Home / Routes / Brown Rigg & Blea Tarn

Hard steepnessLoopPlanned

Brown Rigg & Blea Tarn

13.49 km

Distance

~3.5–4.5 h

Typical time

~481 m

Ascent

Summits

Download GPX →Planned route · not yet walked

Key facts

Distance 13.49 km

Ascent ~481 m

Descent ~485 m

Time ~3.5–4.5 h

Difficulty Hard overall — hardest: Steepness

Type Loop

Start Blea Tarn (Great Langdale)

Four tops on the boggy watershed above Thirlmere — Brown Rigg, Shivery Knott, Middle Crag and High Tove — in 13.5 km with 481 m of climbing. Rated hard to navigate, which is the whole character of this ground. About 3.5 hours.

✎️ 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. How to use this guide.

Difficulty profile

LengthModerate13.49 km round.

SteepnessHardSteepest sustained pull about 31% around the 0.1 km mark.

TerrainModerateMostly good mountain path. desk assessment — not field-verified

NavigationHardCare needed in cloud — ~34% featureless high ground. desk assessment — not field-verified

ExposureNot assessedExposure (drops, scrambling, how bad a slip would be) can’t be judged from gradient data alone, so we don’t guess. A rating appears once the route is editorially assessed or walked.

Five independent axes, not one score. “Desk” ratings come from maps and guidebooks, not yet walked — treat them as a guide, not a survey.

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.

Why this matters: 78% of Mountain Rescue call-outs come after midday — the day runs out on the way home, not on the way up. See also walking in bad weather and today’s conditions.

OpenTopoMap

Elevation profile, shaded by steepness

1 Brown Rigg2 Shivery Knott3 Middle Crag4 High Tove

Easy 85%Moderate 10%Hard 5%Severe

~481 m

Total ascent

528 m

High point

196 m

Start height

Free mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap (switch layers top-right).

This walk covers about 13.49 km with around 481 m of ascent, taking in 4 summits. The map above shows the line; the elevation profile and stage notes are below.

Access & barriers

Can a dog, a buggy or dodgy knees manage this route? A quick read from the gates and stiles mapped along the way.

Dog

Mostly gates

Buggy

Not buggy-able

Knees

Steep in places

Dog: A stile of unmapped type — a dog may need lifting over.
Buggy: Stiles or rough going on the route.
Knees: A sustained ~28% descent around the 8.7 km mark — a little jarring on tired knees.

On the line: 7 gates · 1 kissing gate · 1 stile (type unmapped)

These are mapped barriers, from OpenStreetMap — coverage in the Lakes is good but not guaranteed complete. Spotted a stile or gate we’ve missed? Tell us (opens in new tab) and we’ll fix it. Barrier data as of 2026-07-26. Access data © OpenStreetMap contributors (via Overpass).

Pacing

Summit	Cumulative	Ascent	Time (fast–steady)
1Brown Rigg	2.6 km	249 m	0:56–1:14
2Shivery Knott	6.2 km	387 m	1:53–2:30
3Middle Crag	6.6 km	391 m	1:59–2:38
4High Tove	7.4 km	434 m	2:12–2:55
Finish	13.5 km	481 m	3:30–4:39

Naismith-based estimate — a fast/steady range. Your pace will vary. These use Naismith’s textbook constants (5 km/h, 600 m of ascent an hour). Measured against a pace fitted to 41 recorded Lakeland walks they run about 8% slow, and we have left them that way deliberately: a slow estimate strands nobody.

