Dove Crag
792m (2599ft)
The Eastern Fells, The Lake District, Cumbria, England
Tap/mouse over a coloured circle (1-3 easy walks, 4-6 moderate walks, 7-9 hard walks) and click to select.
You can find Dove Crag & all the walks that climb it on these unique free-to-access Interactive Walk Planning Maps: (click/TAP to select)
1:25,000 scale OS Explorer Maps (the ones with orange/yellow covers):
1:50,000 scale OS Landranger Map (the ones with pink/magenta covers):
See Dove Crag and the surrounding tops on our free-to-access 'Google Style' Peak Bagging Maps:
See Dove Crag and the surrounding tops on our downloadable PDF Peak Bagging Maps:
*Walk & bag all 35 Wainwrights in The Eastern Fells area of The Lake District in just 8 easy-to-follow circular walks.
*This version is marked with the walk routes you need to follow to Walk all 214 Wainwrights in just 59 walks. Click here for more information.
NB: Whether you print off a copy on to paper or download it to your phone, these PDF Peak Baggers Maps will prove incredibly useful when your are up there on the tops and you cannot get a phone signal!
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 7.75ml (12.5km) |
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| Ascent: | 2,800ft (853m) |
| Time: | 5.75hrs |
| Grade: |  (Moderate) |
Route Summary:
Cow Bridge Car Park - Brothers Water - Hartsop Hall - Kirkstone Beck - High Hartsop Dodd - Little Hart Crag - Dove Crag - Hart Crag - Blake Brow - Hartsop Above How - Hoggill Brow - Gale Crag - Bleaberry Knott - Cockley How - Cow Bridge
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 9.75ml (15.5km) |
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| Ascent: | 3,551ft (1,082m) |
| Time: | 7.25hrs |
| Grade: |  (Hard) |
Route Summary:
Ambleside - Snarker Pike - Red Screes - Scandale Pass - Little Hart Crag - Dove Crag - High Pike (Scandale) - Low Pike (Scandale) - High Sweden Bridge - Ambleside
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 9.75ml (15.5km) |
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| Ascent: | 3,699ft (1,127m) |
| Time: | 7.25hrs |
| Grade: | (Hard) |
Route Summary:
Cow Bridge Car Park - Brothers Water - Hartsop Hall - Kirkstone Beck - Caiston Beck - Middle Dodd - Red Screes - Scandale Pass - Little Hart Crag - Dove Crag - Hart Crag - Blake Brow - Hartsop Above How - Hoggill Brow - Gale Crag - Bleaberry Knott - Cockley How - Cow Bridge
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 11ml (17.5km) |
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| Ascent: | 3,633ft (1,107m) |
| Time: | 7.75hrs |
| Grade: | (Hard) |
Route Summary:
Ambleside - Rydal - Nab Scar - Heron Pike - Rydal Fell (Heron Pike North Top) - Great Rigg - Fairfield - Rydal Head - Hart Crag - Dove Crag - High Pike (Scandale) - Low Pike (Scandale) - High Sweden Bridge - High Sweden Coppice - Ambleside
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 12.25ml (19.5km) |
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| Ascent: | 3,984ft (1,214m) |
| Time: | 8½ hrs |
| Grade: |  (Hard) |
Route Summary:
Ambleside - Rydal - Nab Scar - Heron Pike - Rydal Fell (Heron Pike North Top) - Greenhead Gill Head - Stone Arthur - Great Rigg - Fairfield - Rydal Head - Hart Crag - Dove Crag - High Pike (Scandale) - Low Pike (Scandale) - High Sweden Bridge - High Sweden Coppice - Ambleside
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 12.5ml (20km) |
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| Ascent: | 3,411ft (1,040m) |
| Time: | 8 hrs |
| Grade: | (Hard) |
Route Summary:
Ambleside - Rydal - Nab Scar - Heron Pike - Rydal Fell (Heron Pike North Top) - Great Rigg - Fairfield - Rydal Head - Hart Crag - Dove Crag - Little Hart Crag - Scandale Pass - Red Screes - Snarker Pike - Ambleside
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 13.75ml (22km) |
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| Ascent: | 5,501ft (1,676m) |
| Time: | 10½ hrs |
| Grade: |  (Very Hard) |
Route Summary:
Cow Bridge Car Park - Brothers Water - Hartsop - Hartsop Dodd - Caudale Moor - Stony Cove Pike (Caudale Moor) - Caudale Head - Pike How - St Raven's Edge - The Kirkstone Pass - Red Screes - Smallthwaite Band - Middle Dodd - Scandale Pass - Little Hart Crag - High Hartsop Dodd - Little Hart Crag - Scandale Head - Dove Crag - Hart Crag - Blake Brow - Hartsop Above How - Hoggill Brow - Gale Crag - Bleaberry Knott - Cockley How - Cow Bridge
