Armboth Fell | |
---|---|
Highest point | |
Elevation | 479 m (1,572 ft) |
Prominence | c. 25 metres (82 ft) |
Parent peak | High Seat |
Listing | Wainwright |
Coordinates | 54°32′00″N3°05′16″W / 54.53347°N 3.08791°W |
Geography | |
Location | Cumbria, England |
Parent range | Lake District, Central Fells |
OS grid | NY297159 |
Topo map | OS Explorer OL4 |
Armboth Fell is a fell in the English Lake District, regarded by Alfred Wainwright as the centre of Lakeland. [1] It is named for the former settlement of Armboth. The fell is a domed plateau, three-quarters of a mile across, jutting out to the east of the Derwentwater-Thirlmere watershed, in the Borough of Allerdale. The fell is wet underfoot, with large areas clad in heather. The eastern slopes above Thirlmere have been planted with conifers.
Armboth Fell joins the main ridge via a shallow depression, a little to the south of High Tove, and due east of Middle Crag. This boggy low point is the source of both Fisher Gill and Launchy Gill, which form the fell's northern and southern boundaries respectively. Fisher Gill takes the shorter course, flowing straight for the shore of the reservoir through a break in the conifers below Cockrigg Crag. It enters the lake near the Armboth public car park. Launchy Gill flows across the plateau via Launchy Tarn. This is prominent on OS maps, but on the ground is a pool 20 ft (6.1 m) wide. Very shallow, it lies on a gently sloping band of rock. [2] Launchy Gill then drops through the forest over a series of waterfalls. A marked nature tail, popular with children, follows the lower part of the gill through the trees.
Prominent on the eastern flank of the fell is Fisher Crag (1,386 feet, 422 m), a striking rock face set all about by trees and midway between the two gills. Reminiscent of Raven Crag to the north, this is a fine viewpoint for Thirlmere and the Eastern Fells, although public right of way is uncertain. [3]
The fell is named for the settlement of Armboth which stood on the shore of Thirlmere near the mouth of Fisher Gill. [4] When the level of the lake was raised to create the reservoir in the 1880s, the village was abandoned and submerged. The only remaining structure is the summerhouse of Armboth Hall which lies amid the trees, [3] although a number of ruins, enclosures and tracks can still be found within the forest. There is now no habitation on the western shore of the lake, although 'Armboth' still appears on some signposts. [1]
The Birker Fell Formation (plagioclase-phyric andesite lavas) predominates, overlain by till. To the east of the summit are outcrops of garnet bearing porphyritic andesite. [5]
A small rock outcrop forms the summit, complete with a cairn. A further knoll to the northeast is of similar altitude. Much of the fell, particularly towards the main watershed, is very wet underfoot and the heather makes progress even more laborious. [1] There are views east to the Helvellyn range and westward over the main ridge to the higher fells where a great sweep from Grisedale Pike to Bowfell can be seen. Fisher Crag presents a better viewpoint for Thirlmere. [1]
To quote Wainwright "walkers of a contrary turn of mind will summarily reject the advice to leave Armboth Fell well alone, and may indeed be strengthened in their determination to climb it." [1]
From the public car park at Armboth a track can be followed up the south bank of Fisher Gill. This leads into the trees, emerging behind Fisher Crag. From here on there is no path. [3]
Launchy Gill does not provide access to the open fell, the forest fence being a substantial barrier, but from further south at the Dob Gill car park the bridleway to Watendlath can be used to gain the main ridge between Ullscarf and High Tove, before striking north to the summit. [3]
Armboth Fells was designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in 1986 because of the high altitude woodland present that includes birch and hazel within the 5.8 acre site [6] . Part of the land area designated as Armboth Fells SSSI is owned by United Utilities [7] and part is owned by the National Trust. Cumbria Wildlife Trust has been involved in peatland restoration within this protected area. [8]
Dale Head is a fell in the north-western sector of the Lake District, in northern England. It is 753 metres above sea level and stands immediately north of Honister Pass, the road between Borrowdale and Buttermere.
