can obscure the paths entirely, making it easy to trip on unseen rocks or roots.
If you need to get offIf you are disoriented on the plateau, stop before you commit to ground you do not know. Work out where you are with the map and compass, then go back by a line you know: the way you came, over Todd Crag and down the main path into Ambleside. If you cannot move safely, call 999 or 112 and ask for the Police, then Mountain Rescue.
Loughrigg Fell → Finish (6.0 km, 86 m)
Plunge north off the summit of Loughrigg Fell, descending the steep, pitched stone steps toward Grasmere. Near the bottom, turn right (east) to pick up the famous, wide path of Loughrigg Terrace. Follow the terrace high above Rydal Water, explore the massive slate cavern of Rydal Cave, and then continue along the shoreline tracks and the quiet 'Under Loughrigg' lane back into Ambleside.
WaypointsLoughrigg Fell summit, Loughrigg Terrace, Rydal Cave, Rydal Water shoreline, Pelter Bridge, Ambleside Finish.
Decision pointThe descent perfectly frames the lakes of Grasmere and Rydal Water directly below you. Once you connect with Loughrigg Terrace, this wide, heavily engineered highway acts as a handrail all the way past the cave and onto the valley road.
Easy to get wrongThe initial drop off the summit features steep, polished stone steps that can be highly treacherous when wet or icy, punishing tired knees. Going into Rydal Cave means hopping across stepping stones in standing water, which are often incredibly slick. It is optional; if the stones are under water, stay at the entrance. The 86 m of ascent is scattered across minor, barely noticeable undulations on the long, hard-packed walk back to the village.
If you need to get offYou are on the final, incredibly well-trodden exit route. Once on Loughrigg Terrace, simply continue following the main track east; avoid attempting to shortcut directly down the steep, wooded banks to the water's edge, as the terrain is surprisingly rough and fenced off in places.
GPX track for your GPS or phone. Walked in part · km 0.0–0.4, km 1.2–2.8 from the map
Summits bagged (1)
- 1Loughrigg Fell335 m
Conditions and timing
Check live conditions in the “From the fells” panel, on MWIS (opens in new tab) and the Met Office mountain forecast (opens in new tab) before you set off.
When the sun reaches the tops
Not sunrise — the moment the sun clears the skyline from that summit, which on a fell with high ground to its east can be a good deal later.
- Loughrigg Fell — in late March the sun reaches it around 06:30, with the sunrise. In late September, about 07:15. It waits longest in midsummer — about half an hour after sunrise.
How to read these times
The two equinoxes are shown because they fall in the walking season, and late December too wherever a top keeps you waiting then; the clock gap between the equinoxes is British Summer Time, not the hill. Rounded to the nearest quarter hour and meant as a general idea, not a schedule.
Modelled from a 30 m elevation model against each summit’s own skyline — the same figures the fell pages carry, never observed. Cloud is not in it.
Getting there and back
Parking
2 more places to park near the start
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.
If the parking is full
If the first one is full, these overlap least in our model. The 3 below sit in different places or are different kinds of parking, so a busy morning at one does not mean a busy morning at all of them.
- Ambleside, Miller Bridge (paid) — joins the loop at about km 0.4 of 10.4: a 260 m walk to the line, and you walk the round from there
- White Moss, Lower (paid) — joins the loop at about km 5.8 of 10.4: a 750 m walk to the line, climbing about 40 m, and you walk the round from there
- Ambleside Cricket Club car park — joins the loop at about km 8.2 of 10.4: a 520 m walk to the line, and you walk the round from there
We never say whether anywhere has spaces today. Walks to the line are measured along mapped paths (OpenStreetMap), not in a straight line. How we choose these places.
No signal when you get there? RoutePark keeps this list on your phone: choose this walk’s GPX at home, keep it, and it opens offline.
Buses
The 555 and 599 stop at Ambleside, at Vicarage Road, a 70 m walk from this start. This walk starts and ends in Ambleside, so there is no bus to catch back to the start.
The 555 passes this route at 0.1 km (Ambleside, at Vicarage Road, 10 m off the line). It passes again at 7.8 km and 9.4 km.
Rural routes change seasonally — confirm on stagecoachbus.com (opens in new tab) or Traveline before travelling.
