Holme Fell: Height, Walks and Views near Coniston

Holme Fell rises above Yewdale, north of Coniston, in a compact landscape of crags, bracken and woodland. At 315.7 metres, it is the second-lowest Wainwright, but its rough ground and open summit give it considerably more character than that ranking suggests. Walkers come for views of Coniston Water and the surrounding fells, with the old slate workings at Hodge Close adding another dimension to the landscape.

A small fell with a rugged outline

Holme Fell stands between Yewdale and the Tilberthwaite area, close to the northern end of Coniston Water. Rather than a single smooth rise, it is a compact collection of rocky knolls and broken slopes, with woodland around its lower ground. Bracken and heather soften parts of the surface, but the crags give the fell a distinctly rugged outline. Its modest height should not be confused with uniformly easy ground.

The summit reaches 315.7 metres, or 1,036 feet, at grid reference NY315006. From the open upper ground, Coniston Water draws the eye south, while Wetherlam provides a much larger fell backdrop to the west. The appeal lies partly in that contrast: nearby trees and rock hold their detail, yet the outlook extends into the higher fells. It is a view with both a foreground and a long horizon.

Holme Fell among the Southern Fells

Alfred Wainwright included Holme Fell in The Southern Fells, the fourth book of his Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells. It ranks 213th by height among the 214 Wainwrights; only Castle Crag is lower. That makes it an interesting counterpoint to the high summits elsewhere in the same volume, including Scafell Pike and the Coniston fells.

Black Fell is another low Wainwright in this part of the district, while Wetherlam and Swirl How belong to the higher Coniston group nearby. Holme Fell offers a different scale of walking from those larger neighbours. Its attraction is not a long mountain ridge or a high summit, but the variety packed into a relatively small area. Woodland, open fell and exposed rock sit close together.

The slate landscape around Hodge Close

Hodge Close, on the northern side of Holme Fell, is a disused slate quarry whose large open workings are a striking reminder of the area's industrial past. Quarrying forms an important part of the story of this corner of Lakeland, alongside the more familiar scenery of woodland, tarns and grazing land.

The quarry landscape adds historical interest to a visit, but it also deserves care: steep, unprotected drops are not ordinary fellside terrain. Yew Tree Tarn, below the fell beside the Coniston–Ambleside road, provides another recognisable feature of its setting. Together, the tarn, wooded slopes and quarry workings explain why Holme Fell rewards attention beyond its summit height.

Where Holme Fell stands

Summit at grid reference NY315006 · open full map

The real Holme Fell

Walking Holme Fell

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

• Guide links to be curated.

Weather on Holme Fell

Conditions estimated at summit height (316 m) via Open-Meteo. For a walker's forecast, use the Mountain Weather Information Service.

Holme Fell on your wall

A painting of Holme Fell can bring home something easily overlooked in the wider Lakeland landscape: the balance of rough crag, woodland and distant water. As a print or canvas, it offers a familiar reference point for anyone whose walks keep returning to Yewdale and Coniston.

Own “Sunlit Crags of Holme Fell” — our painting of Holme Fell → or browse all Fells & Mountains artwork

Neighbouring Wainwrights in The Southern Fells

• Black Fell 323 m
• Lingmoor Fell 470 m
• Wetherlam 763 m
• Swirl How 802 m

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