54-572: Latrigg is one of the lowest fells in the Lake District in North West England , but is a popular climb due to its convenient location overlooking the town of Keswick and the beautiful views down the valley of Borrowdale from the summit. It is the least mountainous of the Skiddaw fells, the summit being almost entirely devoid of rock. The slopes of Latrigg are partially wooded, and logging work
108-489: A sanatorium . It now provides accommodation and learning opportunities for schools and universities, as well as specialist natural science training courses to adults. Since 2012 it has operated mostly off-grid, generating its own hydroelectricity and biomass heating . In 2017, the Mountain Heritage Trust relocated its headquarters, and collections of objects and archives relating to British mountaineering, to
162-632: A collective rather than a specific location or specific summit (the "s" in til fjells is an old genitive form remaining only in fixed expressions). According to Ivar Aasen, berg refers to cliffs, bedrock and notable elevations of the surface underpinned by bedrock; berg also refers to the substance of bedrock. For all practical purposes, fjell can be translated as "mountain" and the Norwegian language has no other commonly used word for mountain. In Sweden, fjäll generally refers to any mountain or upland high enough that forest will not naturally survive at
216-572: A community; thus the township of Cartmel Fell . In northern England, there is a Lord of the Fells – this ancient aristocratic title being associated with the Lords of Bowland . Groups of cairns are a common feature on many fells, often marking the summit – there are fine examples on Wild Boar Fell in Mallerstang Dale, Cumbria , and on Nine Standards Rigg just outside Kirkby Stephen , Cumbria. As
270-444: A high ridge to the north. This is the saddle that gives Blencathra its alternative name, rising beyond the dip to the sixth top, Atkinson Pike. This is the focal point for connecting ridges to Bannerdale Crags and Mungrisdale Common to the north. The ‘saddle’ is bounded by crags to the east, Tarn Crag and Foule Crag being the principal faces. Between Tarn Crag and Foule Crag is Sharp Edge, an aptly named arête which provides one of
324-461: A less serious nature. Alfred Wainwright described the ascent from Threlkeld via Hall's Fell ridge as ‘ positively the finest way to any mountain-top in the district’. Wainwright recorded more routes of ascent for Blencathra than any other fell. Blease Fell and Scales Fell provided easy walking on grass and fast routes of descent. Gategill Fell he noted as dull until the final arête is reached, while Hallsfell and Doddick Fell both received praise. Of
378-617: A mountain or moor -covered hill. The term is most often employed in Fennoscandia , Iceland , the Isle of Man , parts of northern England , and Scotland . The English word "fell" comes from Old Norse fell and fjall (both forms existed). It is cognate with Danish fjeld , Faroese fjall and fjøll , Icelandic fjall and fell , Norwegian fjell with dialects fjøll , fjødd , fjedd , fjedl , fjill , fil(l) , and fel , and Swedish fjäll , all referring to mountains rising above
432-539: A roughly circular upland area about 10 miles (16 km) wide. At the centre is the marshy depression of Skiddaw Forest — a treeless plateau at an altitude of 1,300 ft (400 m) — and flowing outward from here are the rivers which divide the area into three sectors . Between the Glenderaterra Beck and the River Caldew , the southeastern sector contains Blencathra and its satellites. Blencathra
486-403: A whole, strictly speaking refers to the summit; the slopes have names such as Tilberthwaite High Fell, Low Fell and Above Beck Fells. The word "fell" is also used in the names of various breeds of livestock , bred for life on the uplands, such as Rough Fell sheep, Fell terriers and Fell ponies . It is also found in many place names across the north of England, often attached to the name of
540-468: A word limited to far-Northern dialects of Finnish and Karelian, is a loan from Sami , compare Proto-Sami *tuontër , South Sami doedtere , Northern Sami duottar , Inari Sami tuodâr "uplands, mountains, tundra", Kildin Sami tūndâr , which means "uplands, treeless mountain tract" and is cognate with Finnish tanner "hard ground". From this Sami word, the word " tundra " is borrowed, as well, through
594-513: Is a grassy rigg, climbing up to Jenkin Hill and the top of Skiddaw Little Man . Latrigg itself sends out a narrow ridge to the east, about a mile long and ending at Brundholm. The fell is bordered by the two streams falling from the northern col . Gale Gill runs west to join the River Derwent between Derwentwater and Bassenthwaite Lake . The unnamed eastern stream joins Whit Beck and then flows into
