Scafell Wainwright Guide: Height, Views and Crags

Scafell is England’s second-highest fell, yet its close neighbour Scafell Pike often takes more of the attention. At 963.9 metres, it has a broad, rough summit and formidable crags above upper Eskdale. Walkers value it for its quieter, sterner character, its long views across the Southern Fells, and the sense that this is a major mountain in its own right.

A mountain apart from the Pike

Scafell stands south-west of Scafell Pike, separated from it by the narrow col of Mickledore. At 963.9 metres (3,162 feet), it is the second-highest fell in England and the second highest of the 214 Wainwrights. Its height is only part of its identity. From Wasdale and Eskdale it presents a broad, weighty mass, while its eastern side is broken by some of the finest crags in the district.

The summit area is spacious and stony rather than pointed. On clear days the outlook takes in Scafell Pike at close quarters, with Great End, Great Gable, Lingmell and the wider ranges of the western and southern Lakes beyond. The contrast between the open summit and the abrupt rock below gives Scafell a sterner character than its rounded outline might suggest.

Crags, rock and climbing history

Scafell is built from the hard volcanic rocks of the Borrowdale Volcanic Group, the ancient formation that underlies much of the central Lake District. Weathering and glaciation helped shape its cliffs, gullies and high cols. Scafell Crag and East Buttress are major landmarks in British rock climbing, associated with the development of climbing in the Wasdale mountains.

The best-known obstacle is Broad Stand, the steep rock step above Mickledore between Scafell and Scafell Pike. Despite the apparent closeness of the two summits, Broad Stand makes a direct link serious ground rather than an ordinary fell-walking connection. This topographical fact explains why Scafell and Scafell Pike can feel much more separate on the ground than they appear on a map.

Scafell in The Southern Fells

Alfred Wainwright included Scafell in The Southern Fells, Book Four of his Pictorial Guide series. Within that volume, Scafell belongs to the high, rugged group at the head of Wasdale and Eskdale. Its neighbouring Wainwrights are Slight Side to the south, Scafell Pike beyond Mickledore, and Lingmell and Great End in the surrounding massif.

Slight Side forms the long southern continuation of Scafell’s ground, while the Pike group rises separately across Mickledore. This arrangement gives Scafell an unusual position: it is part of England’s highest mountain country, but it is not simply an outlying shoulder of Scafell Pike. Its independent summit, extensive crags and long associations with Wasdale climbing ensure it has a clear identity of its own. For many walkers, that combination of altitude, rock and relative quiet is exactly what makes Scafell memorable.

Where Scafell stands

Summit at grid reference NY206064 · open full map

The real Scafell

Walking Scafell

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

• Quick Guide to Scafell Pike Routes (climb-scafell-pike.co.uk)
• Scafell and Slight Side - Wasdale walks (andrewswalks.co.uk)
• The best walking routes up Scafell Pike (ramblers.org.uk)

Weather on Scafell

Conditions estimated at summit height (964 m) via Open-Meteo. For a walker's forecast, use the Mountain Weather Information Service.

Scafell on your wall

Scafell’s dark crags, broad summit and shifting Lakeland weather give it a presence that carries well into art. Our AI Art Personas have painted this landscape in varied moods, offering a way to keep something of the Southern Fells close at home.

Own “Sunlit Scafell Peaks and Ravine” — our painting of Scafell → or browse all Fells & Mountains artwork

Neighbouring Wainwrights in The Southern Fells

• Slight Side 762 m
• Scafell Pike 978 m
• Lingmell 807 m
• Great End 910 m

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