Around Sele Bottom
Start Corney Fell road summit (verge)
Getting here Parking: Corney Fell road summit (verge), 0.0 km from the start (straight line). Getting there ↓ · Route map ↓
Hardest part Hard distance: 14.26 km — a long day out. Hard terrain: Trackless moorland with deep peat groughs and hidden bogs around Sele Bottom; constant route-picking. Hard – our judgement from the map and the route’s record; not walked yet Hard navigation: Care needed in cloud — ~21% featureless high ground, 17 path junctions near the line. Hard – estimated from the map, not checked on the ground Hands for a few steps: Buck Barrow's summit tor (about km 1.6).
Before you choose
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 Buck Barrow2 Whitfell3 Burn Moor
Easy 94%Moderate 6%HardSevere
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 → Buck Barrow (1.6 km, 146 m)
From the high pass of the Corney Fell road, strike directly out onto the undulating moorland heading north, on a path OSM maps. The ground rises gently but persistently through deep heather and tussock grass, eventually steepening as you make the short, rugged pull up to the rocky summit outcrop of Buck Barrow.
WaypointsCorney Fell road (start), southern moorland approach, Buck Barrow summit (549m).
Decision pointThe rocky crown of Buck Barrow stands out distinctly against the skyline from the road, acting as a clear visual aiming point for the entire approach. If visibility is poor, maintain a strict northerly bearing and use the rising gradient to funnel you toward the highest ground.
Easy to get wrongThere are very few distinct paths in this remote sector of the south-western fells. The terrain is a punishing mix of knee-deep heather, hidden rocks, and saturated sphagnum moss that saps energy immediately. The rocky tor of the summit can be surprisingly slick after rain, requiring a brief hands-on move to reach the top.
If you need to get offSimply turn 180 degrees and head south, using the gentle descent to lead you directly back to the distinctive ribbon of tarmac on the Corney Fell road.
- 2
Buck Barrow → Whitfell (7.7 km, 401 m)
Leave Buck Barrow heading east and embark on a long loop around the eastern side of the Sele Bottom basin, which stays 1-2 km away on your left. The first 1.7 km drops about 260 m over open ground with no mapped path, crossing a wall and fence, to a track at Bowscale. Follow the track north-east, over Logan Beck by a bridge, then farm tracks and lanes north past Folds Farm, where the route bottoms out at about 190 m, and Long Garth, through a string of gates, crossing Tongue Beck to reach Bigert Mire. From Bigert Mire, take the public bridleway west-north-west up the open fellside, then a path south-west and south for the last 0.5 km to the massive summit cairn of Whitfell.
WaypointsBuck Barrow descent, Bowscale (track), Logan Beck bridge, Folds Farm, Long Garth, Tongue Beck and Bigert Mire, the bridleway climb, Whitfell summit (573m).
Decision pointIn clear conditions, Whitfell's enormous summit cairn—one of the largest and most distinct in the district—is visible from miles away and acts as a beacon. Two turns matter: at Bowscale, about 1.75 km from Buck Barrow, pick up the track north-east; at Bigert Mire, about 5.1 km on, leave the lane for the bridleway west-north-west.
Easy to get wrongThis is a long, arduous stage, but only its first 1.7 km, the descent east from Buck Barrow, is off mapped paths. The rest is farm tracks, lanes and a bridleway, and the price of the low line is the climb back: about 390 m from the lanes at about 190 m to Whitfell's 573 m, most of it on the bridleway in the last 2.5 km. The sheer distance is taxing on the legs.
If you need to get offDo not drop into the trackless morass of Sele Bottom. No way off the horseshoe has been checked for this guide; if you need to cut the day short, retrace the route.
- 3
Whitfell → Burn Moor (0.9 km, 22 m)
Depart the huge summit cairn of Whitfell and head south-west, dropping slightly across a broad, stony plateau before traversing the spongy, undulating saddle that links the main peak to the highly subtle, grassy rise of Burn Moor.
WaypointsWhitfell summit plateau, linking saddle, Burn Moor summit (543m).
Decision pointThe massive cairn on Whitfell is your best rear-facing reference point. To locate the top of Burn Moor in poor visibility, strict compass work and pacing are required, as there are no crags, boundary walls, or distinct tracks to guide you across the saddle.
Easy to get wrongThe terrain transitions rapidly from the rocky crown of Whitfell back into notoriously lumpy, wet moorland. Burn Moor is barely a summit at all; it is an incredibly indistinct grassy swell amidst a sea of identical hillocks, making it a severe navigational trap when the cloud base drops.
