Ling Fell & Sale Fell
Start unnamed layby north-east of Ling Fell
Getting here Parking: Ling Fell, north-east (layby), 0.1 km from the start (straight line). Bus: the X4 and X5 stop at Embleton Close Barn (near); from there it is 2.7 km and 151 m of ascent to this start. And the same back: about 10.4 km in all, with the walk. Getting there ↓ · Route map ↓
Hardest part Hard steepness: Steepest sustained descent about 27% around the 1.7 km mark.
Before you choose
Conditions on this route
We score every Lakeland Wainwright each morning on cloud, wind, rain and underfoot, and this route crosses 2 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.
See also walking in bad weather and today’s conditions.
Route map
1 Ling Fell2 Sale Fell
Easy 50%Moderate 44%Hard 7%Severe
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
Start → Ling Fell (1.3 km, 215 m)
© Lee McCoy - 2
Ling Fell → Sale Fell (2.5 km, 206 m)
© Lee McCoy Sale Fell → Finish (1.2 km, 2 m)
Descent of about 196 m over 1.2 km.
GPX track for your GPS or phone. Walked by Lee, July 2024
Conditions and timing
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.
- Ling Fell — 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 December — about half an hour after sunrise.
- Sale Fell — 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.
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
2 more places to park near the start
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.
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.
- Roadside parking for Ling Fell (free) — joins the loop at about km 0.5 of 5: a 30 m walk to the line, and you walk the round from there
- Burthwaite Heights (layby) — joins the loop at about km 2.6 of 5: a 1.2 km walk to the line, climbing about 40 m, and you walk the round from there
- Ling Fell, north-east (layby) — joins the loop at about km 2.6 of 5: a 30 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 X4 and X5 stop at Embleton Close Barn (near). From there it is 2.7 km and 151 m of ascent to this start — a walk in before the walk. And the same back: about 10.4 km in all, with the walk. As timetabled from 27 October to 1 November. Towards Keswick (X5): Tuesday to Thursday 21:35; Friday and Saturday 23:50; Sunday 17:55. Checked against the operator’s timetable, 24 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.
Toilets and refreshments
The essentials
- Arrival A layby on the north-east side of Ling Fell, about 80 m from the start: free, as mapped. 80 m in a straight line, not a walking distance. (our parking audit, from OpenStreetMap, checked 10 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 No café or pub is mapped within 250 m of the start: bring what you need. (OpenStreetMap, as mapped on 13 September 2026, checked 13 September 2026)
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.)
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: Steepness
Five independent axes, not one score. Three of the five were 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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Ling Fell | 1.3 km | 215 m | 0:37–0:49 |
| 2Sale Fell | 3.7 km | 421 m | 1:27–1:56 |
| Finish | 5.0 km | 422 m | 1:42–2:16 |
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?
- Buggy: No mapped stiles; terrain Easy – graded by Lee on the ground, but the going for wheels is not recorded; not a buggy line on what we know.
- Knees: A long, steep ~37% drop over 250 m around the 1.7 km mark — hard on the knees.
With a dog
Hardest for a dog here: the steepest stretch, a sustained descent of about 27% around the 1.7 km mark.
- Stiles and gates: Only gates and kissing gates are mapped: no stile a dog can’t get through. That is the barriers alone; check the route’s steep or rocky ground before you bring a dog. (OpenStreetMap, mapped as of 25 July 2026)
- Rock and scrambling: Ground underfoot: Easy – graded by Lee on the ground. Graded on the ground.
- Drops and exposed ground: Easy – graded by Lee on the ground. Graded on the ground.
- Ways off early: None recorded for this route.
- 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: 2 gates
Barriers as mapped on OpenStreetMap, which can miss some. Spotted one? Tell us (opens in new tab). Barrier data as of 25 July 2026. Access data © OpenStreetMap contributors (via Overpass).
Places to stay near this start
- Embleton Spa Hotel (opens in new tab) hotelabout 1.6 km
- Bassenfell Manor Christian Centre (opens in new tab) hostelabout 4.7 km
We have not stayed at any of them. We take no bookings or affiliate fees. Distances are straight lines from the route start, never walking times. Properties found via OpenStreetMap (opens in new tab).