The walk, stage by stage

1
Start → Brown Rigg (2.6 km, 249 m)
Climb of about 249 m over 2.6 km (around 10% average).
From the valley floor, tackle the steep, wooded or bracken-clad lower slopes to gain the lip of the hanging valley. Pass the secluded, dark waters of Blea Tarn before leaving the established paths to strike across the pathless, spongy moorland, making a steady pull up to the minor, indistinct summit of Brown Rigg
Waypoints
Valley floor intake, Blea Tarn (vicinity), Brown Rigg summit
Decision point
Blea Tarn acts as a massive catching feature on the ascent. Once past the water, rely on a strict compass bearing, as the faint sheep trods simply vanish into the sphagnum moss and there are no defining crags to aim for
Easy to get wrong
The initial ascent is a steep pull that quickly transitions into the notoriously wet, energy-sapping terrain of the central plateau. Brown Rigg is barely a hill—it is a slight swelling in a vast ocean of peat and reeds. The ground is heavily waterlogged, requiring constant detours around hidden black bogs right from the outset
If you need to get off
Simply turn around and retrace your steps past Blea Tarn, picking up the engineered descent path back down to the safety of the valley floor
2
Brown Rigg → Shivery Knott (3.6 km, 138 m)
Climb of about 138 m over 3.6 km (around 4% average).
Embark on a grueling, 3.6 km trek across the bleak, featureless expanse of the central moorland: the line runs south-west and then west at first, before swinging north-west and finally north. The route traverses the sprawling, wet depression of Long Moss, linking minor heather hummocks before reaching the tiny, rocky outcrop of Shivery Knott
Waypoints
Brown Rigg, Long Moss, Watendlath Fell (vicinity), Shivery Knott
Decision point
The sheer lack of features makes this a navigational trap in low visibility. Keep the distant forested slopes of Thirlmere in your mind as an eastern boundary, and rely heavily on pacing and strict compass bearings, and expect to change bearing more than once - this leg is not a straight line
Easy to get wrong
This is one of the most soul-destroying, trackless sections of the Lake District. The 4% gradient is entirely hidden within a chaotic maze of waist-deep peat hags and hidden pools of black water. Establishing a walking rhythm is impossible; it is a relentless, fatiguing battle of micro-navigation to keep your boots dry
If you need to get off
If the bogs become impassable, your best escape is to force a line west towards the hamlet of Watendlath, dropping off the moorland to intersect the established bridleways, completely avoiding the dangerous, steep eastern forestry drops
3
Shivery Knott → Middle Crag (0.5 km, 4 m)
Undulating section of about 0.5 km.
From Shivery Knott, hop a very short distance north over heavily rutted, peaty ground, crossing a minor depression to reach the slightly more pronounced, blocky outcrop of Middle Crag
Waypoints
Shivery Knott, Middle Crag
Decision point
Middle Crag is visible from Shivery Knott in clear weather. Just aim for the nearest distinct patch of gray rock jutting out of the green and brown moor
Easy to get wrong
The incredibly short distance means you are constantly stopping and starting to tick off these minor Birketts. The rocky top of Middle Crag offers a brief, glorious respite from the saturated sponge of the surrounding moor, though the stones can be slick when wet
If you need to get off
As with the previous tops, there is no immediate, safe eastern bailout here due to complex, steep forestry drops; you must either push north to High Tove or retreat west towards the Watendlath valley
4
Middle Crag → High Tove (0.7 km, 42 m)
About 0.7 km with 42 m of ascent.
Leave Middle Crag and make a short, squelchy pull northwards. Cross the final, notoriously wet saddle of the central ridge before stepping up onto the broad, flat, and heavily eroded summit of High Tove
Waypoints
Middle Crag, High Tove summit (515m)
Decision point
High Tove is marked by an intersection of faint, muddy paths (the historic crossing between Watendlath and Thirlmere) and a modest pile of stones. It is the most distinct summit on this section of the plateau
Easy to get wrong
High Tove is infamous among fellwalkers as the king of the bogs. The summit area is a sprawling morass of liquid black peat and deep heather; you will be forced to skirt the edges of the worst ground to avoid sinking to your knees in the mire
If you need to get off
High Tove offers a perfect bailout crossroads. Turn left (west) to take the heavily eroded, obvious path directly down to Watendlath, or right (east) to pick your way down the steep, pathless flanks towards the Thirlmere forestry tracks
High Tove → Finish (6.1 km, 48 m)
About 6.1 km with 48 m of ascent.
Plunge off the central ridge, descending steeply down the fellside to intersect the established valley floor paths. From here, embark on a long, rolling, low-level walk-out, tracing the valley boundary walls and following the solid, stony farm tracks back to your starting point
Waypoints
High Tove descent, valley intake walls, valley floor track, finish point
Decision point
Aim for the distinct boundary walls at the base of the fell. Once you pass through the fell gate and hit the main valley track, navigation is entirely over; the track acts as an unmistakable, continuous handrail leading you perfectly out of the valley
Easy to get wrong
The initial descent off the boggy plateau is steep and can be remarkably slick on wet grass, punishing tired knees. The subsequent 6.1 km walk-out is a massive distance; while the gradient is flat, the hard, stony farm tracks will feel unforgiving on feet that have spent the entire day battling soft peat
If you need to get off
You are on the final escape route. Simply stick strictly to the main valley track, avoiding the temptation to cut corners through the private, walled pastures or commercial forestry flanking the route

Summits bagged (4)

1Brown Rigg462 mCentral · Birkett, Synge
2Shivery Knott491 mCentral · Birkett
3Middle Crag484 mCentral · Birkett, Synge
4High Tove515 mCentral · Wainwright, Birkett, Fellranger, Synge

In the order you walk them — the same numbers the elevation profile, the stage notes and the pacing table use.

Getting there & parking

Dob Gill, Thirlmere (United Utilities, paid) — 0.0 km from the start (straight line)

West shore of Thirlmere - Harrop Tarn and Ullscarf. Fees: pay and display; coins and cards (LDNP directory, checked Aug 2026). Open Closed until Easter 2026; pedestrian access allowed (LDNP directory, checked Aug 2026). Pay and display (visitlakedistrict.com) (United Utilities, checked Aug 2026).

Directions Something changed here?

If it is full: Steel End, Thirlmere (paid) (1.4 km, 36 m up); Wythburn Church, Thirlmere (paid) (2.5 km, 97 m up)

Wythburn Church, Thirlmere (paid) — 0.9 km from the start (straight line)

Direct forest path up Helvellyn's south ridge (Comb Crags). Fees: Pay and display, pay by coin only (visitlakedistrict.com) (United Utilities, checked Aug 2026). Lee has parked here and recalls the machine taking coins, which agrees with United Utilities' own listing rather than the National Park directory's “cards only” - carry coins (Lee McCoy, recollection, recorded 12 Aug 2026).

