Brown Crag and Raise

The walk, stage by stage

1. 1

   Start → Brown Crag (2.8 km, 431 m)

   Climb of about 431 m over 2.8 km (around 15% average).

   From the Thirlmere valley floor, cross the intake walls and begin the relentlessly steep, grassy pull up the western flanks of the Helvellyn range. The path is a calf-burning zig-zag that forces its way through thick summer bracken and heather before cresting onto the minor, rocky protrusion of Brown Crag.

   Waypoints

   Thirlmere valley (start), Fisher Place Gill (vicinity), Brown Crag summit (610 m).

   Decision point

   Use the distinct ravines of the plunging valley gills to your left and right to keep you corralled onto the correct ascending spur. The bulk of the Helvellyn range skyline looms directly above you to the east as a massive, unavoidable aiming point.

   Easy to get wrong

   A 15% average gradient means there is zero warm-up on this route. The lower slopes are frequently choked with chest-high bracken in the summer months, which obscures the faint footpaths, traps heat, and harbors sheep ticks. The terrain underfoot is largely trackless, tussocky grass that requires significant exertion.

   If you need to get off

   Turn 180 degrees and carefully retrace your steps straight back down the grassy slope.

2. 2

   Brown Crag → White Side (2.7 km, 284 m)

   Climb of about 284 m over 2.7 km (around 11% average).

   Leave the minor bump of Brown Crag and continue the eastward grind up the increasingly stony shoulder. The thick vegetation thins out into short, wind-blasted turf and loose rock as you finally gain the crest of the main Helvellyn ridge, turning slightly to reach the airy summit of White Side.

   Waypoints

   Brown Crag, White Side western shoulder, White Side summit (863m).

   Decision point

   The ascending ridge naturally broadens as it meets the main Helvellyn spine. The heavily worn, clear highway of the main ridge path acts as a massive catching feature; once you hit it, White Side's summit is just a short pull away.

   Easy to get wrong

   As you break out of the valley's shelter and gain elevation, exposure to the prevailing westerly winds increases dramatically. The final pull onto White Side features heavily eroded, stony ground that can be slick after rain and is fully exposed to the harsh weather funneling over the central fells. White Side's eastern face is crag and scree dropping abruptly into Keppel and Brown Coves, just north of the summit.

   If you need to get off

   Retreating west down your exact ascent spur is the better option. Avoid dropping north or south off the spur into the steep, trackless, and dangerous ravine systems of Fisher Place Gill or Stanah Gill.

3. 3

   White Side → Raise (0.9 km, 46 m)

   Undulating section of about 0.9 km.

   Head north from White Side along the broad, high-level plateau of the Helvellyn ridge. The route dips into a shallow, stony saddle before making a short, easy pull over shattered volcanic rock to reach the prominent summit cairn of Raise.

   Waypoints

   White Side, connecting saddle, Raise summit (883m).

   Decision point

   The main ridge path is deeply scarred into the landscape and heavily cairned. Keep the steep, plunging drops into the Glenridding valley clearly to your right (east) as you traverse the saddle.

   Easy to get wrong

   The terrain is a jumble of loose stones and scree which can be jarring on the ankles. This high plateau is notorious for its severe winter conditions; it holds snow longer than almost anywhere else in the district (hence the nearby Lake District Ski Club tow), and in thick hill fog, the broadness of the ridge makes it highly disorienting.

   If you need to get off

   Sticks Pass, just north of Raise, is where this route turns down for Thirlmere. The path east from the pass goes down into the Ullswater side, a different valley from your start, so it needs its own plan for getting back. Neither has been checked for this guide as an escape; judge going on or going back from where you are, in the conditions you have.

4. Raise → Finish (4.3 km, 18 m)

   Descent of about 715 m over 4.3 km.

   Drop north off Raise to intersect the major ancient crossroads of Sticks Pass. Turn west, plunging off the high ridge down a relentlessly steep, heavily engineered zig-zag path that flanks Sticks Gill, dropping all the way back to the valley floor and the Thirlmere starting point.

   Waypoints

   Raise northern descent, Sticks Pass, Sticks Gill descent path, Thirlmere valley (finish).

   Decision point

   The Sticks Pass crossroads is marked by a large cairn and multiple converging paths. Once you turn west, the deep ravine of Sticks Gill on your left acts as a continuous handrail all the way down to the valley floor.

   Easy to get wrong

   A 713m drop over just 4.3 km is a brutal, knee-destroying descent. The pitched stone path down from Sticks Pass is heavily eroded and becomes highly polished and greasy in wet weather, acting like a rocky slip-and-slide. Walking poles are virtually mandatory here to absorb the immense impact on your joints at the end of the day.

   If you need to get off

   You are on one of the most established escape routes from the Helvellyn range. Stick strictly to the engineered zig-zag path, entirely avoiding the temptation to cut corners down the perilously steep grass banks or drop into the dangerous stream gully itself.