The lake district is one of my favourite places in England.  I’ve spent so many holidays and weekends there and I feel like it is my second home.  This area caters for all budgets, and I’m sure most people however outdoorsy or non-outdoorsy they are will take pleasure from spending time there.  I have quite a few favourites up in the lakes, but for now, below are my favourite hills to walk up.  Dig out those walking boots and give them a go.

1. Scafell Pike

At 978m above sea level,  this is the highest hill in England and gives you breathtaking views at the top.  The walk is definitely a challenge, but the summit views are worth it for sure.  There are a number of routes up Scafell Pike, I like to have a scramble over the rocks next to Wast Water before heading up to the peak from Wasdale.  You have to go over a number of peaks to reach the top of Scafell Pike, to get mentally prepared for this and there are a lot of boulders along the way which can be quite hard to navigate, so try to visualise the next cairn before planning your path over this natural obstacle course.

2. Blencathra

I first made the summit of this hill doing attempt one of my first ultramarathon.  With two other friends, I attempted the lakes in a day Caldbeck to Cartmel 50 mile race, from the north to the south of the lake district.  This was an epic adventure that deserves a whole separate blog post devoted to it (here!).  So the long and short of the ultramarathon was that we didn’t finish, however, we did climb Blencathra.  We ascended from the Mungrisdale Common side;which feels slightly deceiving to start with – a really nice gradient, but the ground is full of huge tufts of grass which make the going really tough and as it gets steeper, you realise you legs are really feeling the burn, but this makes the summit all the more worthwhile.  I usually descend down Halls Fell ridge to Threkeld, but for the slightly more risk averse amongst us, there is a flatter, but slightly longer route down Blease Fell.

3. Coniston Old Man

1. Hellvellyn
2. Catbells
3. Skiddaw
4. White Maiden
5. The Knott
6. Stickle Pike
7. Plough Fell