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#1732855072588648-574: Is attributed to a Harold Robinson of nearby Threlkeld , a frequent visitor in the years after the Second World War . The view is very extensive, enhanced in every direction by the sharp fall of the slopes from the summit. To the west is the bulk of Skiddaw , and from west round to north-east the Back o’Skiddaw fells make up the foreground, backed by the mountains of Galloway , the Southern Uplands ,
702-466: Is believed to have been driven for lead. Saddleback Old Mine had workings near Scales Tarn and at Mousthwaite Comb. The mine was driven for lead but in the 1890s raised mostly limonite . This was marketed unsuccessfully as a pigment and the mine closed in 1894. In the Glenderaterra valley to the west of Blease Fell were Brundholme and Blencathra mines. Lead, copper and baryte were raised between
756-478: Is currently being undertaken. One lone tree just south of the summit is prominently viewed in silhouette when approaching Keswick from the west along the A66 . It also has petrified trees on top. The name Latrigg is first attested in 1220, in the form Laterhayheved ; this name was succeeded by 1666 by the form Latterig . In the assessment of Diana Whaley , the origins of the name "are doubtful". Laterhayheved ends with
810-466: Is more of a small range than a single fell , a series of tops standing out on a curving ridge three miles (five kilometres) long. It has smooth, easy slopes to the north and west, whilst displaying a complex system of rocky spurs and scree slopes to the south and east. When viewed from the southeast, particularly on the main Keswick to Penrith road, Blencathra appears almost symmetrical. To left and right,
864-425: Is of Ordovician age. There has been considerable mining activity beneath the slopes of Blencathra. Threlkeld mine lies at the base of Hallsfell. From 1879 to 1928, it was a profitable venture for the raising of lead and zinc ores and is believed to hold further reserves should the economic situation improve. A small trial working can be seen beside Blease Gill near the 2,000 ft (610 m) contour. This
918-413: Is of Ordovician age. Two rock-slope failures exist on the southern slopes of Latrigg northeast of Keswick. The top of the fell is sheep pasture, falling gently to the north and quite steeply to the south. Some stumps remain at the top of the southern slope as evidence of past deforestation, together with few small trees, bent down by the prevailing wind. A ditch and parapet run across the top. The parapet
972-472: Is the best feature: a serrated skyline of all the major Lakeland peaks, these being, clockwise, Coniston Old Man , Crinkle Crags , Bowfell , Esk Pike , Scafell Pike , Great Gable , Kirk Fell , Pillar , High Stile , Grasmoor and Grisedale Pike . To the right of this, the Isle of Man and the Mourne Mountains are visible on clear days. Derwent Water and Thirlmere are the major lakes visible;
1026-515: Is the case with Seathwaite Fell , for example, which would be the common grazing land used by the farmers of Seathwaite . The fellgate marks the road from a settlement onto the fell (see photograph for example), as is the case with the Seathwaite Fell. In other cases the reverse is true; for instance, the name of Wetherlam , in the Coniston Fells , though understood to refer to the mountain as
1080-650: The Old English word hēafod (literally "head" but in place-names meaning "summit, top, high place"); the hay element of the same name might come from Old English gehæg or hege (both meaning "enclosure"). Evidently this had come to compete with an alternative form deriving from Old Norse hryggr ("ridge"), which underlies the modern form Latrigg . But the origins of the shared first element of both names are uncertain: Whaley suggested either Old Norse látr ("lair") or Old Irish lettir ("slope"). The name Mallen Dodd , first attested in 1867 and denoting
1134-579: The Russian language . Hills that are over 50 m high, but do not reach the tree line are referred to as vaara , while the general term for hills including hills of 50 m or less is mäki . In place names, however, tunturi , vaara and vuori are used inconsistently, e.g. Rukatunturi is technically a vaara , as it lacks alpine tundra. The term förfjäll (literally "fore-fell") is used in Sweden and Finland to denote mountainous zones lower and less dissected than
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#17328550725881188-493: The University of Bergen , Anders Lundeberg, has summed up the problem by stating, "There simply is no fixed and unambiguous definition of fjell ." Ivar Aasen defined fjell as a "tall berg ", primarily referring to a berg that reaches an altitude where trees do not grow, lower berg are referred to as "berg", ås (hill, ridge) or hei (moor, heathland). The fixed expression til fjells refers to mountains (or uplands) as
