The Calf
676m (2218ft)
The Howgill Fells, The Yorkshire Dales, Cumbria, England
Tap/mouse over a coloured circle (1-3 easy walks, 4-6 moderate walks, 7-9 hard walks) and click to select.
The summit of The Calf is marked by an Ordnance Survey Trig Point.
You can find The Calf & 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 Map (the ones with orange/yellow covers):
1:50,000 scale OS Landranger Map (the ones with pink/magenta covers):
See The Calf and the surrounding tops on our free-to-access 'Google Style' Peak Bagging Maps:
See The Calf and the surrounding tops on our downloadable PDF Peak Bagging Map:
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 6ml (9.5km) |
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| Ascent: | 1,946ft (593m) |
| Time: | 4½ hrs |
| Grade: |  (Moderate) |
Route Summary:
The Cross Keys - River Rawthey - Cautley Holme Beck - Cautley Spout - Cautley Crag - Great Dummacks - Little Dummacks - Calders - Bram Rigg Top - The Calf - Bowderdale Beck - Bowderdale Head - Cautley Holme Beck - The Cross Keys
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 6.5ml (10.5km) |
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| Ascent: | 2,612ft (796m) |
| Time: | 5 hrs |
| Grade: |  (Moderate) |
Route Summary:
The Cross Keys - River Rawthey - Cautley Holme Beck - Cautley Spout - Cautley Crag - Great Dummacks - Little Dummacks - Calders - Bram Rigg Top - The Calf - Bowderdale Beck - Bowderdale Head - Yarlside - Ben End - The Cross Keys
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 8ml (12.5km) |
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| Ascent: | 3,485ft (1,062m) |
| Time: | 6½ hrs |
| Grade: |  (Hard) |
Route Summary:
The Cross Keys - River Rawthey - Ben End - Yarlside - Kensgriff - Randygill Top - Bowderdale Beck - The Calf - Bram Rigg Top - Calders - Great Dummacks - Cautley Crag - Croonthard Brow - Cautley Holme Beck - River Rawthey - The Cross Keys
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 9.5ml (15km) |
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| Ascent: | 3,114ft (949m) |
| Time: | 6½ hrs |
| Grade: | (Hard) |
Route Summary:
Sedbergh - Settlebeck Gill - Winder Hill - Arant Haw - Calders - Bram Rigg Top - The Calf - White Fell Head - Long Rigg Beck - Ivy Crag - Eller Mire - Crosdale Beck - Nursery Wood - Lockbank Farm - Sedbergh
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 11ml (17.5km) |
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| Ascent: | 4,430ft (1,350m) |
| Time: | 8½ hrs |
| Grade: |  (Hard) |
Route Summary:
Carlingill Bridge - The Howgills - Carlingill Beck - Carlin Gill - Screes of Black Force - Carlingill Spout - Blakethwaite Bottom - Docker Knott - Great Blea Gill - Simon's Seat (Howgills) - Langdale Beck (Howgills) - Hazelgill Knott - Bowderdale Beck - Bowderdale Head - Cautley Spout - Cautley Crag - Great Dummacks - Little Dummacks - Calders - Bram Rigg Top - The Calf - White Fell Head - Bush Howe - Windscarth Wyke - Breaks Head - Fell Head (Howgills) - Fell Head Scar - Linghaw - Knowles - Back Balk - Gibbet Hill - Carlingill Bridge - The Howgill Fells.
