High 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 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.
1 High Rigg (Naddle Fell)
Easy 74%Moderate 20%Hard 6%Severe
Free mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap (switch layers top-right).
This walk covers about 3.62 km with around 215 m of ascent, taking in 1 summit. 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 ~29% descent around the 2.1 km mark — a little jarring on tired knees.
On the line: 6 gates · 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 2026-07-20. Access data © OpenStreetMap contributors (via Overpass).
Pacing
| Summit | Cumulative | Ascent | Time (fast–steady) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1High Rigg (Naddle Fell) | 1.8 km | 208 m | 0:42–0:56 |
| Finish | 3.6 km | 215 m | 1:05–1:26 |
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
Wanthwaite Bridge Car Park → High Rigg (Naddle Fell) (1.8 km, 208 m)
Starting at the junction of the B-road to the west of Wanthwaite Mill head west up the lane and turn left at the bend with a small road to the right at Yew Tree Farm. Keep going over the gate by what looks to be an abandoned house. You’ll eventually get sight of the grounds of St John’s Church with the Carlisle Diocesan Youth Centre next to it. Just as you pass that you’ll see a path that bends around behind it - take that and it's simply a case of following your nose to the top which should only be about 15 to 20 minutes if you’re going at a reasonable pace
If you need to get offThe bail point is to turn back at the Youth Centre but this is an easy walk
High Rigg (Naddle Fell) → Finish (1.8 km, 7 m)
Return the way you came. If you wanted to extend it then you can keep going over to Yew Crag - taking the right fork after Moss Crag this will take you to Mart Crag along Long Band and Wren Crag to St John’s Beck where you should turn left, northwards along it and follow the path to Low Bridge End Farm and the path will skirt the foot of broader High Rigg area and back to the church where you can pick up the route back to your car
Summits bagged (1)
- 1High Rigg (Naddle Fell)356 m
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 509 stops at Threlkeld West End (near). From there it is 2.3 km and 57 m of ascent to this start — a walk in before the walk. Last bus: Monday to Friday 22:05 towards Penrith (X5) and 17:02 towards Patterdale (509) and 14:37 towards Hartsop (509); Saturday 22:05 towards Penrith (X5) and 17:02 towards Patterdale (509) and 14:37 towards Hartsop (509); Sunday 18:31 towards Penrith (X5) and 17:02 towards Patterdale (509) and 14:37 towards Hartsop (509). Checked against the operator’s timetable, 7 September 2026. Times here are a guide, not a promise — leave yourself more than the minute.
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.
- St John's in the Vale verge, High Rigg (free)
- High Rigg (layby)
- High Rigg, north-east (layby)
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 Rigg (Naddle Fell) — in late March the sun reaches it around 07:00, about an hour later. In late September, about 07:45. It waits longest in late December — about 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.
Places to stay near this start
From Wanthwaite Bridge: 4 places in Keswick