If you need to get offIn foul weather, the better option is to reverse your bearing directly back to the distinctive summit of Whitfell. Dropping off Burn Moor into the surrounding trackless valleys will commit you to incredibly rough, disorienting terrain miles from your transport.
Burn Moor → Finish (4.0 km, 93 m)
Leave the featureless bump of Burn Moor and close the circuit by heading south on a path down the western side of Sele Bottom, dropping to about 480 m before a gentle climb back to about 520 m. The route then heads west-south-west on a path toward Kinmont Buck Barrow, turns back about 100 m short of its top, and returns east-north-east between Buck Barrow and Great Paddy Crag, about 100 m from each, to rejoin your outward path and follow it south back down to the Corney Fell road.
WaypointsBurn Moor descent, western side of Sele Bottom, the turn short of Kinmont Buck Barrow, Buck Barrow and Great Paddy Crag (passed between), Corney Fell road (finish).
Decision pointThe Corney Fell road lies to the south, at the end of the stage. The last 1.4 km is the path you came up on Stage 1.
Easy to get wrongThe 4 km hike out still holds about 95 m of rolling ascent, most of it the pull back up from about 480 m and the out-and-back toward Kinmont Buck Barrow, and it feels disproportionately difficult at the end of a long day.
If you need to get offYou are on the final leg of the route.
GPX track for your GPS or phone. Planned route · not yet walked
Make it easier or harder
Short version: turn back at about 5.1 km and retrace your outward leg: about 10.2 km in all, against 14.3 km for the whole walk, with about 340 m of climbing on the way back over ground you came down. It is the same ground back, not a separate descent.
Summits bagged (3)
- 1Buck Barrow549 m
- 2Whitfell573 m
- 3Burn Moor543 m
In the order you walk them — the same numbers the elevation profile, the stage notes and the pacing table use.
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.
Getting there and back
Parking
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
No bus we hold serves this start. The nearest stop we hold is the 505 at Coniston, outside John Ruskin School, 20.4 km away on foot: a walk of its own, not a way to the start.
Toilets and refreshments
The essentials
- Arrival Verge parking at the summit of the Corney Fell road, beside the start. No fee or capacity is recorded for it here. 9 m in a straight line, not a walking distance. (our parking map, checked 2 August 2026)
- Toilets No toilets are mapped within 250 m of the start. (OpenStreetMap, as mapped on 13 September 2026, checked 13 September 2026)
- Refreshments No café or pub is mapped within 250 m of the start: bring what you need. (OpenStreetMap, as mapped on 13 September 2026, checked 13 September 2026)
- Limitation Open, trackless ground, rated hard for both terrain and navigation: 14.3 km and 662 m, about 3¾ to 5½ hours. (our route notes (this route's own summary), checked 2 October 2026)
No mapped drinking water or shelter on this route — that doesn’t mean there is none, and never drink untreated from a beck. (Facilities data © OpenStreetMap contributors.)
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: Length, terrain (our judgement from the map and the route’s record; not walked yet) and navigation (estimated from the map, not checked on the ground); exposure not assessed on the ground
Five independent axes, not one score. This route has not been walked yet, so none of them was set on the ground: one of the five is 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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Buck Barrow | 1.6 km | 146 m | 0:34–0:45 |
| 2Whitfell | 9.4 km | 547 m | 2:47–3:42 |
| 3Burn Moor | 10.3 km | 569 m | 3:00–4:00 |
| Finish | 14.3 km | 662 m | 3:57–5:16 |
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: No mapped stiles, but the ground is not a buggy line: terrain Hard – our judgement from the map and the route’s record; not walked yet.
- Knees: A sustained ~19% descent over 250 m around the 2.9 km mark — a little jarring on tired knees.
With a dog
Hardest for a dog here: drops and exposed ground (estimated from the map). The steepest stretch is a sustained descent of about 19% around the 3.1 km mark.
- Drops and exposed ground: Not assessed on the ground; the map suggests Hard. 3 mapped crag feature(s) near the line — check the airy sections.
- Rock and scrambling: Hands for a few steps: Buck Barrow's summit tor (about km 1.6). Ground underfoot: Hard – our judgement from the map and the route’s record; not walked yet. Trackless moorland with deep peat groughs and hidden bogs around Sele Bottom; constant route-picking.
- Stiles and gates: Only gates and kissing gates are mapped: no stile a dog can’t get through. That is the barriers alone; check the route’s steep or rocky ground before you bring a dog. (OpenStreetMap, mapped as of 8 August 2026)
- Ways off early: None recorded for this route.
- 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: 7 gates
Barriers as mapped on OpenStreetMap, which can miss some. Spotted one? Tell us (opens in new tab). Barrier data as of 8 August 2026. Access data © OpenStreetMap contributors (via Overpass).