England's highest fells and deepest lakes, a national park since 1951 and still the place that taught the country to walk hills for fun
Say “British hills” to most people and this is what they picture: craggy fells reflected in deep water, England’s highest ground packed into one corner of Cumbria. It’s been a national park since 1951, covering 2,362 square kilometres, and in 2017 UNESCO added the whole place to its World Heritage list, recognising the way farms, fells and lakes still work together rather than sitting there as scenery.
Here’s the bit that gets us more excited than it probably should: the fells started out as volcanoes. Around 450 million years ago a chain of them went off across what’s now Cumbria, and the ash and lava that piled up hardened into the tough rock behind most of the big central peaks, known to geologists as the Borrowdale Volcanic Group. Much more recently, in geological terms, a run of ice ages ground through and gouged out the U-shaped valleys and the lake basins themselves. It’s why the fells feel so different from one dale to the next — hard volcanic rock up high, softer slate lower down.
Alfred Wainwright spent thirteen years walking and drawing all 214 fells that make up his pictorial guides, and plenty of people still plan a day out around his books whether they know it or not. Grasmere is a gentle starting point if you want somewhere pretty to base yourself, while Helm Crag is a short, satisfying climb, with a ridge continuing out towards Steel Fell. For something bigger, the Langdale Pikes and High Raise are classic objectives with paths linking them together.
Weather turns fast up here, and mist can drop even on a clear-looking morning, so take a map and check the forecast before heading for the tops, whatever the valley looks like. Roughly May to September gives the most reliable underfoot conditions, though plenty of people are out on the fells year-round with the right gear for winter.
