Bakestall: 673.5m Height, Walks and Northern Fells Views

Bakestall is a northern shoulder of Skiddaw with more character than its modest outline might suggest. Its grassy upper slopes sit above the broken face of Dead Crags, with Dash Falls nearby and open country stretching north towards the Solway. At 673.5m, it offers a quieter perspective on the Skiddaw massif: less about standing above everything, more about seeing how the high fells meet the northern valleys.

A grassy shoulder above Dead Crags

Bakestall belongs to the northern side of the Skiddaw massif. It is not an isolated peak: higher ground continues south towards Skiddaw, while its northern slopes fall towards the valley of Dash Beck. That relationship gives it two distinct characters. From above, it is a rounded, grassy fell; from below, the rock of Dead Crags gives this shoulder a much stronger presence.

The contrast is worth understanding before a visit. Bakestall's interest lies as much in its position and its craggy northern face as in the shape of its top. The summit area is open rather than sharply pointed, with none of the narrow ridge scenery associated with some of Lakeland's better-known summits. Its recorded height is 673.5m, or 2,210ft, and its summit grid reference is NY266307.

Bakestall among the Northern Fells

Bakestall appears in The Northern Fells, Book Five of Alfred Wainwright's seven-volume guide to the Lakeland fells. It ranks 100th by height among the 214 Wainwrights. Although physically part of Skiddaw's northern slopes, it receives recognition as a fell in its own right within that collection.

This is the quieter northern side of a massif whose best-known approaches face Keswick. The surrounding country includes broad grassy slopes, beck valleys and extensive stretches of open fell. Great Cockup and Great Calva help place Bakestall within that northern landscape, while Skiddaw provides the much higher backdrop to the south. Walks visiting Bakestall may treat it as the day's objective or include it within a longer outing on Skiddaw; those choices involve quite different amounts of ascent and exposure.

Dash Falls and the northern outlook

The best-known nearby feature is Dash Falls, also called Whitewater Dash, where Dash Beck descends beside the northern edge of the Skiddaw massif. Together with Dead Crags, the waterfall gives the approach country a ruggedness that is not immediately apparent from Bakestall's rounded upper slopes.

From the fell, the outward view is towards the lower northern country and, in clear conditions, the Solway Firth and Scotland beyond. Turning south brings the rising bulk of Skiddaw back into the picture. That contrast between high ground close at hand and a long outlook towards the coast is one of Bakestall's particular rewards.

Where Bakestall stands

Summit at grid reference NY266307 · open full map

The real Bakestall

Walking Bakestall

We make artwork, not route guides — these are the guides we'd point a friend to:

• Bakestall (andrewswalks.co.uk)
• Bakestall Route One (wainwrightroutes.co.uk)
• Bakestall & Great Calva from Peter House Farm (masarnenramblers.com)

Weather on Bakestall

Conditions estimated at summit height (674 m) via Open-Meteo. For a walker's forecast, use the Mountain Weather Information Service.

Bakestall on your wall

A painting of Bakestall can recall a side of Skiddaw that is easily overlooked: pale grass, dark crags and the long northern outlook. On the wall, that familiar meeting of rough fell and open country offers a quiet connection to days spent beyond Keswick.

Own “Vibrant Shadows on Bakestall Fell” — our painting of Bakestall → or browse all Fells & Mountains artwork

Neighbouring Wainwrights in The Northern Fells

• Skiddaw 930 m
• Great Cockup 526 m
• Skiddaw Little Man 865 m
• Carl Side 747 m

Part of our guide to all 214 Wainwrights — see the full index.