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 11.5ml (18.5km) |
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| Ascent: | 4,411ft (1,344m) |
| Time: | 8.75hrs |
| Grade: | (Hard) |
Route Summary:
The Cross Keys - River Rawthey - Ben End - Yarlside - Kensgriff - Randygill Top - Bowderdale Beck - The Calf - Bush Howe - Fell Head (Howgills) - The Calf - Bram Rigg Top - Calders - Cautley Crag - Croonthard Brow - Cautley Holme Beck - River Rawthey - The Cross Keys
Fellow go4awalkers who have already walked, climbed, summited & bagged The Calf
Karen Pecsvaradi walked up The Calf on May 12th, 2022 [from/via/route] Sedbergh [with] C307 [weather] Cloudy & windy but dry - Took 5 hours
Caroline Winter climbed The Calf on May 31st, 2021 [from/via/route] Cross keys pub, Ben End, Yarlside, Kensgriff, Randygill Top, Bowderdale Beck, The Calf, White Fell Head, Calders, Great Dummacks, Pickering Gill [with] Becky [weather] Excellent views. Warm & sunny. Windy on tops - Long day with lots of ups & downs
Mark Davidson bagged The Calf on November 24th, 2002 [from/via/route] Walk c307 Arant Haw, Calders & The Calf from Sedbergh [with] MK [weather] Pretty good for November
Margaret Richards hiked The Calf on October 25th, 2018 [from/via/route] c307 The Calf from Sedbergh [with] Don [weather] Very misty
Kevin Foster summited The Calf on September 19th, 2017 [from/via/route] Calders [with] Diana and Henry [weather] Cloudy (Sunny in the breaks), no rain. - The walking was now very easy following the ridge path from Calders to The Calf with it's trig point prominent ahead. At the first of two slight cols I diverted off the path to take in the grassy summit of Bram Rigg Top (no cairn). It was declassified as a Nuttall because it lacked the necessary prominence but you never know it may get reinstated.....in which case I've already bagged it!. Rejoining Diana on the main path we climbed from the second col to the trig point on The Calf, passing some fell ponies on our right (or were they just big sheep?). As my wife said should have gone to Spec Savers! The 360 degree panorama from The Calf was amazing especially westwards towards the Lakeland skyline. I also noticed some hang gliders in the vicinity of Fell Head which I'm planning to do quite soon. Tempting as it was to head down the ridge in that direction we then headed back towards Bowderdale Head on a clear path first NNE then descending ENE. There is now a distinct path down to the head of Bowderdale near the sheepfold I'm pleased to say (this section was always a "free for all" & difficult to locate in misty conditions). Anyway, by the time we'd descended from the Bowderdale Head col to the valley floor we had "jelly legs" as my wife describes it but it was definitely worth it!
Tony Rogerson conquered The Calf on May 7th, 2016 [from/via/route] Sedbergh Calders Bram Rigg Top The Calf Sedbergh [with] Caz Floss [weather] Warm Sunny intervals Breezy on tops
Christine Shepherd scaled The Calf on April 20th, 2013 [from/via/route] Walked from The Cross Keys using walk c336 [with] On my own [weather] Sunny but very windy on the summit - Climbed this again with walk c347 on 24.7.14
David Congreave walked up The Calf on February 28th, 2015 [from/via/route] Cautley Spout [with] Jonah [weather] Misty - Missed the Swere Gill path that goes along Cautley Crag. Easy to miss in low visibility
Darren Wilson climbed The Calf on April 24th, 2010 [from/via/route] Howgills, Caughtley Spout, The Calf
Wyn Griffiths bagged The Calf on May 31st, 2014 [from/via/route] c347 from Cross Keys Randygill Top & Yarlside [with] me [weather] Dry, overcast & misty - Training for Welsh 3000
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More Photographs & Pictures of views from, on or of The Calf
The magnificent view from The Calf in the Howgills after a full English and a stiff climb
Blease Fell (left), Fell Head (Howgills) and The Calf (right) above Low Carlingill from the lower slopes of Grayrigg Forest
An Andy Goldworthy 'Sheep Pen' in the valley below from the path between Little Dummacks and The Calf
Blease Fell and The Howgill Fells 2000ft'ers - Randygill Top, The Calf, Calders and Fell Head (Howgills) - from Grayrigg Pike (Grayrigg Forest) summit
Send us your photographs and pictures on, of, or from The Calf
If you would like to add your walk photographs and pictures featuring views from, on or of The Calf 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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