Home / Routes / Fairfield Horseshoe

Written and walked by Lee McCoy · Walked April 2023 · Last reviewed 18 June 2026 · Route guide updated 13 October 2026: ascent and time changed · over two years ago: paths, bridges and parking change, so check before you go · 171 of 214 Wainwrights with a Strava-matched summit

Fairfield, the high point of the horseshoe round above Rydal and Ambleside

Hard distanceLoop

Fairfield Horseshoe

16.92 km

Distance

~5–6¾ h

Typical time

~1009 m

Ascent

Summits

Photo: Photo: Rwendland, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (opens in new tab)

One of the classic Lakeland rounds and a fine first big horseshoe. From the car park at Rydal it's a steady climb, hard rather than moderate on the pull out of Rydal (about 30% at its steepest), with only a minor amount of scrambling — my kids, then 7 and 10, managed it, though they found it a long day.

Start Rydal (or Ambleside)

Getting here Parking: Pelter Bridge, Rydal (paid), 0.0 km from the start (straight line). Bus: the 555 and 599 stop at Rydal, at White Moss Common; from there it is 2.3 km and 121 m of ascent to this start. And the same back: about 21.5 km in all, with the walk. Getting there ↓ · Route map ↓

Hardest part Hard distance: 16.92 km — a long day out. Hard steepness: Steepest sustained climb about 30% around the 1.3 km mark. Hard navigation: Care needed in cloud — ~17% featureless high ground. Hard – estimated from the map, not checked on the ground Hard exposure: Fairfield's summit is flat but has steep drops to the north; the ridges are exposed, with some boggy stretches. Hard – graded by Lee on the ground Hands for a few steps: High Pike and Low Pike, and a short down-climb by Sweden Crag above Low Sweden Bridge (km 9.4–12.2 and km 13.1–13.5).

Direction Clockwise

Before you choose

Fairfield's broad summit plateau is confusing in cloud — carry a map and compass and take a bearing before descending.
A little easy scrambling in places, but nothing obligatory.

Hazard & incident notes: Fairfield

A route line is a suggestion, not a guarantee — conditions change. Navigate independently and carry a map & compass. How to use this guide.

Download GPX →Walked by Lee, April 2023

Conditions on this route

We score every Lakeland Wainwright each morning on cloud, wind, rain and underfoot, and this route crosses 8 of them. The worst summit governs the verdict — a route is only as kind as its roughest top.

Hardest partHands for a few steps

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.

Route map

OpenTopoMap

Elevation profile, shaded by steepness

1 Nab Scar2 Heron Pike (Rydal)3 Heron Pike North Top (Rydal Fell)4 Great Rigg5 Fairfield6 Hart Crag7 Dove Crag8 High Pike (Scandale)9 Low Pike

