North of Coniston Birketts
Key facts
Difficulty profile
Five independent axes, not one score. “Desk” ratings come from maps and guidebooks, not yet walked — treat them as a guide, not a survey.
☀️ 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 Long Crag - Yewdale Fells2 High Wythow3 Low Wythow
Free mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap (switch layers top-right).
This walk covers about 7.73 km with around 458 m of ascent, taking in 3 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: Gates and kissing gates only — a dog can do the whole route.
- Buggy: Stiles or rough going on the route.
- Knees: A long, steep ~34% drop around the 5.6 km mark — hard on the knees.
On the line: 4 gates · 1 kissing gate
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 2026-07-09. Access data © OpenStreetMap contributors (via Overpass).
Pacing
| Summit | Cumulative | Ascent | Time (fast–steady) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Long Crag - Yewdale Fells | 2.8 km | 334 m | 1:07–1:29 |
| High Wythow | 3.0 km | 334 m | 1:10–1:33 |
| Low Wythow | 3.3 km | 334 m | 1:13–1:37 |
| Finish | 7.7 km | 458 m | 2:19–3:04 |
Naismith-based estimate — a fast/steady range. Your pace will vary.
The walk, stage by stage
Start → Long Crag - Yewdale Fells (2.8 km, 334 m)
Climb of about 334 m over 2.8 km (around 12% average).
Long Crag - Yewdale Fells → High Wythow (0.3 km, 0 m)
Undulating section of about 0.3 km.
Decision point: Between Long Crag and High Wythow the path all but disappears; take a bearing rather than trusting a trod.
Easy to get wrong: On the featureless top it's easy to drift off line in poor visibility — clear day only.
High Wythow → Low Wythow (0.3 km, 0 m)
Undulating section of about 0.3 km.
Decision point: Keep checking your bearing between the tops — few walkers come this way and the paths fade.
Easy to get wrong: The featureless high ground reads poorly in cloud; don't rely on a path being there.
Low Wythow → Finish (4.4 km, 125 m)
Climb of about 125 m over 4.4 km (around 3% average).
Summits bagged (3)
- Long Crag - Yewdale Fells 421 m · Southern · Birkett
- High Wythow 410 m · Southern · Birkett
- Low Wythow 372 m · Southern · Birkett
🅿️ Getting there & parking
Positions are approximate. Lakeland car parks fill before 9am on fine weekends.
💧 Water, shelter & getting away
On-route facilities © OpenStreetMap contributors — an absent marker does not mean the facility isn’t there.
🚌 Buses
Rural routes change seasonally — confirm on stagecoachbus.com (opens in new tab) or Traveline before travelling.
⚠️ Safety & conditions
- Navigation is the real challenge on this loop, not the climbing. The paths around High Wythow and Low Wythow are faint and intermittent — most walkers are drawn across the valley to Coniston and the Old Man, so these Yewdale tops see little traffic and the trods fade into rough ground.
- Attempt this only on a clear day, and treat it as one for moderately experienced hikers confident navigating with map and compass. About a fifth of the high ground is featureless, and in low cloud the line would be easy to lose.
- Steep in places (a sustained pull of around 34%); crag/exposure data is unverified from the mapping, so take care choosing your line on the steeper ground.
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 3.3 km (drop to Start) — roughly half the distance.
📚 Maps & guidebooks for North of Coniston Birketts
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