The Southern rock formation of Helm Crag

Introduction
This part of the Lake District is easily accessible from Manchester, taking only one and a half hours to get here. The chief attractions of the area are the Fairfield Horseshoe including Red Screes and the Langdale Pikes which include Grasmere Common. There are many smaller, picturesque fells to suit the relaxed pace including Wansfell and Loughrigg Fell.

Helm Crag with the 'lion and the lamb' clearly seen from this angle.

On Red Screes above the Kirkstone Inn

Fairfield seen from Tarn Crag to the West

Looking up the western arm of the horseshoe and Great Rigg

The Fairfield Tops
The Fairfield Horseshoe is a classic horseshoe that includes the spurs of Heron Pike and High Pike. The traverse of this horseshoe is a fairly long walk while the inclusion of Red Screes will take the walk all day to do. Good routes of ascent include that of Nab Scar from Rydal and also via High Pike. The southern slopes of Fairfield tend to be fairly grassy with a few crags on Heron Pike and in particular Red Screes. The northern slopes, however, are a different story with deep corries and impressive crags that look like magic in the winter.

High Pike on the Fairfield Horseshoe

The Helvellyn range seen from the Fairfield Horseshoe

The Northern escarpment of Fairfield

Middle Dodd seen from Red Screes

Looking south from Fairfield towards Great Rigg and Rydal Fell

A more impressive route starts from the Kirkstone pass and ascends very steeply up Red Screes. There is an easy path up to the summit but nice scrambles can easily be sought after. The Kirkstone Pass is a great place for an afternoon pint especially on a hot summers day. Further south towards Ambleside, the eastern slope has been badly disfigured by quarry work though this is not visible when walking along the ridge above the works.

Red Screes seen from Wansfell

The slopes above Grasmere upto Great Rigg

Fairfield seen from Dove Crag

Ascents are also made from the west at Grasmere. The slopes here are fairly steep but some weaknesses present themselves in the form of the valley upto Grisedale Tarn and the small spur of Great tongue.

The eastern escarpment of Red Screes

Wansfell seen from Red Screes

Red Screes and the eastern Fairfield slopes

Wansfell is a short hill to climb from Ambleside and provides fine views down Windermere. When combined with a visit to Stock Ghyll Force (a pleasant waterfall) this provides a very nice and pleasant ramble.

Grasmere Common
Grasmere Common includes the infamous Helm Crag otherwise known as the Lion and the Lamb - due to its rock formation on the top that's clearly seen to form the silhouette of a lion and a lamb when seen from Town End just outside Grasmere. At each end of the short summit ridge, there are two rocky towers. The western top is the highest - but also the trickiest to reach. Alfred Wainwright made these notes: "The uppermost inches of Scafell and Helvellyn and Skiddaw can show nothing like Helm Crag's crown of shattered and petrified stone". He also adds: "This is one of the very few summits in Lakeland reached only by climbing rocks".

The Western summit of Helm Crag

The Bulk of Helm Crag seen from the west

Looking north from Helm Crag to the East Ridge of Steel Fell

The walk up to Helm Crag can be extended westwards to Gibson Knott. The ridge here is quite bumpy with many short optional scrambles to do. The going is often muddy but largely good. From Gibson Knott, the walk can be continued on to High Raise, back down to Far Easedale or across to Tarn Crag. Far Easedale is most people's choice of return but Tarn Crag is arguably more scenic.

Helm Crag and Far Easdale

The Ridge leading west from Helm Crag to Gibson Knott"

High raise and Grasmere common seen from the Fairfield horseshoe

Tarn Crag is very undulating on top with many false summits - Tarn Crag itself is really just a bump on a spur that rises just 5m above the general scenery. It is, however, quite dramatic when seen from the east - especially from the upper section of its east ridge. This is perhaps the best approach. The views from the plateau edge down to Easdale Tarn are stunning.

Deer Bields Crag seen from the East Ridge of Tarn Crag

Tarn Crag seen from Sourmilk Gill

Easedale Tarn seen from Tarn Crag

An interesting approach from the west would probably be to tackle a spectacular grassy platform called Deer Bields located just north of the summit. The entrance from the west is steep and probably hard to locate but the tantalising position above the best crags on the mountain would probably make it a very worthwhile excursion.

Other places worth visiting around here include Easdale itself. It's a popular picnic site and very pleasant on a sunny spring day. Sourmilk Gill, when dry, provides an excellent introduction to easy scrambling.

Upper Easedale seen from Tarn Crag

The Langdale Pikes seen from Tarn Crag

Further afield, the Langdale Pikes are attainable from Grasmere by way of a long walk. They are described in the Langdale section but in brief, they are impressive little mountains with some great cliff and gill scenery.

Another hill for the less active types is Loughrigg Fell. It has some very nice grassy paths and is pleasantly wooded in its lower reaches. The topography is confusing even when clear and so provides people with some good practice at map and compass work. Small crags offer some fun for the scrambler while a huge cave exists on the fell:- big enough to fit the population of Ambleside into. Last remarks from the Wainwright guidebooks suggest that everybody will like it. A walk along the waters of Grasmere Common and Rydal provide a fitting end to the day.

The villages
Ambleside is the bigger place of the two and has a wealth of gearshops and eating establishments. It can get overcrowded and suffers from traffic pretty badly during peak times in the year.

Grasmere is still popular but quieter as the main road doesn't go through the village. There are three good pubs in the village. There are at least two teashops in this village. Wordsworth has his grave and house (Dove Cottage) in Grasmere and there is also a very nice ginger bread factory (on the corner of the church).