escape route

Easy 72%Moderate 24%Hard 4%Severe

875 m

High point

64 m

Start height

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
Rydal (or Ambleside) → Nab Scar (2.4 km, 410 m)
Climb of about 410 m over 2.4 km (around 17% average).
Decision point
From Pelter Bridge car park turn left past the Cote How venue, then take the next right through the gate and on through the next. At the fork bear right to the bridge over the Rothay, cross the road and turn left into Dora's Field and through the church grounds. At the small road (parking bollards) turn left up the incline, then take the track left by Hart Head Cottage and follow the signs up. Keep the wall close on the steep pitched ascent - it shelters you from any westerly.
Easy to get wrong
A sustained, steep pull with no real let-up. At Nab Scar's summit the crags drop steeply above Rydal Water - stay well back from the edge.
© Lee McCoy
2
Nab Scar → Heron Pike (Rydal) (1.1 km, 160 m)
Climb of about 160 m over 1.1 km (around 15% average).
Decision point
Follow the clear, cairned ridge north and keep heading up - you can't really go wrong as the ridge narrows pleasantly to Heron Pike, where the full horseshoe opens up.
Easy to get wrong
The odd boggy patch underfoot, and the wind tends to pick up along here - be ready to add a layer.
3
Heron Pike (Rydal) → Heron Pike North Top (Rydal Fell) (0.4 km, 14 m)
Undulating section of about 0.4 km.
Decision point
Continue north along the broad grassy crest; the path is unmistakable over the minor top of Rydal Fell.
Easy to get wrong
A precipitous drop on the right at Erne Crag - keep to the main path.
If you need to get off
At Heron Pike, at about 3.5 km, you can drop west: paths lead down to Grasmere, the simplest early way off if you have had enough. On Rydal Fell beyond it, go back to Heron Pike for that way down, or on towards Great Rigg for the Stone Arthur way down at about 5.5 km.
4
Heron Pike North Top (Rydal Fell) → Great Rigg (1.8 km, 173 m)
Climb of about 173 m over 1.8 km (around 10% average).
Decision point
Beyond Rydal Fell the path bends gently left and eases into a long, steady, manageable climb to Great Rigg.
If you need to get off
At about 5.5 km, some 200 m before Great Rigg, a sharp left doubles back to the rocky top of Stone Arthur and down to Grasmere; the descent is steep and bracken-covered. Nearer Rydal Fell, the way off is back to Heron Pike and west down to Grasmere.
© Lee McCoy · 2 photographs
5
Great Rigg → Fairfield (1.4 km, 141 m)
Climb of about 141 m over 1.4 km (around 10% average).
Decision point
A slight drop, then the final push to the day's high point. The ground roughens noticeably - exposed rock and loose stone - onto Fairfield's broad stony summit plateau with its cairns and wind shelters.
Easy to get wrong
Fairfield's summit plateau is featureless and flat, with steep ground on three sides; in mist it is very easy to walk off on the wrong bearing.
If you need to get off
At about 6.8 km, between Great Rigg and Fairfield, you can break off west towards Seat Sandal and Grisedale Hause: keep to the col and avoid the steeper ground to the north. Just past Great Rigg, the Stone Arthur way down at about 5.5 km is the nearer.
6
Fairfield → Hart Crag (1.2 km, 23 m)
Descent of about 59 m over 1.2 km.
Decision point
Leaving Fairfield you must turn EAST and pick out the cairned path; it drops quickly and stonily to a narrow hause at the head of Rydale, then climbs to Hart Crag (the rocky summit is a few steps south of the GPX line).
Easy to get wrong
The most critical navigation point on the route. Fairfield's plateau is broad and featureless and in mist is genuinely confusing, with steep craggy drops on most sides - carry a compass and a GPS with the route loaded, and use them. The rock can be greasy when wet.
7
Hart Crag → Dove Crag (1.1 km, 40 m)
Undulating section of about 1.1 km.
Decision point
Descend the awkward ridge to a grassy depression and meet a wall - keep it on your right from here; it is your guide for the rest of the walk. Follow it up to Dove Crag, where the route turns south for home along the wall.
Easy to get wrong
The most awkward section of the descent - rock that's easy to slip on wet or dry, and easy to turn an ankle. Take your time.
8
Dove Crag → High Pike (Scandale) (1.7 km, 9 m)
Descent of about 137 m over 1.7 km.
Decision point
Continue south along the wall; the terrain eases to a simple path down a shallower grassy gradient. Keep close to the wall.
Easy to get wrong
Light rocky scrambles at High Pike - good fun in the dry; in bad weather take the path around them on the east side.
© Lee McCoy
9
High Pike (Scandale) → Low Pike (1.1 km, 14 m)
Descent of about 160 m over 1.1 km.
Decision point
Stay beside the wall over Low Pike - more light scrambling, with an easier path round the east side in poor conditions.
Low Pike → Finish (4.8 km, 26 m)
Descent of about 430 m over 4.8 km.
Decision point
Drop down the direct line to Low Sweden Bridge - rougher underfoot, with a short downclimb (the gentler alternative is the footpath left to High Sweden Coppice, which avoids the scrambly outcrops). Follow the farm track down as it becomes a lane; don't cross Scandale Beck onto Nook Lane - instead bear north to Rydal Hall's walled gardens and cafe, or carry on to the A591 and walk north under half a mile, turning left over the River Rothay back to the car park.
Easy to get wrong
Deep bog just above Low Brock Crags, marked with a 'Warning Deep Bog' sign - pick your line carefully and test each step with a pole. You can cross to the west side on a ladder stile, or make a wide sweep to the east. The Low Sweden Bridge line includes a short downclimb and is rougher than the High Sweden Coppice path.

