Scarfell Pike (Lake District)

Scarfell Pike, situated in the Cumbrian mountains in the beautful Lake District of Great Britain is England's highest peak. 

It stands 978 metres high (3,208 feet), and is climbed by thousands of people each year.  Along with Ben Nevis and Snowdon it is one of the mountains climbed as part of the Three Peaks Challenge.


Originally the name 'The Pikes of Sca Fell' was applied to the peaks which are nowadays known as Scafell Pike, Ill Crag and Broad Crag.  An error on an ordance survey map naming the highest 'Scafell Pike' has now stuck and is in common use.  The neighbouring peak, Sca Fell, looks higher from many angles, but is actually just 10 feet lower.

Scafell Pike was donated to the National Trust in the first quarter of the 20th Century by Lord Leconfield in memory of the men of the Lake District who fell in the First World War.


The summit of Scafell Pike is strewn with boulders, and much of the walk up involves clambering over rocks and uneven footing.  It is a rugged barren grey peak, with no vegatation.

There are two main routes up Scafell Pike, the most popular starting from Wasdale Head Inn (itself famous as reputedly the birth place of British Climbing), and the other starting from Seathwaite in Borrowdale.  The second is a longer route, but one which rewards the walker with magnificent views.