Difficulty: Easy-Moderate
Wainwright Guide: Book Six – The North-Western Fells
Castle Crag is the smallest fell included in the 214 Wainwrights. Coming in at 950ft it is the only fell included in the pictorial guide books below 1000ft. Don’t be fooled by its height though. It may be small but it is mighty steep, requiring scrambling in some places! The view of Derwent however, is sublime and well worth the effort.
Jonny and I first undertook this hike shortly after moving to the Lake District thinking it would be a gentle re-introduction to hiking. It most certainly was not gentle but it was great fun, with stepping stones and scrambles and fabulous scenery I would still highly recommend this walk. Just don’t expect it to be as easy as it sounds!
Where to Start?
The best place to start this walk is a small National Trust car park in Rosthwaite. This is easily found on Google Maps and if you’re a member, parking is free! You get a good view of Castle Crag from the car park. Nestled quietly between the larger surrounding fells it still gives the impression of being a gentle stroll. The hard work will soon begin though.
Turn right out of the car park and follow the lane through some farm buildings until the path becomes uneven underfoot.
The route here is pretty self explanatory as you follow the path along to the River Derwent.
Once you reach the river the path will become cobbled. You can choose to either cross the river here over some stepping stones, or to continue to follow the cobbled path and cross using a stone bridge. Jonny and I obviously chose to take the stepping stones. We used the bridge on the way back.
Once across the stepping stones turn right and join back up with the main path as it crosses the river via the stone bridge.
Here you will come to a couple of gates. You can go through either one. The gate on the left is slightly less steep but the path is not as well defined. I would recommend taking the path to the right, which remains flat for now and follows the river.
By following this path you will eventually come across a gate on your left where an obvious path heads up the hillside. This is where the ascent begins.
Ascent
The first part of the ascent seems reasonable to start with but quickly becomes very steep as it zig zags up through the trees. We felt so unfit on our first attempt we had to keep pausing, but it was a great excuse to turn around and look at the view of Borrowdale that was quickly coming into view.
The path continues to snake up the hillside and goes through a small gap in the wall.
Although still inclining, the path at this point starts to level out slightly. It leads to a stone wall with a large wooden stile that allows you to easily get to the other side.
On the other side of the wall you need to turn immediately right. This will bring you to the bottom of a very large pile of slate.
Take the clear cut path to the top of the large pile of slate. It is exceedingly steep and in the wrong weather it is very slippery so be careful here and take your time.
At the top of this pile you will find a well defined cairn that looks out over the Borrowdale Valley.
There are also small paths into the remains of the old quarry. It is well worth taking the time to explore once you get to this point before making the final scramble to the summit.
The path to the summit gets a little bit scrambly from here so tread carefully and pick your path over the tree roots up to the summit plateau.
Up on the summit plateau you will be able to get fantastic views into the old quarry below. Be careful in the wind and make sure you watch your children as the edge can be deceiving!
Summit
The summit of Castle Crag is a small rocky eminence. The remains of a cairn sit on top of the rock, with a World War I memorial attached to the flat side of the rock itself.
Looking North, the views over Derwent Water are second to none. The Catbells ridge to the left and the central fells to the right perfectly outline the lake, naturally drawing the eye to the Skiddaw range directly opposite.
Although the views are stunning, the wind chill factor from Castle Crag is quite impressive so we opted for a speedy escape with Emi! On a calm day though, the summit would make an incredible spot for a picnic.
Descent
The way down is exactly the same as the way you came up.
Parts of the descent will seem incredibly steep so take you time and make sure you’ve got good footing, especially as you descend the slate pile.
We took extra time before heading down the slate pile to explore the old quarry sites. The dramatic surroundings really are something to behold.
When you get back to the River Derwent you are again faced with the choice of either heading over the bridge or heading across the stepping stones. As Jonny and I took the stepping stones on our way up Castle Crag, we took the bridge on the way back.
From here the walk back to the car park is self explanatory. There are a couple of small cafes/pubs in and around Rosthwaite but I would highly recommend the Flock-Inn Tearoom. It will be on your left as you approach the car park. A lovely place to sit and relax after your exhilarating hike.
Castle Crag, although small, is definitely mighty! Despite its small size I would definitely not say that this was a beginner fell. It is however full of incredible views and multiple hidden nooks and crannys to explore. One for the bucket list for sure.
Have you done Castle Crag yet? Let me know in the comments!