Download GPX

GPX track for your GPS or phone. Walked by Lee, April 2023

Escape routes

At about 3.5 km: descend to Grasmere — Drop west off Heron Pike - the simplest early escape if you've had enough; paths lead down to Grasmere.
At about 5.5 km: descend to Stone Arthur, then Grasmere — A sharp left about 200 m before Great Rigg backtracks to the rocky top of Stone Arthur (a drier rest) and down to Grasmere - the descent is steep and bracken-covered.
At about 6.8 km: descend to Seat Sandal (west) — Between Great Rigg and Fairfield you can break off west towards Seat Sandal and Grisedale Hause; keep to the col and avoid the steeper ground to the north.

Escape lines chosen from the map by someone who has walked this route; not every descent has been walked. In poor visibility a marked descent can be safer than retracing a ridge.

Make it easier or harder

Easier: For a shorter, gentler day make it an out-and-back on the southern arm: up over Nab Scar to Heron Pike for the big horseshoe view, then return the same way - or simply turn back at Heron Pike, a straightforward retreat to Grasmere.

Harder: Lengthen the round: from Dove Crag take the careful quarter-mile north to the rim of the Dovedale cliffs; add Little Hart Crag on the descent if the light holds; or, for a much bigger day, drop north from Fairfield to take in St Sunday Crag.

Why this direction: Walked clockwise so the one steep, sustained pull - the pitched path up Nab Scar - comes early while you're fresh, and the day finishes with a gentler, view-filled descent over High and Low Pike. The anticlockwise version offers easier early bail-outs and a gentle beck-side finish, but saves those climbs for the end.

Summits bagged (9)

1Nab Scar450 mEastern · Wainwright, Birkett, Fellranger, Synge
2Heron Pike (Rydal)612 mEastern · Wainwright, Birkett, Synge, Nuttall
3Heron Pike North Top (Rydal Fell)621 mEastern · Birkett, Fellranger, Synge, Nuttall
4Great Rigg766 mEastern · Wainwright, Birkett, Fellranger, Synge, Nuttall, Hewitt
5Fairfield873 mEastern · Wainwright, Birkett, Fellranger, Synge, Nuttall, Marilyn, Hewitt
6Hart Crag823 mEastern · Wainwright, Birkett, Fellranger, Synge, Nuttall, Hewitt
7Dove Crag792 mEastern · Wainwright, Birkett, Fellranger, Synge, Nuttall, Hewitt
8High Pike (Scandale)657 mEastern · Wainwright, Birkett, Fellranger, Synge
9Low Pike508 mEastern · Wainwright, Birkett, Fellranger, Synge

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

More about this walk

You can easily start from Ambleside instead: stock up at the shops on the way out and finish at the Royal Oak for a well-earned pint. The full round takes in eight Wainwrights, nine tops with Heron Pike’s north top (a Birkett), with Fairfield's broad summit the high point and Windermere laid out behind you on the descent.

Conditions and timing

Best season Any season in good conditions; save the broad, featureless summit for a clear day.

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.

