THE WESTERN FELLS

'If Lakeland can be thought of as being circular in plan, the Western Fells may be described as being contained within a wide sector, the apex driving deep into the heart of the district at Sty Head and the boundaries running therefrom northwest along the valley of the Cocker, jewelled by the lovely lakes of Buttermere and Crummock Water, and southwest along Wasdale towards the sea.

If Lakeland can be thought of as a wheel, the Western Fells may be likened, simply yet appropriately, to two spokes (the Pillar and High Stile ranges) radiating from a central hub (Great Gable), with Ennerdale between the spokes and the two valleys of the Cocker and Wasdale bordering them.

In this area is a wide diversity of scenery.  The section nearest to and including the hub is entirely mountainous, crowded with fine peaks although none quite attain 3000 feet.  Here is the hoary old favourite, Great Gable, and the magnificent Pillar, the fascinating Haystacks and the exhilarating spine of the High Stile ridge: a rugged territory of volcanic rock and syenite.  Further west the slopes are smooth and rounded, characteristic of the underlying slate; towards the arc of the circle they decline into low grassy foothills and rolling sheep pastures, a splendid walking country but comparatively unexciting and unfrequented.'
Alfred Wainwright The Western Fells

NB:  The heights of fells given in this table are those as recorded by Alfred Wainwright in his original set of Pictorial Guides and not the revised heights resurveyed by Ordnance Survey and printed on their latest 1:25000 Explorer maps.

Return to top

Photographs taken with a Fuji MX-2900 Zoom or a Canon EOS 20D
Copyright © 2009 Derek Cockell     All Rights Reserved

THE PICTORIAL GUIDES

The Eastern Fells
The Far Eastern Fells
The Central Fells
The Southern Fells
The Northern Fells
The North Western Fells
The Western Fells

The 214 Challenge