The Old Dungeon Ghyll Pub Walk (Great Langdale)
Key facts
✎️ A rare low-level circuit in a valley famous for its high fells — all the Langdale scenery, almost none of the climbing. No summits are bagged here; the appeal is the setting, and the pub at either end.
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.
Easy 100%ModerateHardSevere
Free mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap (switch layers top-right).
This walk covers about 6.61 km with around 106 m of ascent. 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: Not a pushchair route.
- Knees: No sustained steep descent — kind on the knees.
On the line: 35 gates · 4 kissing gates · 3 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 2026-07-09. Access data © OpenStreetMap contributors (via Overpass).
Pacing
| Summit | Cumulative | Ascent | Time (fast–steady) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finish | 6.6 km | 106 m | 1:30–2:00 |
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
Start → Finish (6.6 km, 106 m)
Climb of about 106 m over 6.6 km (around 2% average).
Stage-by-stage field notes coming soon.
Getting there & parking
⛽ Nearest fuel to this start: Hills Garage, Ambleside, 11.6 km by road (Mon 07:00-21:00; Tue 07:00-21:00; Wed 07:00-21:00; Thu 07:00-21:00; Fri 07:00-21:00; Sat 07:00-21:00; Sun 08:00-21:00). Nearest shop: Langdale Co-operative Society, 4.4 km. Both measured along the road from the parking we publish at Old Dungeon Ghyll, checked 8 August 2026. Coming in from a particular direction you may pass a closer one — the last petrol before each valley →
Positions are approximate.
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 →
Water, shelter & getting away
💧 Treat water from the fell before you drink it. A mapped point is usually a tap or public supply, but never drink untreated from a beck, stream or tarn — even clear-looking hill water can carry giardia or cryptosporidium from livestock or a carcass upstream and leave you seriously ill. Run it through a filter or purifier (a LifeStraw, Sawyer Squeeze or HydraPak) or bring it to a rolling boil first.
On-route facilities © OpenStreetMap contributors — an absent marker does not mean the facility isn’t there.
Buses
The 516 stops at Old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel (at), 140 m from this start. Return buses leave from New Dungeon Ghyll Hotel, about 1 km down the valley road. Last bus: Monday to Friday 20:13 towards Kendal (516) and 18:13 towards Ambleside (516); Saturday 22:33 towards Kendal (516) and 21:13 towards Ambleside (516); Sunday 20:13 towards Kendal (516) and 18:13 towards Ambleside (516). Checked against the operator’s timetable, 7 September 2026. Times here are a guide, not a promise — leave yourself more than the minute.
The 516 passes this route at 1.4 km (New Dungeon Ghyll Hotel (at), 10 m off the line). It passes again at 6.5 km.
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.
- Old Dungeon Ghyll (NT, paid)
- Side Pike (verge, south)
- New Dungeon Ghyll (LDNPA, paid)
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.
Toilets and refreshments
At Old Dungeon Ghyll (NT, paid), the closest parking we hold to where this route starts:
Distances are straight lines from the car park, not walking routes. Opening hours change; none of this is checked daily.
Safety & conditions
- Low-level but not always dry — the valley-floor paths and field sections get boggy and can flood after heavy rain.
- Working farmland: expect gates, stiles and livestock. Keep dogs on a lead and under close control near sheep.
- Great Langdale Beck and its side becks rise quickly in spate — take care at any crossing or footbridge.
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
Harder: The same start is the launch point for the classic higher rounds — the Langdale Pikes and Bowfell — if you want a full mountain day.
Places to stay near this start
From Great Langdale: 3 places in Grasmere