Nab Scar — in late March the sun reaches it around 06:30, about a quarter of an hour later. In late September, about 07:15. It waits longest in midsummer — about half an hour after sunrise.
Heron Pike (Rydal) — in late March the sun reaches it around 06:30, about a quarter of an hour later. In late September, about 07:15. It waits longest in midsummer — about half an hour after sunrise.
Great Rigg — in late March the sun reaches it around 06:15, with the sunrise. In late September, about 07:00.
Fairfield — in late March the sun reaches it around 06:15, with the sunrise. In late September, about 07:00.
Hart Crag — in late March the sun reaches it around 06:15, with the sunrise. In late September, about 07:00.
Dove Crag — in late March the sun reaches it around 06:15, with the sunrise. In late September, about 07:00.
High Pike (Scandale) — in late March the sun reaches it around 06:45, about a quarter of an hour later. In late September, about 07:15. It waits longest in late March — about a quarter of an hour after sunrise.
Low Pike — 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 September — 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

Pelter Bridge, Rydal (paid) — 0.0 km from the start (straight line)

For Loughrigg and the Rydal side of the Fairfield Horseshoe. Fees: pay and display; coins and cards; RingGo ID 37305 (LDNPA, checked August 2026).

Directions Something changed here?

If it is full: White Moss, Lower (paid) (2.4 km, 124 m up); Ambleside, Rydal Road (paid) (1.7 km); White Moss Common, Upper (paid) (2.3 km, 121 m up)

Rydal Hall (paid, for visitors) — 0.4 km from the start (straight line)

Rydal Hall's own car park, for visitors to the hall, its gardens, the waterfalls and The Tea Room; it charges, and visitors to the falls park here. The hall's overflow car park is about 80 m south-west. The Lower Falls and The Grot are about 150 m on foot through the grounds.

Directions Something changed here?

Ambleside Cricket Club car park — 0.7 km from the start (straight line)

By Ambleside Cricket Club's ground, between Ambleside and Rydal. The routes that start at Pelter Bridge, Rydal, 'Rydal Water & Rydal Caves' among them, are about 0.9 km on foot.

Directions Something changed here?

2 more places to park near the start

White Moss, Lower (paid) — 1.5 km from the start (straight line)

South side of the A591 by the river — Loughrigg Terrace and Rydal Water. Fees: pay in car park (Lake District National Park car-parks directory, checked August 2026). The Authority's car-parks directory (read 12 September 2026) lists toilets here, but the GB Toilet Map recorded them as permanently closed in May 2026, so do not count on them.

Directions Something changed here?

Under Loughrigg Road (verge), Ambleside — 1.7 km from the start (straight line)

On Under Loughrigg Road, west of the Rothay by Miller Bridge. The 'Ambleside, Todd Crag, Rydal Cave' route starts 489 m away.

Directions Something changed here?

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.

Every option near this start, on the parking map →

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 expect them to fill on the same mornings. Worth starting early, or having a different walk in mind before you set off.

Pelter Bridge, Rydal (paid) — at the start
Ambleside Cricket Club car park — a 1.1 km walk to the start, climbing about 40 m
Rydal Hall (paid, for visitors) — joins the loop at about km 0.6 of 16.9: a 70 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 Rydal, at White Moss Common. From there it is 2.3 km and 121 m of ascent to this start — a walk in before the walk. And the same back: about 21.5 km in all, with the walk. As timetabled from 29 October to 1 November. Towards Kendal (555): Thursday to Saturday 23:07; Sunday 20:07 to Windermere, 19:37 to Kendal. Towards Bowness on Windermere (599): Thursday to Sunday 19:20 to Bowness on Windermere, 17:30 to Bowness on Windermere Braithwaite Fold Car Park. Checked against the operator’s timetable, 24 September 2026. Times here are a guide, not a promise — leave yourself more than the minute.

The 555 passes this route at 0.5 km (Church for Rydal Mount (opposite), 80 m off the line). It passes again at 15.0 km.

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.

Toilets and refreshments

The essentials

Arrival Pelter Bridge car park at Rydal, beside the start: pay and display, coins and cards. 27 m in a straight line, not a walking distance. (Lake District National Park car-parks directory, checked 12 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 The Badger Bar is mapped about 225 m from the start. Opening hours are not recorded here. 226 m in a straight line, not a walking distance. (OpenStreetMap, as mapped on 13 September 2026, checked 13 September 2026)
Limitation Fairfield’s broad summit plateau is confusing in cloud: carry a map and compass and take a bearing before descending. (our route notes (this route's own warnings), checked 28 September 2026)

Everything mapped near the start

At Pelter Bridge, Rydal (paid), the closest parking we hold to where this route starts:

The Old School Room Tea Shop, Rydal Hall (~445 m straight line) — Free The Tea Room The Old School Room Tea Shop Badger Bar & Restaurant

Distances are straight lines from the car park, not walking routes. Opening hours change; none of this is checked daily.

