Plan and record your progress through the Wainwright Fells of the Lake District
A. Wainwright described more routes for climbing Blencathra that any other fell in the Lake District. Partly this was a geographical reason, with a number of routes to choose from - but partly because Wainwright visited so many times to appreciate the stunning panorama of views at Blencathra's summit, the 868 metre Hallsfell Top. Hikers who have made the effort to complete one of the number of Wainwright walks to the top can, on good days, see across the Eden Valley and up to the Southern Uplands in Scotland, the northern Pennines to the East, across as far as North Wales and the Isle of Man - and of course, a skyline of all the major Wainwright peaks in the Lake District.
Blencathra is also called Saddleback, on account of the shape of the mountain when look at it from the East. But A. Wainwright preferred the older name Blencathra in his guides, which has the meaning of a bare topped hill shaped like a chair. Making this Lake District walk it is difficult not to appreciate what an accurate description that is! The most famous route to the top and one made popular by Wainwright's walks is the ascent via Sharp Edge. This is a knife edged ridge on the east of Blencathra which provides good scrambling, for those who have a head for heights and a firm footing.
Blencathra is one of the more challenging of the Wainwright Fells, and one he described as 'a mountaineer's mountain', because of the more difficult nature of many of the ascents to the summit at Hallsfell Top. Like any Wainwright Walk, hikers are advised to have the right equipment and clothing, however the ascent can be made without using one of the steep sided ridges by starting at the Blencathra Centre at the Southwest of the mountain foot, via Blease Fell and Scales Fell. But despite the challenge, most walkers completing Blencathra on their Wainwright Maps get to the summit via Sharp Edge, which is an exhilarating experience to say the least.
More information on the routes to the summit of Blencathra can be found in Book Five: The Northern Fells by Alfred Wainwright, part of the Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells.
A lone hiker completes his Wainwright walk to the summit of Blencathra - Picture by Stewart Smith Photography
A spectacular view of Blencathra plastered in snow, taken from Great Mell Fell - Picture by Jack Towers