Pike of Stickle: 708.4m Height, Walks and Views

Pike of Stickle is the rounded rock summit that gives the western end of the Langdale Pikes such a distinctive outline. At 708.4 metres, it is not the highest of the group, but its steep sides and compact summit give it a character all its own. Walkers come for the rocky finish, the outlook over Great Langdale and its place in one of Lakeland’s best-known fell groups.

A rocky summit above Great Langdale

Seen from Great Langdale, Pike of Stickle has an unmistakable domed profile, rising above the steep ground on the dale’s northern side. Its summit is a compact outcrop rather than a broad fell top, and the final ascent involves rocky scrambling. That distinction matters: a walk linking the Langdale Pikes includes stretches of open upland, but Pike of Stickle’s summit requires more care, particularly when the rock is wet or icy.

The outlook takes in Great Langdale below, with Bowfell and the Crinkle Crags prominent across the head of the valley. Nearby Loft Crag and Harrison Stickle provide a close view of the contrasting shapes within the group. The steep southern face of the Langdale Pikes and the gentler upland behind them are part of what makes these fells so rewarding to explore together.

Pike of Stickle in the Central Fells

Pike of Stickle belongs to Alfred Wainwright’s The Central Fells, the third book in his seven-volume Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells. Its recorded height is 708.4 metres, or 2,324 feet, placing it 83rd among the 214 Wainwrights. The summit grid reference is NY273073.

Its neighbouring Wainwrights include Loft Crag, Thunacar Knott, Harrison Stickle and Pavey Ark. These are closely connected fells, so Pike of Stickle is commonly visited as part of a wider Langdale Pikes walk rather than as an isolated objective. Great Langdale is the usual base for such outings. Although the summits stand relatively close together, the ascent from the valley is substantial, and the crags, steep ground and rocky summit approaches deserve proper planning rather than assumptions based on distance alone.

The Langdale axe-making sites

Pike of Stickle is also associated with one of Britain’s best-known prehistoric stone-working landscapes. During the Neolithic period, people worked the fine-grained volcanic rock found around the Langdale Pikes into stone axe roughouts. These were subsequently ground and polished, and axes identified as Langdale stone have been found widely across Britain.

The workings around Pike of Stickle and neighbouring screes are often described collectively as the Langdale axe factories. This was not a factory in the modern sense, but an extensive landscape of extraction and working sites. The fell’s rocks belong to the Borrowdale Volcanic Group. Their value to prehistoric communities adds another dimension to the familiar skyline: these steep slopes preserve evidence of skilled work undertaken thousands of years before recreational fell-walking.

Where Pike of Stickle stands

Summit at grid reference NY273073 · open full map

The real Pike of Stickle

Walking Pike of Stickle

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

• Langdale Pikes walk - Loft Crag - Pike o'Stickle (andrewswalks.co.uk)
• Pavey Ark, Thunacar Knott, Pike of Stickle, Harrison Stickle (walklakes.co.uk)
• Pike O'Stickle (masarnenramblers.com)

Weather on Pike of Stickle

Conditions estimated at summit height (708 m) via Open-Meteo. For a walker's forecast, use the Mountain Weather Information Service.

Pike of Stickle on your wall

A painting of Pike of Stickle brings a recognisable piece of Great Langdale into the home: that rounded summit, the crags beneath it and the changing light across the fell. As a print or canvas, it can hold the memory of a day among the Pikes.

Own “Sunlit Pike of Stickle Dome” — our painting of Pike of Stickle → or browse all Fells & Mountains artwork

Neighbouring Wainwrights in The Central Fells

• Loft Crag 682 m
• Thunacar Knott 723 m
• Harrison Stickle 735 m
• Pavey Ark 702 m

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