Walk Seat Sandal, Fairfield and Heron Pike from Grasmere
Fabulous views - classic Lakeland
This 9½ mile, Grade 7 (Hard), easy-to-follow, hand-crafted walk, complete with GPS Waypoints, starts at Grasmere in the Lake District & will take you about 7¼ hrs to complete.
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Detailed walk route map PDF | |
Vital Statistics: | ||
| Walk No.: | c358 | |
| Length: | 9½ miles (15km) | |
| Ascent: | 3682 ft (1122m) | |
| Time: | 7¼ 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:
Grasmere - Mill Bridge - Little Tongue - Seat Sandal - Grisedale Tarn - Fairfield - Rydal Head - Great Rigg - Rydal Fell (Heron Pike North Top) - Heron Pike - Alcock Tarn - Grasmere
Points of Interest/Notes on this walk:
Dove Cottage in Grasmere was William Wordsworth's home between1799 and 1813.
William Wordsworth is buried in St Oswald's Church in Grasmere.
Peaks, Summits and Tops reached on this walk:
 3 English Mountains |
 4 Wainwrights |
 5 English Nuttalls |
 0 English Deweys |
 0 Wainwright Outlying Fells |
 2 Marilyns |
 0 Bridgets |
Peak Bagging Statistics for this walk:
The highest point of this walk is Fairfield at 873m (2865ft). Fairfield is classified as an English Mountain (Hewitt) (15th highest in England, 35th highest in England & Wales) and a Wainwright (No. 13).
Fairfield is also known as an English Nuttall (18th highest in England, 40th highest in England & Wales) and an English Marilyn (7th highest in England, 280th highest in the UK).
Completing this walk will also take you to the top of Great Rigg at 766m (2514ft). Great Rigg is classified as an English Mountain (Hewitt) (62nd highest in England, 107th highest in England & Wales) and a Wainwright (No. 54).
Great Rigg is also known as an English Nuttall (76th highest in England, 131st highest in England & Wales).
You will also reach the summit of Seat Sandal at 736m (2417ft). Seat Sandal is classified as an English Mountain (Hewitt) (75th highest in England, 130th highest in England & Wales) and a Wainwright (No. 68).
Seat Sandal is also known as an English Nuttall (94th highest in England, 161st highest in England & Wales) and an English Marilyn (24th highest in England, 512th highest in the UK).
Along the way you will also bag and tick-off:
- Rydal Fell (Heron Pike North Top) at 621m (2038ft). Rydal Fell (Heron Pike North Top) is known as an English Nuttall (231st highest in England, 402nd highest in England & Wales).
- Heron Pike at 612m (2008ft). Heron Pike is classified as a Wainwright (No. 128) and an English Nuttall (246th highest in England, 430th 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
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 Maps (orange/yellow covers):
1:50,000 scale OS Landranger Map (pink/magenta covers):
Some Photos and Pictures from Walk Seat Sandal, Fairfield and Heron Pike from Grasmere
In no particular order . . .
On Heron Pike - with a view all the way from Lake Windermere to Morecambe Bay
St Sunday Crag (left), Fairfield (right) and Grisedale Hause from Seat Sandal
. . . load all 96 pictures & photos from this walk
Send us your photographs and pictures from your walks and hikes
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and we shall do our best to publish them.
(Guide Resolution = 300dpi. At least = 660 pixels (wide) x 440 pixels (high).)
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