Scafell

Climbing Scafell from Lake Head car park, Wasdale

Desk-checkedChecked against the map data on 28 September 2026; not yet walked for this page.Report a problem

This route climbs Scafell from the National Trust's Lake Head car park near Wasdale Head, the same start as the Scafell Pike route here. Parking is paid and the car park sits at about 70 m. No bus stop with a current service lies within 6 km, so this is a start for drivers.

The line is 3.2 km long and gains about 890 m, an average of more than one metre up for every four along. It crosses Lingmell Gill about 130 m from the car park and follows the Old Corpse Road, a public bridleway, for about 400 m. It then leaves the bridleway on a path that climbs without a break to the summit.

The height comes steadily. The path passes about 270 m at the first kilometre, 570 m at the second and 890 m at the third. The final 400 m are graded mountain hiking by OpenStreetMap, one step above its easiest grade, and reach the summit cairn at 964 m.

About 700 m of the line follows public footpaths and bridleways, and 2.5 km crosses open access land. Scafell is one of only four Wainwrights over 3,000 ft and ranks 2nd of the 214 by height.

The GPX file is the same line, from the car park to the summit. Scafell Pike is close by, but the ground between the two needs careful planning with a map; this route does not cover it.

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.