Directions Something changed here?

🚺 Dob Gill Car Park (~957 m straight line) — Free

Steel End, Thirlmere (paid) — 1.2 km from the start (straight line)

South end of Thirlmere for the Wythburn valley and Armboth fells. Fees: pay and display (Lake District National Park car-parks directory, checked Aug 2026). Pay and display (visitlakedistrict.com); named as a UU Thirlmere car park on unitedutilities.com, which states no fee details (United Utilities, checked Aug 2026).

Directions Something changed here?

🚺 Dob Gill Car Park (~1169 m straight line) — Free

Fisher Crag (layby, south) — 1.9 km from the start (straight line)

0.7 km from Fisher Crag.

Directions Something changed here?

Fisher Crag (layby, north) — 2.0 km from the start (straight line)

0.6 km from Fisher Crag.

Directions Something changed here?

Positions are approximate. Lakeland car parks fill before 9am on fine weekends.

Vehicles are left entirely at their owner’s risk. We list places people park; we cannot vouch for any of them. Judge it on the day: take valuables with you, leave nothing on show, and if a spot feels wrong when you get there, park somewhere else.

Every option near this start, on the parking map →

Water, shelter & getting away

🚺 map (52 m)

On-route facilities © OpenStreetMap contributors — an absent marker does not mean the facility isn’t there.

Buses

The 555 stops at Thirlmere, at Armboth turn. From there it is 1.8 km and 54 m of ascent to this start — a walk in before the walk. Last bus: Monday to Friday 20:55 towards Keswick (555); Saturday 20:55 towards Keswick (555); Sunday 18:46 towards Keswick (555). Checked against the operator’s timetable, 7 September 2026. Times here are a guide, not a promise — leave yourself more than the minute.

The 555 passes this route at 10.0 km (Thirlmere, opposite car park, 940 m off the line) and again at 13.4 km (Thirlmere, opposite Wythburn Church, 910 m off the line) — one bus, two stops, 3.5 km apart on the ground. We haven’t walked a shortened version, so the distance, grading and escape routes on this page describe the walk end to end.

Stagecoach 555

Kendal – Staveley – Windermere – Ambleside – Rydal – Grasmere – Thirlmere (Wythburn & Swirls) – Keswick

Catch it from: Windermere · Ambleside

Year-round, roughly hourly. The backbone bus of the A591 — ideal for Helvellyn (Wythburn/Swirls), Fairfield, the Central fells and anything around Grasmere/Rydal. From Penrith, take the X4/X5 to Keswick and change.

Rural routes change seasonally — confirm on stagecoachbus.com (opens in new tab) or Traveline before travelling.

If the parking is full

There is no real plan B here. Every place we know beside this route serves the same walks and sits close together, so if one is full the others usually are too. Worth starting early, or having a different walk in mind before you set off.

Armboth, Thirlmere (United Utilities, paid)
Dob Gill, Thirlmere (United Utilities, paid)
Fisher Crag (layby, south)

Worked out from the parking we hold within walking reach of this route and the other walks each place serves — two places that serve the same walks fill for the same reasons. We are not saying whether anywhere has spaces today, and we never will: this is what exists, not what is free.

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. 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.

High Tove — in late March the sun reaches it around 06:45, about half an hour later. In late September, about 07:30. It waits longest in late March — about half an hour after sunrise. In late December, not until about 08:45.

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.

Safety & conditions

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.

Make it easier or harder

Short version: turn back at about 6.6 km (drop to Start) — roughly half the distance.

Download

Download GPX

GPX track for your GPS or phone.

Places to stay near this start

Dale Head Hall Lakeside Hotel (opens in new tab) hotel

about 3.5 km from the start, in a straight line

It is the only property in this cluster whose own site answers a family question. The rooms page names sixteen rooms, numbered Room 2 to Room 17, and states the floor for each: rooms 10, 11, 12 and 13 are ground floor, and of those, Room 10 ("This room can accommodate two extra single beds for a family") and Room 11 ("This room can accommodate one extra bed for families and can be made as a twin") take extra beds - so a party with children and someone who cannot face stairs can be housed in one room without phoning first. Room 11 and Room 12 also state "Private patio space"; Room 10 does not. Against that, the site is silent on everything a wet walker asks - see unknowns - so this is a good family bed and an unproven walking one.

The hotel's grounds are inside a designated red squirrel reserve, and rather than lean on its postcode it publishes its front door as a what3words address, CRACKS.DIAMOND.RESPECTED.

Family rooms “A warm, traditionally designed family room, with one double and two single beds.”
Evening meal “Why not enjoy a trip out to nearby Keswick for the day before coming back and enjoying a delicious bar meal.”
Children “This room can accommodate two extra single beds for a family.”

What each place says about itself, quoted from their own site. We have not stayed at any of them, and there are no prices, no booking and no affiliate links. Distances are straight lines from the route start, never walking times. Properties found via OpenStreetMap (opens in new tab).