Walk Crinkle Crags and Bow Fell from The Old Dungeon Ghyll, Great Langdale
Superb fell walking on a superb ridge
This 11¼ mile, Grade 7 (Hard), easy-to-follow, hand-crafted walk, complete with GPS Waypoints, starts at Great Langdale in the Lake District & will take you about 7¾ hrs to complete.
Detailed walk route map PDF | ||
Vital Statistics: | ||
| Walk No.: | c129 | |
| Length: | 11¼ miles (18km) | |
| Ascent: | 3604 ft (1098m) | |
| Time: | 7¾ hours | |
| Grade: | ![]() | |
| Walk Type: | High Mountains | |
| Gear Needed: | Full mountain gear including boots, warm layers, waterproofs, food & water, and good weather | |
Route outline for this walk:
Great Langdale - The Old Dungeon Ghyll - Stool End Farm - Oxendale - Oxendale Beck - Browney Gill - Red Tarn (Langdale) - Great Knott - Crinkle Crags (South Top) - Crinkle Crags (Long Top) - Crinkle Crags (Gunson Knott) - Shelter Crags - Shelter Crags (North Top) - Three Tarns - Climbers' Traverse (optional) - Flat Crag - Cambridge Crag - Bowfell Buttress - Bow Fell (Bowfell) - Bow Fell (Bowfell) (North Top) - Ore Gap - Angle Tarn (Langdale) - Rossett Pike - Rossett Beck - Mickleden - Mickleden Beck - The Cumbria Way - The Old Dungeon Ghyll - Great Langdale
Peaks, Summits and Tops reached on this walk:
![]() 5 English Mountains |
![]() 3 Wainwrights |
![]() 8 English Nuttalls |
![]() 0 English Deweys |
![]() 0 Wainwright Outlying Fells |
![]() 0 Marilyns |
![]() 0 Bridgets |
Peak Bagging Statistics for this walk:
The highest point of this walk is Bow Fell (Bowfell) at 902m (2960ft). Bow Fell (Bowfell) is classified as an English Mountain (Hewitt) (8th highest in England, 24th highest in England & Wales) and a Wainwright (No. 6).
Bow Fell (Bowfell) is also known as an English Nuttall (10th highest in England, 27th highest in England & Wales).
Completing this walk will also take you to the top of Bow Fell (Bowfell) (North Top) at 866m (2841ft). Bow Fell (Bowfell) (North Top) is also known as an English Nuttall (20th highest in England, 45th highest in England & Wales).
You will also reach the summit of Crinkle Crags (Long Top) at 859m (2819ft). Crinkle Crags (Long Top) is classified as an English Mountain (Hewitt) (20th highest in England, 43rd highest in England & Wales) and a Wainwright (No. 17).
Crinkle Crags (Long Top) is also known as an English Nuttall (24th highest in England, 50th highest in England & Wales).
Along the way you will also bag and tick-off:
- Crinkle Crags (South Top) at 834m (2737ft). Crinkle Crags (South Top) is classified as an English Mountain (Hewitt) (30th England, 56th Eng & Wal) and an English Nuttall (36th highest in England, 65th highest in England & Wales).
- Shelter Crags at 815m (2675ft). Shelter Crags is classified as an English Mountain (Hewitt) (35th England, 66th Eng & Wal) and an English Nuttall (42nd highest in England, 79th highest in England & Wales).
- Shelter Crags (North Top) at 775m (2543ft). Shelter Crags (North Top) is known as an English Nuttall (70th highest in England, 122nd highest in England & Wales).
- Great Knott at 695m (2281ft). Great Knott is known as an English Nuttall (140th highest in England, 229th highest in England & Wales).
- Rossett Pike at 651m (2136ft). Rossett Pike is classified as an English Mountain (Hewitt) (143rd highest in England, 246th highest in England & Wales), a Wainwright (No. 115) and an English Nuttall (191st highest in England, 329th highest in England & Wales).
Be Adventure Smart
If walking in the Lake District (and anywhere else) please be adventure smart.
Ask yourself 5 questions before you set off:
- Am I confident I have the KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS for the day?
- Do I know what the WEATHER will be like?
- Do I have the right GEAR for the day?
- Do I have enough FOOD & DRINK for the day?
- Do I have all the ESSENTIAL ITEMS for the day?
Note that there is no mobile phone or WiFi coverage in many parts of the Lake District
A dedicated GPS Device can be a good navigational aid, but only if you know how to use it properly. See The Myths and Truths about GPS for Walking and Hiking
National Trails & Long Paths included on this walk:
Part of this walk follows a section of The Cumbria Way, a 112km (70 miles) linear footpath connecting Ulverston in Cumbria, England with Carlisle in Cumbria, England. The Cumbria Way is waymarked by named posts. For more walks that include a section of this trail see The Cumbria Way.
You can find this walk and other nearby walks on these unique Interactive Walk Planning Maps:
(worth a look if you're new to go4awalk.com & have never seen one of these before.)
1:25,000 scale OS Explorer Map (orange/yellow covers):
1:50,000 scale OS Landranger Maps (pink/magenta covers):
Some Photos and Pictures from Walk Crinkle Crags and Bow Fell from The Old Dungeon Ghyll, Great Langdale
In no particular order . . .
*Crinkle Crags (Long Top), Gunson Knott & Crinkle Crags (South Top) (right) including the infamous bad step with the Scafell Massiff beyond from Great Knott
*Great Knott, Crinckle Crags and Bow Fell (Bowfell) from the Red Tarn (Langdale)
. . . load all 153 pictures & photos from this walk
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