Water, shelter & getting away

Church for Rydal Mount (146 m from the start, straight line) campsite (432 m from the start, straight line) Rydal Hall Youth Centre Bunkhouse (441 m from the start, straight line)

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, steepness, navigation (estimated from the map, not checked on the ground) and exposure (graded by Lee on the ground); terrain not assessed

LengthHard16.92 km — a long day out.

SteepnessHardSteepest sustained climb about 30% around the 1.3 km mark.

TerrainNot assessedThe map holds no grading for what is underfoot on this line, so we don’t guess. A rating appears once the ground is assessed.

NavigationHardCare needed in cloud — ~17% featureless high ground. Hard – estimated from the map, not checked on the ground

ExposureHardFairfield's summit is flat but has steep drops to the north; the ridges are exposed, with some boggy stretches. Hard – graded by Lee on the ground

HandsHands for a few stepsHigh Pike and Low Pike, and a short down-climb by Sweden Crag above Low Sweden Bridge (km 9.4–12.2 and km 13.1–13.5).

Five independent axes, not one score. One of the five was set on the ground; 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)
1Nab Scar	2.4 km	410 m	1:09–1:32
2Heron Pike (Rydal)	3.5 km	569 m	1:39–2:11
3Heron Pike North Top (Rydal Fell)	3.9 km	584 m	1:45–2:20
4Great Rigg	5.7 km	757 m	2:24–3:12
5Fairfield	7.1 km	898 m	2:55–3:53
6Hart Crag	8.3 km	921 m	3:11–4:15
7Dove Crag	9.4 km	960 m	3:29–4:38
8High Pike (Scandale)	11.1 km	969 m	3:50–5:05
9Low Pike	12.1 km	983 m	4:04–5:24
Finish	16.9 km	1009 m	5:04–6:44

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?

Dog

Stile a dog may not pass

Buggy

Not buggy-able

Knees

Steep in places

Buggy: Stiles or rough going on the route.
Knees: A sustained ~30% descent over 250 m around the 11.3 km mark — a little jarring on tired knees.

With a dog

Hardest for a dog here: stiles and gates. The steepest stretch is a sustained climb of about 30% around the 1.3 km mark.

Stiles and gates: A ladder stile at 11.9 km, mapped on OpenStreetMap, that a dog may not get through. Livestock, ground and water are not assessed. (OpenStreetMap, mapped as of 9 July 2026)
Drops and exposed ground: Hard – graded by Lee on the ground. Fairfield's summit is flat but has steep drops to the north; the ridges are exposed, with some boggy stretches.
Rock and scrambling: Hands for a few steps: High Pike and Low Pike, and a short down-climb by Sweden Crag above Low Sweden Bridge (km 9.4–12.2 and km 13.1–13.5). Ground underfoot: Not assessed.
Ways off early: Marked on this route at about 3.5 km: Grasmere; at about 5.5 km: Stone Arthur, then Grasmere; at about 6.8 km: Seat Sandal (west). The escape routes section below has the detail.
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: 12 gates · 1 kissing gate · 1 ladder stile · 1 stile (type unmapped)

Barriers as mapped on OpenStreetMap, which can miss some. Spotted one? Tell us (opens in new tab). Barrier data as of 9 July 2026. Access data © OpenStreetMap contributors (via Overpass).

Places to stay near this start

From Rydal: 8 places in Ambleside

Walks from places nearby

Walks from Ambleside — 1.9 km from this start
Walks from Stock Ghyll Force — 2.4 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.

Appears in these collections

Lake District walks by difficulty

All routes →

Grisedale Tarn, Fairfield, St Sunday Crag from Patterdale

15.92 km · ~983 m · planned