Nethermost Pike is a fell in Cumbria, England, and a part of the Lake District. At 891 metres (2,923 ft) it is the second highest Wainwright in the Helvellyn range, the highest of which is Helvellyn itself. It is located close to the southern end of the ridge, with Helvellyn to the north, and High Crag and Dollywaggon Pike to the south. Nethermost Pike, along with many of the Eastern Fells, lies between Thirlmere in the west and the Ullswater catchment in the east. The closest villages are Glenridding and Patterdale on the shores of Ullswater, over 8 kilometres (5 mi) away.
High Seat is a fell in the centre of the English Lake District. Despite being below 2,000 feet in elevation, it is the highest point for about five miles in any direction; a consequence of the curious fact that the centre of the district is lower than the surrounding parts.
White Side is a fell in the English Lake District. It is situated to the east of Thirlmere and to the west of Glenridding valley. This places White Side in the Helvellyn range of the Eastern Fells, with Raise to the north and Helvellyn Lower Man to the south, both of which are of greater height.
High Stile is a mountain in the western part of the Lake District in North West England. It is the eleventh-highest English Marilyn, standing 807 metres (2,648 ft) high, and has a relative height of 362 metres (1,188 ft).
Binsey is a hill on the northern edge of the Lake District in Cumbria, England. It is detached from the rest of the Lakeland hills, and thus provides a good spot to look out at the Northern and North Western Fells of the Lake District, as well as the coastal plain and, across the Solway Firth, Scotland. Snaefell on the Isle of Man is also visible on a clear day. It is the northernmost of the Wainwrights.
High Rigg is a small fell located in the English Lake District, approximately three miles southeast of the town of Keswick. It occupies an unusual position, surrounded on all sides by higher fells but not connected by any obvious ridge. This separation from its fellows ensures that it is a Marilyn.
Castle Crag is a hill in the North Western Fells of the English Lake District. It is the smallest hill included in Alfred Wainwright's influential Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells, the only Wainwright below 1,000 feet (300 m).
Bleaberry Fell is a fell in the Lake District in Cumbria, England, with a height of 590 metres (1,936 ft). It stands on the main watershed between Borrowdale and Thirlmere and can be climbed from either flank. Walla Crag is a subsidiary top of Bleaberry Fell.
Ullscarf is a fell in the English Lake District close to the geographical centre of the Cumbrian hills. It forms part of the watershed between the Derwentwater and Thirlmere catchments, a ridge running broadly north-south.
High Tove is a fell in the English Lake District, close to the geographical centre of the Cumbrian hills. It forms part of the watershed between the Derwentwater and Thirlmere catchments, a ridge running broadly north-south.
Raven Crag is a fell in the English Lake District that overlooks Thirlmere reservoir. It has subsidiary summits The Benn and Castle Crag.
Steel Fell is a fell in the English Lake District, lying between Thirlmere and Grasmere. It is triangular in plan, the ridges running north, west and south east. Steel Fell rises to the west of the Dunmail Raise road and can be climbed from the summit, or from Grasmere and Wythburn.
Tarn Crag is a fell in the Central Fells of the English Lake District. Strictly the name refers only to the rock face looking down upon Easedale Tarn, but Alfred Wainwright applied it to the entire ridge lying between the Easedale and Far Easedale valleys in his Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells
Calf Crag is a fell in the English Lake District, on the eastern side of the High Raise massif.
Watson's Dodd is a fell in the English Lake District, a minor rise on the main ridge of the Helvellyn range in the Eastern Fells, but a prominent shoulder on the west side of that range.
Black Fell is a fell in the English Lake District. It rises to the north of Tarn Hows, between Coniston and Hawkshead.
Green Crag is a fell in the English Lake District. It stands between Eskdale and the Duddon valley in the Southern Fells.
Middle Fell is a hill or fell in the English Lake District. It is a satellite of Seatallan standing above the northern shore of Wastwater. Middle Fell can be climbed from Greendale near the foot of Wastwater, and a fine view of the lake backed by the Wastwater Screes is visible from the summit.
The Central Fells are a part of the Cumbrian Mountains in the Lake District of England. Reaching their highest point at High Raise, they occupy a broad area to the east of Borrowdale. The Central Fells are generally lower than the surrounding hills, the Lake District's dome-like structure having a slight dip in the middle. The range extends from the boggy ridge between Derwentwater and Thirlmere in the north, to the rock peaks of the Langdale Pikes in the south.