Grike, Crag Fell and Lank Rigg
Key facts
Difficulty profile
Five independent axes, not one score — all field-checked on the ground here, with nothing left as a desk estimate.
Conditions on this route
We score every Lakeland Wainwright each morning on cloud, wind, rain and underfoot, and this route crosses 3 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.
1 Grike2 Crag Fell3 Whoap4 Lank Rigg
Easy 81%Moderate 19%HardSevere
Free mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap (switch layers top-right).
This walk covers about 13.07 km with around 618 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: A stile of unmapped type — a dog may need lifting over.
- Buggy: Stiles or rough going on the route.
- Knees: A sustained ~24% descent around the 7.8 km mark — a little jarring on tired knees.
On the line: 3 gates · 7 stiles (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 2026-07-20. Access data © OpenStreetMap contributors (via Overpass).
Pacing
| Summit | Cumulative | Ascent | Time (fast–steady) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Grike | 2.9 km | 265 m | 1:01–1:22 |
| 2Crag Fell | 4.3 km | 335 m | 1:25–1:54 |
| 3Whoap | 6.5 km | 437 m | 2:01–2:41 |
| 4Lank Rigg | 7.7 km | 542 m | 2:27–3:16 |
| Finish | 13.1 km | 618 m | 3:39–4:51 |
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 → Grike (2.9 km, 265 m)
Start at the parking area on the Cold Fell road (near the Kinniside Common / Felldyke gate). Pass through the gate and take the wide gravel quarry track heading east onto Kinniside Common. Follow this main track as it climbs at a gentle gradient alongside the plantation boundary. Leaving the main track, pick up the grassy path heading east directly up the fellside of Grike. Cross the fence via the step stile to reach the summit plateau, marked by a stone circular windbreak shelter, a small metal radio mast, and a summit cairn
WaypointsCold Fell road parking area, Kinniside Plantation track, fence stile, Grike summit shelter & mast
Decision pointThe main gravel quarry track and the prominent plantation fence line act as a clear, continuous handrail up to the summit fence crossing
Easy to get wrongThe ascent is gradual and friendly underfoot, though the grassy paths near the plantation edge can hold water and become muddy after rain. In low cloud or poor weather, these wide, rolling slopes offer little natural shelter
If you need to get offSimply turn 180 degrees and retrace your steps down the wide gravel track back to the car parking area on the Cold Fell road
- 2
Grike → Crag Fell (1.4 km, 69 m)
From the summit shelter on Grike, head north-east along the broad, gentle ridge path. Follow the line of the drystone wall and wire fence across the high plateau. The path drops slightly into a shallow depression before ascending smoothly to the stone summit cairn of Crag Fell, which boasts spectacular plunging views down into Ennerdale Water and across to Bowness Knott
WaypointsGrike summit shelter, boundary wall/fence line, Crag Fell summit cairn
Decision pointThe continuous drystone wall and fence line linking Grike directly to Crag Fell provide an infallible handrail
Easy to get wrongThe ground along the high ridge is often wet and peaty in shallow dips. While the south side of the ridge is gentle, the northern face of Crag Fell drops sheer into Ennerdale; keep well back from the edge in misty or high-wind conditions
If you need to get offRetrace your steps 1.4 km back along the fence line to Grike and descend via the main Kinniside track
- 3
Crag Fell → Whoap (2.2 km, 102 m)
From the summit cairn of Crag Fell, retrace your steps slightly south-east along the wall toward the head of Ben Gill. Cross the fence line and head south-east across the broad, open grassy saddle of Black Brow. The path climbs gently and steadily up the long, smooth grassy spine of Whoap to reach its rounded summit cairn
WaypointsCrag Fell summit, Ben Gill head, Black Brow saddle, Whoap summit cairn
Decision pointA line of fence posts running south towards the slopes of Whoap serves as a reliable guide across the open ground
Easy to get wrongThis section traverses wide, open, featureless grassland. In thick mist or low visibility, paths become faint and braided, making it easy to drift off course
If you need to get offFrom the saddle near Ben Gill head (between Crag Fell and Whoap, turn west to follow the path descending alongside Ben Gill / Friar Moor back to the gravel tracks on Kinniside Common, safely bypassing the outer fells
- 4
Whoap → Lank Rigg (1.3 km, 106 m)
Descend south-west off the grassy spur of Whoap into the deep, marshy depression of Lank Rigg Moss. Cross the headwaters of the River Calder / Lank Rigg Beck, weaving around peat hags. From the bottom of the col, climb the steady grassy slope heading south-west to gain the broad summit plateau of Lank Rigg, marked by a large stone shelter, OS trig point, and a small summit tarn
WaypointsWhoap descent spur, Lank Rigg Moss (River Calder headwaters), Lank Rigg summit trig point, stone shelter & tarn
Decision pointFaint trods cross the moss, but rely on map/compass bearings in mist. The stone shelter and trig point sit clearly on the higher western edge of the plateau
Easy to get wrongLank Rigg Moss Bog: Lank Rigg Moss is notorious as one of the wettest, boggiest depressions in the Western Fells. Navigating around deep peat hags requires careful footing. In poor visibility, holding an accurate compass bearing across the moss to the rising slopes of Lank Rigg is essential
If you need to get offFrom the depression at Lank Rigg Moss, instead of climbing Lank Rigg, turn right (west) to drop directly into the valley of the River Calder, joining the valley track for a low-level return
Lank Rigg → Finish (5.3 km, 76 m)
Leave the summit plateau of Lank Rigg heading north-east at first, then swing west, dropping down steep grassy slopes toward the valley of the River Calder. Cross the lower ground to join the clear farm/bridleway track running west along the valley bottom below the flanks of Whoap and Grike. Pass the Matty Benn's Bridge area and follow the track as it contours around Kinniside Common, merging into the main quarry track to return to the gate on Cold Fell road
WaypointsLank Rigg summit, western descent slope, River Calder valley track, Matty Benn's Bridge area, Kinniside Common main track, Cold Fell road finish
Decision pointThe River Calder down on your left serves as a primary valley guide until you join the main gravel track
Easy to get wrongThe initial descent off Lank Rigg is pathless in places over rough, tussocky grass. Once on the valley track, the return is long but non-technical and easy on tired legs
If you need to get offDirect, non-technical valley track return straight back to the start point
Getting there & parking
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 →
💧 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.)
Buses
The nearest bus stop we hold is the 77 at Buttermere, outside Court Hotel, 14.3 km of walking from this start — not realistically reachable without a car. It is a seasonal service too: 1 November 2026 is its last day of the year (confirmed with the operator, 29 August 2026).
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.
- Cold Fell road (verge)
- Flat Fell (verge)
- Blakeley Raise (verge, east)
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.
- Grike — in late March the sun reaches it around 06:30, with the sunrise. In late September, about 07:15. It waits longest in late December — about a quarter of an hour after sunrise.
- Crag Fell — in late March the sun reaches it around 06:30, with the sunrise. In late September, about 07:15. It waits longest in late December — about a quarter of an hour after sunrise.
- Lank Rigg — 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 late March — about a quarter of an hour after sunrise.
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 7.2 km (drop to Start) — roughly half the distance.