Scafells | |
---|---|
Highest point | |
Elevation | max. 978 m (3,209 ft) at Scafell Pike |
Coordinates | 54°28′16″N3°08′38″W / 54.471°N 3.144°W |
Geography | |
Parent range | Cumbrian Mountains |
Geology | |
Age of rock | - |
Mountain type | Caldera |
Last eruption | +400 MYA |
The Scafells, or Scafell Massif, [1] are a range of fells in the Cumbrian Mountains of England, made up of the remains of a caldera volcano. Fells in the range include Broad Crag, Ill Crag, Scafell, and Scafell Pike, England's tallest mountain. Great End, Lingmell and Slight Side are also usually included within the definition. These hills form part of the Southern Fells.
Geologically, parts of the Scafell massif are the remnants of a volcano that erupted in the Ordovician period over 400 million years ago. This volcano, geologically described as a caldera and an "inverse stratovolcano", as well as all other volcanoes of the Lake District, are long since extinct. [2]
The volcano is an example of a piecemeal caldera whose collapse, in contrast with a wholesale piston-like subsidence, occurred in a piece-by-piece fashion along faults and whose measurements suggest formation from an eruption of a VEI-7 magnitude, comparable to the Minoan eruption at Santorini in the Greek Aegean in c. 1600 BCE. The Scafell dacite, between Little Narrowcove and Aaron Crags, is a lava dome formed during the last stages of volcanic activity at Scafell massif. [2]
An English Munro (or Furth) is a mountain summit that exceeds 3,000 feet (914.4 m) and has a prominence of more than 30 metres (98 feet). In England there are six peaks that meet that criteria and four of those are part of the Scafell Massif. [lower-alpha 1]
Peak | Height (m) | Prominence (m) | OSI Grid Reference | Highest Class |
---|---|---|---|---|
Scafell Pike‡ | 978 | 912 | NY215072 | P600 |
Sca Fell | 964 | 133 | NY207065 | Hewitt |
Ill Crag | 935 | 57 | NY223073 | Hewitt |
Broad Crag | 934 | 52 | NY218075 | Hewitt |
(‡) Have the prominence of over 150 metres (492 ft) to qualify as a "Real Munro".
The traverse between England's two highest summit's via Mickledore col requires considerable care and caution. The route via Broad Stand is best avoided because it is dangerous. [3] There is a safer but longer route available via Foxes Tarn.
Scafell Pike is a mountain in the Lake District region of Cumbria, England. It has an elevation of 978 metres (3,209 ft) above sea level, making it the highest and the most prominent mountain in England. The mountain is part of the Scafell massif, an inactive volcano, and is one of the Southern Fells.
Scafell is a mountain in the Lake District region of Cumbria, England. It has a height of 964 metres, making it the second-highest mountain in England after its neighbour, Scafell Pike, from which it is separated by Mickledore col.
Bowfell is a pyramid-shaped mountain lying at the heart of the English Lake District, in the Southern Fells area. It is the sixth-highest mountain in the Lake District and one of the most popular of the Lake District fells for walkers. It is listed in Alfred Wainwright's 'best half dozen' Lake District fells.
Great Dodd is a mountain or fell in the English Lake District. It stands on the main ridge of the Helvellyn range, a line of mountains which runs in a north–south direction between the lakes of Thirlmere and Ullswater in the east of the Lake District. Great Dodd, with a height of 857 metres (2,812 ft) is the highest of the fells in this range to the north of Sticks Pass.
The Cheviot is an extinct volcano and the highest summit in the Cheviot Hills and in the county of Northumberland. Located in the extreme north of England, it is a 1+1⁄4-mile (2-kilometre) walk from the Scottish border and, with a height of 2,674 feet above sea-level, is located on the northernmost few miles of the Pennine Way, before the descent into Kirk Yetholm.
Esk Pike is a fell in the English Lake District, one of the cirque of hills forming the head of Eskdale.
Great Langdale is a valley in the Lake District National Park in North West England, the epithet "Great" distinguishing it from the neighbouring valley of Little Langdale. Langdale is also the name of a valley in the Howgill Fells, elsewhere in Cumbria.
Stybarrow Dodd is a mountain or fell in the English Lake District. It stands immediately north of Sticks Pass on the main ridge of the Helvellyn range in the Eastern Fells, which is situated between the lakes of Thirlmere and the Ullswater.
Crag Hill is a mountain in the North Western part of the English Lake District. It was formerly known as Eel Crag; however, the Ordnance Survey now marks Eel Crag as referring to the northern crags of the fell. It is not to be confused with another Crag Hill lying on the border of North Yorkshire.
Red Screes is a fell in the English Lake District, situated between the villages of Patterdale and Ambleside. It may be considered an outlier of the Fairfield group in the Eastern Fells, but is separated from its neighbours by low cols. This gives Red Screes an independence which is reflected in its prominence.
Pike o' Blisco, or Pike of Blisco, is a mountain in the Lake District in Cumbria, England. Located between the valleys of Great Langdale and Little Langdale, its relative isolation from neighbouring fells together with slopes falling away immediately from the summit in all directions mean it has excellent views: the view of the Langdale Pikes across Great Langdale is particularly arresting.
Ill Crag is a fell in the English Lake District. At 935 metres (3,068 ft), it is the fourth-highest peak in England, after Scafell Pike, Sca Fell, and Helvellyn. Ill Crag overlooks Eskdale and has splendid views across to Bowfell and Crinkle Crags.
Broad Crag is a fell in the English Lake District. It is the fifth-highest peak in England at a height of 3,064 feet. The mountain was gifted to the National Trust in 1923 by the Fell and Rock Climbing Club.
Seatallan is a mountain in the western part of the English Lake District. It is rounded, grassy and fairly unassuming, occupying a large amount of land. However, it is classed as a Marilyn because of the low elevation of the col connecting it to Haycock, its nearest higher neighbour to the north. The name Seatallan is believed to have a Cumbric origin, meaning "Aleyn's high pasture".
The mountains and hills of the British Isles are categorised into various lists based on different combinations of elevation, prominence, and other criteria such as isolation. These lists are used for peak bagging, whereby hillwalkers attempt to reach all the summits on a given list, the oldest being the 282 Munros in Scotland, created in 1891.
Lingmell is a fell in the English Lake District, standing above the village of Wasdale Head. It is an outlier on the north-west flank of Scafell Pike, England’s highest mountain.
Yewbarrow is a fell, in the English Lake District, which lies immediately north of the head of Wast Water. It is 628 metres high and in shape resembles the upturned hull of a boat or a barrow. Yewbarrow is on the left in the classic view of Great Gable and Wast Water.
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.
Slight Side is a fell in the English Lake District it stands 25 kilometres east southeast of the town of Whitehaven and reaches a height of 762 metres (2,499 ft). Slight Side lies at the south western edge of the Scafell Massif, a four-kilometre-long crescent of high ground which includes the highest ground in England. The fells names derives from the Old Norse language and means "The mountain shieling with the level pastures", it is a combination of the Norse words "sletta" and "saetr". With a shieling meaning a shepherds hut or a mountain pasture used in the summer.
The Southern Fells are a part of the Cumbrian Mountains in the Lake District of England. Including Scafell Pike, the highest peak in England, they occupy a broad area to the south of Great Langdale, Borrowdale and Wasdale. High and rocky towards the centre of the Lake District, the Southern Fells progressively take on a moorland character toward the south-west. In the south-east are the well-known Furness Fells, their heavily quarried flanks rising above Coniston Water.