Great End Wainwright: Height, Views and Character

Great End is the blunt northern bastion of the Scafell massif, rising above Sprinkling Tarn with a face quite unlike its broad, stony summit. At 909.5 metres, it is the fifth-highest Wainwright. Walkers value it for that contrast: formidable crags seen from Borrowdale, followed by an open top with far-reaching views across the central and northern fells.

A fell of two characters

Great End is defined by the contrast between its northern crags and its spacious summit. From upper Borrowdale, the fell appears as a great terminating wall at the north-eastern end of the Scafell massif. Its dark, broken face rises above Sprinkling Tarn and gives Great End one of the most recognisable profiles in this part of the Lakes.

Above the crags, however, the character changes. The summit is broad, stony and comparatively level, with the highest ground reaching 909.5 metres, or 2,984 feet. The edge of the plateau gives a striking outlook into Borrowdale, while wider views take in Great Gable, the surrounding Scafell fells and, in clear weather, much of the northern Lake District. This combination of a severe outer face and an open upper landscape is central to Great End’s appeal.

Great End in the Southern Fells

Alfred Wainwright included Great End in The Southern Fells, Book Four of his seven-volume Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells. It ranks fifth in height among the 214 Wainwrights, below only Scafell Pike, Scafell, Helvellyn and Skiddaw.

Its position places it among some of Lakeland’s best-known high ground. Allen Crags and Seathwaite Fell lie around the head of Borrowdale, Esk Pike stands across the high country near Esk Hause, and Scafell Pike rises farther along the massif. Great End also occupies ground near the watershed between Borrowdale and Eskdale, giving the summit a sense of standing between two markedly different valleys.

The crags above Borrowdale

Great End’s northern face is well known in British climbing, particularly in winter conditions. Central Gully and South-East Gully are established lines through the crags, although their seriousness varies greatly with snow and ice. For fell walkers, the same face is usually appreciated from below or from the plateau edge rather than tackled directly.

This climbing history adds to the fell’s reputation, but Great End needs no technical association to hold attention. Its scale above Sprinkling Tarn, its position at the head of Borrowdale and its place among the highest Wainwrights make it a distinctive summit in a crowded and celebrated part of the Southern Fells.

Where Great End stands

Summit at grid reference NY226083 · open full map

The real Great End

Walking Great End

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

• Great End - Seathwaite (andrewswalks.co.uk)
• Glaramara, Allen Crags, Great End and Seathwaite Fell (walkingenglishman.com)
• Great End (walklakes.co.uk)

Weather on Great End

Conditions estimated at summit height (910 m) via Open-Meteo. For a walker's forecast, use the Mountain Weather Information Service.

Great End on your wall

Great End’s stark crags, pale summit ground and shifting Borrowdale weather offer strong subjects for landscape art. Our AI Art Personas have painted this landscape in varied styles, capturing both the weight of the northern face and the quieter space above it for prints and canvases.

Own “Sunlit Great End Rock Face” — our painting of Great End → or browse all Fells & Mountains artwork

Neighbouring Wainwrights in The Southern Fells

• Allen Crags 785 m
• Seathwaite Fell 601 m
• Esk Pike 885 m
• Scafell Pike 978 m

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