Wainwrights Baggers

Book 7 · The Western Fells

Great Gable

A 899 m Wainwright in The Western Fells, with one desk-checked ascent from Seathwaite, Borrowdale: 4.6 km and 780 m of climbing.

Explore Great Gable in 3D

Is Great Gable a Wainwright?

Yes. Great Gable is one of the 214 Wainwrights: number 12 of 33 in Book 7, The Western Fells, of Alfred Wainwright’s Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells.

Climbing Great Gable from Seathwaite, Borrowdale

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Base BrownBrandrethGreen GableGrey KnottsSeathwaite FellP500 m
The route in green, from the car park (P) to the summit (triangle), with the bus stop (B) where it falls on the map and nearby Wainwrights as dots. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

This route climbs Great Gable from the field car park at Seathwaite in Borrowdale. Parking is paid, the car park has room for about 60 cars, and it sits at about 125 m. The nearest bus stop with a current service is at Honister, 1.6 km away in a straight line and not on this route, served by the 77A.

The line is 4.6 km long and gains about 780 m. It leaves Seathwaite on a lane and a track, crossing Grains Gill after about 325 m. A public footpath then carries the route for 2.5 km, climbing gradually from about 130 m to 420 m and crossing Mitchell Gill at 2.3 km. A short stretch of rocky bridleway follows, and the route passes Styhead Tarn at about 3.1 km.

The last 1.45 km are the steepest, on a path OpenStreetMap grades mountain hiking. It climbs from about 440 m to Windy Gap, the col between Great Gable and Green Gable, at 4.1 km and about 750 m, then turns up the final 500 m to the summit at 899 m.

About 3 km of the line follows public footpaths and bridleways, and 4.2 km crosses open access land. Great Gable is 899 m high and ranks 7th of the 214 Wainwrights by height.

The GPX file is the same line, from the car park to the summit. Return the same way, or plan another descent with a map before you start.

Download the GPXFree. The route is © OpenStreetMap contributors and the file is released under the Open Database Licence: you may copy, share and adapt it.

Where Great Gable stands

1 · Eastern2 · Far Eastern3 · Central4 · Southern5 · Northern6 · North Western7 · WesternGreat Gable
Great Gable among all 214 Wainwright summits, each in its true position.

Nearest Wainwrights

Straight-line distances between summits.

All the fells in The Western FellsAll 214 Wainwrights

Map and route data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Heights along the route from OS Terrain 50. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (NaPTAN, Bus Open Data Service, Lake District National Park Authority rights of way).

Access land © Natural England copyright. Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Heights, grid references and summit positions come from The Database of British and Irish Hills v18.3, used under CC BY 4.0.