Toilets and refreshments
The essentials
- Arrival Rydal Road car park, about 200 m from the start: pay and display, from £2.60 for an hour to £10.60 all day. 198 m in a straight line, not a walking distance. (Westmorland and Furness Council, Rydal Road car park, checked 11 August 2026)
- Toilets Toilets are mapped about 40 m from the start. 40 m in a straight line, not a walking distance. (OpenStreetMap, as mapped on 13 September 2026, checked 13 September 2026)
- Refreshments The walk starts in Ambleside: Esquires Coffee (about 20 m) and Costa (about 30 m) are the nearest mapped, with more in the town centre. Opening hours are not recorded here. 22 m in a straight line, not a walking distance. (OpenStreetMap, as mapped on 13 September 2026, checked 13 September 2026)
Everything mapped near the start
Mapped as nearby on OpenStreetMap, as of 13 September 2026, within 250 m of where this route starts (information boards within 150 m; benches and shelter within 50 m):
Also mapped within reach: 3 benches, 2 information boards.
Distances are straight lines from where this route starts, not walking routes. Opening hours are as mapped and change; none of this is checked daily.
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (opens in new tab), ODbL.
Water, shelter & getting away
On-route facilities © OpenStreetMap contributors — an absent marker does not mean the facility isn’t there.
Getting there across the Lake District: Buses · Parking map · By train · By boat
Planning detail
How each grade on this page is set, and the timings stage by stage.
Difficulty profile
Hard overall — hardest: Steepness
Five independent axes, not one score. None of them was set on the ground: three of the five are our judgement from the map and the route’s record, and the rest are computed from the recorded track and the map, which measures the line rather than surveying the ground.
How we grade: each axis is Easy, Moderate, Hard or Severe, and a route between two bands takes the higher one. Length: under 8 km, 8–14 km, 14–20 km, over 20 km. Steepness, the steepest 500 m of the track: under 15%, 15–25%, 25–35%, over 35%. Terrain, navigation and exposure are judged rather than measured, and each note says why. How we grade.
Pacing
| Summit | Cumulative | Ascent | Time (fast–steady) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Loughrigg Fell | 4.4 km | 308 m | 1:23–1:51 |
| Finish | 10.4 km | 394 m | 2:44–3:38 |
A fast–steady range from Naismith’s rule, deliberately on the slow side. Breaks, weather, rough ground and the slowest person in your party all add to it. How we time walks.
Access & barriers
Can a dog, a buggy or dodgy knees manage this route?
- Buggy: Stiles or rough going on the route.
- Knees: A long, steep ~32% drop over 250 m around the 4.8 km mark — hard on the knees.
With a dog
Hardest for a dog here: stiles and gates. The steepest stretch is a sustained descent of about 28% around the 5.0 km mark.
- Stiles and gates: A step-over stile at 1.0 km — a dog may need lifting over. (OpenStreetMap, mapped as of 19 July 2026)
- Rock and scrambling: Ground underfoot: Easy – our judgement from the map and the route’s record; that stretch not walked.
- Drops and exposed ground: Easy – our judgement from the map and the route’s record; that stretch not walked.
- Ways off early: No path off the line is recorded, but it passes a bus stop where you could end the walk: the 555 at Church for Rydal Mount (near), about 7.8 km. The buses section says which bus and when.
- Livestock, shade and water: Not recorded for this route yet. We never call a stream safe for a dog to drink, so carry enough for both of you. The lead rules, and what to do around cattle, are on dogs on the fells.
On the line: 8 gates · 3 kissing gates · 1 step-over stile
Barriers as mapped on OpenStreetMap, which can miss some. Spotted one? Tell us (opens in new tab). Barrier data as of 19 July 2026. Access data © OpenStreetMap contributors (via Overpass).
Places to stay near this start
From Ambleside or Grasmere: 11 places
Walks from places nearby
- Walks from Ambleside — 0.0 km from this start
- Walks from Stock Ghyll Force — 0.8 km from this start
Straight-line distance from this walk’s start. Those lists hold the routes we have mapped and every Wainwright and Outlying fell within about 5 km of the town, ranked nearest first.