1242-628: The alpine tree line . In northern England, especially in the Lake District and in the Pennine Dales , the word "fell" originally referred to an area of uncultivated high ground used as common grazing usually on common land and above the timberline. Today, generally, "fell" refers to the mountains and hills of the Lake District and the Pennine Dales. Names that originally referred to grazing areas have been applied to these hilltops. This
1296-414: The 214 Wainwrights . This car park is commonly used as the starting point for the ascent of Skiddaw, although the purist will first climb Latrigg from Keswick before setting foot upon its parent. A recently constructed path allows disabled access to the summit of Latrigg from the car park. Fell A fell (from Old Norse fell , fjall , "mountain" ) is a high and barren landscape feature, such as
1350-666: The Border hills and the Cheviots . The Pennines form the horizon from north-east to south-east, with Cross Fell , Mickle Fell , Wild Boar Fell and Great Whernside visible. To the south-east are the Far Eastern Fells and to the south the Helvellyn range is seen end-on, with vistas of the Forest of Bowland and North Wales to its left and right respectively. The skyline from south to WSW
1404-590: The Irish name was once independent but was later supplemented by the tautologous English word dodd . Latrigg is the most southerly top of the Skiddaw massif and of the Northern Fells as a whole. It takes the form of a rounded hump at the terminus of a long descending ridge, and would be unremarkable if not for its location. To the north of Latrigg summit is an unnamed depression at about 970 feet (300 metres) and rising beyond
1458-536: The River Greta, bound again for the Derwent via Keswick. The steep southern slopes are cloaked in the mixed woodland of Brundholme Wood and Whinny Brow, Latrigg's only crags being hidden in the trees. A public road from Keswick contours across this slope at around 600 feet (180 metres), giving access to the farms of Lonscale and Brundholm. Further mixed woodland has been planted on the north eastern slopes above Whit Beck. To
1512-569: The asking price in its first year of campaigning. Due to a lack of "serious" offers, Blencathra was withdrawn from sale in May 2016, as the Earl had found other means of paying the tax. Following this, the Friends of Blencathra were given an ultimatum to make a final serious offer following concerns from donors that they would not see any result from the charity, and decided to end their campaign. Residual money from
1566-506: The community group more time to secure funding and negotiate with the owner. In November 2015, the community group claimed to be making progress with the sale. Days later, H and H Land & Property, the estate agents handling the sale of Blencathra, announced the mountain was no longer on the market, claiming it would not be available to purchase for an 'indefinite' period of time. On 15 February 2016, Companies House published files confirming Friends of Blencathra had only raised £246,650 of
1620-638: The east, beyond Scales Fell, is the connection to Souther Fell at Mousthwaite Comb. This ridge continues north-east to the vicinity of Mungrisdale , surrounded on all sides by the River Glenderamackin . In common with much of the Northern Fells, the Kirk Stile Formation of the Skiddaw Group predominates. This is composed of laminated mudstone and siltstone with greywacke sandstone and
1674-415: The ends of the fell rise from the surrounding lowlands in smooth and sweeping curves, clad in rough grass. Each rises gracefully to a ridge-top summit, Blease Fell on the west and Scales Fell to the east. Between these ‘book-ends’ are a further three tops, Gategill Fell, Hallsfell and Doddick Fell, giving a scalloped profile to the ridge. From each of the three central tops, a spur runs out at right angles to
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1728-462: The fell proper. However, its more pronounced relief, its often higher amount of plateaux, and its coherent valley systems distinguishes the förfjäll also from the undulating hilly terrain ( bergkullsterräng ) and the plains with residual hills ( bergkullslätt ). Generally, the förfjäll do not surpass 1000 m ASL. As a geomorphic unit, the förfjäll extends across Sweden as a 650 km-long and 40 km to 80 km-broad belt from Dalarna in