Fellow go4awalkers who have already walked, climbed, summited & bagged Dove Crag
Paul Roddam walked up Dove Crag on September 14th, 2024 [from/via/route] From Ambleside [with] Bri and Barber [weather] Wet
Kate Peacock climbed Dove Crag on May 18th, 2024 [from/via/route] Helen & Amber walked to this one with me. Anti-clockwise. Great walk. Busy due to events but people were friendly [with] Me & Skye [weather] Sunny with a nice breeze - Sunburnt as the breeze made me think it wasn't as hot
Bay Wan bagged Dove Crag on April 23rd, 2024 [from/via/route] Started from Ambleside car park [with] Paul Harper (grumpy tired fucker) [weather] Lovely spring sun. Dry. 12° - Route via low pike, high pike & then dove crag. Was harder than expected so came back the way we went up
Steve Cookson hiked Dove Crag on March 2nd, 2024 [from/via/route] Missed adding with Fairfield horseshoe [with] Gillie [weather] Cold & dry
Melfyn Parry summited Dove Crag on November 21st, 2023 [from/via/route] Followed route C247 - walked out of Ambleside on the A591 & just after Scandale Bridge we crossed the road to follow the lane into the Rydal Hall estate, went passed the cafe & the Hall & then turned right to pass Rydal Mount. Here we veered left to take the stone steps path to the top of Nab Scar, again following a well defined path we were soon on Heron Pike. Continuing along the path with a slight detour to ascend Heron Pike north top. Continuing on to Great Rigg & onwards to Fairfield. We stopped here for lunch & the clouds lifted to give great views over towards Helvellyn & Sunday Crag. After pausing to take some photos we retraced our steps for a few metres before heading left to follow the ridge line to ascend Hart Crag, then Dove Crag & then High Pike. The undulating ridge takes you through some quite boggy areas & on to Low Pike & then down to High Sweden Bridge (a fascinating old bridge). All that was left to do from here was to follow the trail downwards in to Ambleside returning to the village by the Salutation Hotel. [with] DS [weather] Visibility was very good below 800m. By lunchtime the cloud had lifted even more to give clear views of the whole horseshoe. A dry day with sunny intervals, quite cold above 600m but very pleasant below this level. - Doing the walk in a clockwise direction as per C247 is best as the ascent anticlockwise would be much more of a cardio vascular workout.
David Higginbottom conquered Dove Crag on February 8th, 2023 [from/via/route] Route 247 [with] Carolyn [weather] Very poor
James Hughes scaled Dove Crag on June 26th, 2023 [from/via/route] Nab Scar, Heron Pike, Great Rigg, Fairfield, Hart Cragg, Dove Cragg, High Pike, Low Pike [with] Solo [weather] Four seasons in a day. Unsettled with showers at times, cold & misty around Fairfield, improved on descent into Ambleside. - Chatted with Andrew from Littleborough. Outraged by parking cost & then toilet fee. Pint at Golden Rule (Robinsons Cumbria Way) at end.
Rob Prikanowski walked up Dove Crag on June 21st, 2023 [from/via/route] c247 [weather] Cloudy but dry, strong wind.
Angeline Grieveson climbed Dove Crag on February 5th, 2023 [with] Dotty
Sarah Moore bagged Dove Crag on December 5th, 2022 [from/via/route] c247 / The Fairfield Horseshoe (from Ambleside) [with] On my own [weather] Beautiful start with a cold edge... turning to icy cold with sleet & minimal visibility between Great Rigg - Fairfield - Hart Crag. - This one scared me. The realisation that if I slipped up at Fairfield then I don't know that I could have waited an hour plus for mountain rescue was very scary. Used the GPS & was proud of myself but major "eeek"
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More Photographs & Pictures of views from, on or of Dove Crag
The Fairfield Horseshoe from the summit of Fairfield with Dove Crag (left), Rydal Beck, Ambleside, Windermere, Nab Scar and Heron Pike (prominent right)
Dove Crag, Hart Crag and Fairfield dominate the skyline beyond Brothers Water
Send us your photographs and pictures on, of, or from Dove Crag
If you would like to add your walk photographs and pictures featuring views from, on or of Dove Crag to this page, please send them as email attachments (configured for any computer) along with your name to:
and we shall do our best to publish them.
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