Scafell Pike too busy? Seven alternative Lake District hikes without the crowds

This year will mark 100 years since England’s highest mountain, Scafell Pike, was gifted to the nation in recognition of the tens of thousands of lives lost in the First World War.

Given by Lord Leconfield in 1919, it was the first of 13 Lakeland peaks handed to the National Trust in recognition of the wartime sacrifices made by the men of the area. Today, it’s hard to believe that the 3,208ft mountain was once privately owned and not freely accessible.

It’s a fair bet that the 250,000-plus people who climb the fell each year don’t give ownership much thought, either. I’ll quickly declare that, ever since my dad took me hillwalking in the Lakes when I was five years old, I too had assumed that the fells were there for me to roam freely.

But now the walkers wandering the path on Scafell Pike, and those on other popular fells, are eroding the landscape and upsetting the delicate balance of the ecosystem. The peak is suffering from the recurring word that seems to be blighting the media lately – overtourism. To contain the damage, National Trust rangers repaired many of Scafell Pike’s tracks last year and rebuilt the summit’s war memorial.

But there’s something we can all do to help. Simply walk elsewhere. The Lake District has far more worthy fells and walks than people realise; the great fell-walker Alfred Wainwright identified 214 peaks above 1,000ft, for a start. Here are some suggestions that are often overlooked – and really shouldn’t be.

Black Combe

It may not offer the most dramatic walking – it’s a rather featureless slog up its 1,968ft – but its dramatic location as the only Lakeland fell that rises up from the sea certainly makes up for it. The most south-westerly of the Lake District's peaks, the walk starts close to Silecroft beach, a wild stretch of near-empty sands, and takes you to a summit with sweeping coastal views.

On a clear day, it’s claimed you can see all four of the UK’s shores; from Criffel, a hill in south-west Scotland, to Snowdon in Wales, and from the Irish coast to Cross Fell in the Pennines. Even on a less clear day, you should be able to see north to St Bees Head, south to Morecambe Bay and across to the Isle of Man.

Ennerdale Water

Plenty of the lakes offer waterside walks with stunning views, magnificent peaks, dreamy reflections… and hordes of people. Ennerdale Water, on the other hand, offers respite from the crowds mainly because there’s no road around the lake (there are car parks at the western end).

This means that you can enjoy the eight-mile circuit walk with little chance of meeting more than a handful of people. Not to mention that the mirroring of the peaks in the still, undisturbed water is mesmerising.

Black Fell

Tarn Hows, between Coniston and Hawkshead, is one of the Lake District’s prettiest (and most popular) landmarks: a sparkling, sinuously curved tarn set among pine and spruce woodland. While in reality, this is a bit of an artificial landscape, created from three small tarns with introduced trees, it’s still undeniably idyllic. But few visitors venture beyond the easy, circular waterside walk.

Branch off from this main path at the northern end of the tarn, however, and you’ll find a track taking you up Black Fell. From the easily gained 1,059ft summit, your reward for a little over an hour’s walking is an unspeakably good view, including Windermere, Coniston Water, Esthwaite Water, and fells including Coniston Old Man, Langdale Pikes and Bowfell.

Wansfell

This circular walk not only offers a choice of starts – village pub or Ambleside town centre, depending which way you do it – but also one of the central Lake District’s finest panoramas. I suggest the pub start: the Mortal Man Inn in Troutbeck village, just north of Windermere.

An easyish signposted track leads west out of the village to the top of Wansfell (1,597ft), from where there are superb views over Windermere and its surrounding fells, including the Langdale Pikes. The track descends through Stock Ghyll woods to Ambleside – plenty of places for a quick cuppa – and returns to Troutbeck through woodland, passing Jenkin’s Crag, and across Wansfell’s lower southern slopes. The Mortal Man’s excellent beer garden, surrounded by rolling landscapes, makes a fitting finish.

Dollywaggon Pike and Nethermost Pike

Although neighbours of the ever-popular Helvellyn, and sharing a starting point in Glenridding, these two fells are infinitely quieter but offer almost as much height – both are close to 3,000ft, while Helvellyn is 3,118ft – and some equally tough and exhilarating walking.

The walk starts gently enough, passing tree-shrouded Lanty’s Tarn and into Grisedale valley, before a ridge climb up to the flat top of Nethermost Pike, a dip down and a final climb to Dollywaggon Pike. Fine views of some of the Lake District’s iconic mountains – weather-dependent, of course – are your reward: Helvellyn, Great Gable, Scafell Pike, Bowfell and the Coniston fells.

Esk Valley

For a family walk, you’re on to a sure-fire winner with one that starts aboard the impossibly cute Ravenglass and Eskdale railway – a narrow-gauge steam train ride from Ravenglass, on the west coast, ending seven miles later in the heart of Eskdale, one of the Lake District’s quieter valleys.

The route originally carried iron ore from the valley to the coast. From the final station, Dalegarth, you can take a two-mile circular walk along the river Esk, between St Catherine’s church and Doctor Bridge, with an optional uphill extension to the 60ft falls of Stanley Ghyll Force.

Harter Fell

In the south west, both the Duddon and Eskdale valleys offer quieter walking than others, mainly because they’re less easy to reach: either you brave it over the notoriously steep Wrynose and Hardknott passes (a one-in-three gradient in parts) or take lengthier routes via Coniston or the coast. The 2,142ft Harter Fell sits between the two valleys and can be climbed from both.

From the Duddon, the starting point is Birks Bridge, while from Eskdale it’s the foot of Hardknott Pass. Both walks can include a visit to Hardknott Roman Fort. The benefit of lying outside the Lake District’s main fell ranges is that the summit gives a wonderful perspective of them, including Pillar, the Scafells and Bowfell, with the added bonus of views out to sea.