1782-424: The fund disclaimed by contributors, totally around £100,000, was later donated to five selected local charities. The Friends of Blencathra was wound up in 2019. Blencathra Field Studies Centre is an outdoor and environmental education centre at an altitude of 300 metres (980 ft) on the south-western side of Blencathra, at the foot of the ascent path to Blease Fell. It was built in 1904 and initially operated as
1836-486: The group's bid. The National Trust (which owns 21% of the Lake District National Park ) also backed the Friends of Blencathra, stating that it would not be placing a bid itself. Eden District Council listed Blencathra as an asset of community value on 7 July 2014, following a nomination by Friends of Blencathra. This was the first time the 'community asset' status had been given to a mountain, and gave
1890-501: The intervening gills, Scaley Beck was reckoned the most practicable, the other three being overly rough and devoid of interest. An ascent from ‘behind’, beginning from Mungrisdale, was also described. In May 2014, its owner, Hugh Lowther, 8th Earl of Lonsdale , listed the entire mountain massif plus the Lordship of the Manor of Threlkeld for sale, at a guide price of £1.75 million. The sale
1944-406: The main ridge, beginning as a narrow, rocky arête and then widening into a broad buttress which falls 2,000 ft (600 m) to the base of the fell. Separating the five tops are four streams which run down the south-east face between the spurs. From the west these are Blease Gill, Gate Gill, Doddick Gill and Scaley Beck. In addition to the spurs on the southeast face, Hallsfell also throws out
1998-519: The middle of the 19th century and the final closure in 1920. The highest point is directly above the Hallsfell spur, marked by a trig point , in the form of a concrete ring. A good path connects the five summits on the main ridge, giving excellent views down the south-east face. Northward on the fine turf of the 'saddle' is a large cross laid out in white stones. Its origin is uncertain, but extension to its current size (in excess of 10 ft or 3 m)
2052-620: The most distant mountain visible is Slieve Meelmore in the Mourne Mountains in County Down , 123 miles (198 kilometres) away. Blencathra is a popular mountain, and there are many different routes to the summit. One of the most famous is via Sharp Edge, a knife-edged arête on the eastern side of the mountain. Sharp Edge provides some good scrambling for those with a head for heights . Hall's Fell ridge, on Blencathra's southern flank, also provides an opportunity for some scrambling, though of
2106-428: The most famous scrambles in the area. Hiker and author Alfred Wainwright noted that: "The crest itself is sharp enough for shaving (the former name was razor edge) and can be traversed only à cheval at some risk of damage to tender parts." Below Tarn Crags is Scales Tarn , an almost circular waterbody filling a corrie . The bed plunges steeply to about 25 ft (7.5 m) and plants and fish are scarce. To
2160-519: The most mountainous region of England, the Lake District is the area most closely associated with the sport of fell running , which takes its name from the fells of the district. "Fellwalking" is also the term used locally for the activity known in the rest of Great Britain as hillwalking . The word "fell" also enjoys limited use in Scotland; with, for example, the Campsie Fells in central Scotland, to
2214-431: The north west, on either bank of Gale Gill, are the conifer plantations of Birkett Wood and Mallen Dodd. A single track road climbs up the slope beside the wood, giving access to a car park on the depression to the north of the fell. In common with much of the Northern Fells the Kirk Stile Formation of the Skiddaw Group predominates. This is composed of laminated mudstone and siltstone with greywacke sandstone and
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2268-616: The north-east of Glasgow. One of the most famous examples of the use of the word "fell" in Scotland is Goat Fell , the highest point on the Isle of Arran . Criffel and the nearby Long Fell in Galloway may be seen from the northern Lake District of England. Peel Fell in the Kielder Forest is on the border between the Scottish Borders to the north and the English county of Northumberland to
2322-715: The old, highly eroded, gently shaped terrain without glaciers, as found in Finland. They are round inselbergs rising from the otherwise flat surroundings. The tree line can be at a rather low altitude, such as 600 m in Enontekiö, owing to the high latitude. The fells in Finnish Lapland form vestiges of the Karelides mountains, formed two billion years ago. The term tunturi is also generally used to refer to treeless plains at high altitudes in far north regions. The term tunturi , originally
2376-465: The route beginning along Spooney Green Lane near the old railway station and then either making direct for the top or swinging north via Mallen Dodd. Threlkeld is another starting point, first crossing the Glenderaterra Beck and then climbing up the east ridge. The easiest way is to park at the end of Gale Road, from where the summit is a simple 10‑minute stroll on grass, the most accessible of all
2430-473: The seat’. Andrew Breeze has proposed an alternative interpretation of the second element of the name, arguing that it represents a Cumbric cognate of Middle Welsh carthwr ‘working horse’. Richard Coates has suggested that the second element may be the Middle Irish personal name Carthach , but writes that ‘the implications of that with a Brittonic generic need exploring’. The Northern Fells make up
2484-580: The south to Norrbotten in the north. Blencathra Blencathra , also known as Saddleback , is one of the most northerly of the Cumbrian Mountains , in the English Lake District . It has six separate fell tops, of which the highest is the Hallsfell Top at 2,848 feet (868 metres). For many years, Ordnance Survey listed Blencathra under the alternative name of 'Saddleback', which
2538-451: The south. In Norway, fjell , in common usage, is generally interpreted as simply a summit or area of greater altitude than a hill, which leads to a great deal of local variation in what is defined as a fjell . Fjell is mostly used about areas above the forest line . Distinct summits can be referred to as et fjell (a mountain). High plateaus ( vidde landscape) such as Hardangervidda are also regarded as fjell. Professor of geography at
2592-400: The steep, rounded spur that is the northern part of Latrigg, contains the dialectal word dodd , whose origins are uncertain but which in local usage denotes a rounded hill-top. The element Mallen may come from the personal name Mal(l)in , a nickname for people called Mary, in which case the name once meant "Mary's hill-top", or from Old Irish maoilinn ("bare round hillock"), in which case
2646-672: The top, in effect a mountain tundra . Fjäll is primarily used to describe mountains in the Nordic countries, but also more generally to describe mountains shaped by massive ice sheets, primarily in Arctic and subarctic regions. There are however dialectal differences in usage, with comparatively low mountains or plateaus, sometimes tree-covered, in Bohuslän and Västergötland (e.g. Safjällets nationalpark [ sv ] and Kynnefjäll [ sv ] ) being referred to as "fjäll", similar to how
2700-479: The word is used in Norwegian In Finnish, the mountains characteristic of the region of Lapland are called tunturi (plural: tunturit ), i.e. "fell". A tunturi is a hill high enough that its top is above the tree line and has alpine tundra . In Finnish, the geographical term vuori is used for mountains recently uplifted and with jagged terrain featuring permanent glaciers, while tunturi refers to
2754-467: Was coined in reference to the shape of the mountain when seen from the east. The guidebook author Alfred Wainwright popularised using the older Cumbric name, which is now used almost exclusively. Ordnance Survey currently marks the summit as ‘Saddleback or Blencathra’. The name Blencathra is likely derived from the Cumbric elements * blain ‘top, summit’ and cadeir ‘seat, chair’, meaning ‘the summit of
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#17328550725882808-403: Was moved to describe "a panorama of crowded detail, all of it of great beauty: indeed this scene is one of the gems of the district...The far horizon is a jumbled upheaval of peaks, with many dear old friends standing up proudly." Atop the summit, is a distinctive tree known as The Witch, given its shape which resembles a person riding a broomstick. Commonly Latrigg is ascended from Keswick,
2862-514: Was started in order to pay inheritance tax. A number of offers were soon made for the mountain, and the agent handling the sale suggested that the initial guide price could well be exceeded. A community group, Friends of Blencathra, was set up in response to the announcement of the fell being listed for sale, and began fund-raising in order to make a bid. Mountaineer Sir Chris Bonington , broadcaster Melvyn Bragg and adventurer and television presenter Ben Fogle were among those to voice support for
2916-404: Was the base of a fence, long since decayed, and the ditch was the source of the earth for its construction. The view northward is of the high grassy flanks of Skiddaw and Blencathra , impressive but lacking detail. To the south the contrast is total. Looking out over Keswick and down the full length of Derwentwater, the eye is drawn to Borrowdale and the high fells of Central Lakeland. Wainwright
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