Walking the Kentmere Horseshoe: a perfect mountain day
View over Haweswater from the Kentmere Horseshoe
The Kentmere Horseshoe is a classic Lake District round taking in 9 Wainwright summits. It’s a huge day out and generally thought of as a challenging route. The full route is 12.8 miles, and most guides suggest giving yourself a minimum of 6 hours.
We’d booked a week away in Kentmere towards the end of March. This sleepy hamlet, located in the South Eastern part of the Lake District, was somewhere I’d dismissed for years. Being right on the edge of the Lakes, I thought there would be no real mountains of note, perhaps even being a bit featureless.
How wrong I was!
It’s a stunning part of the Lake District, made even more so because of the remote nature. There are around 60 houses in the area, spaced out on either side of the River Kent. And the mountains around the head of the valley (making up the Kentmere Horseshoe) are breathtaking.
The village is approx 4 miles north of Staveley. Unless you’re a mountain biker or visiting Wilf’s cafe, you probably usually whiz straight past Staveley on the A591 to get into the heart of the Lakes.
Car parking in Kentmere is extremely limited - maybe 6 cars max - and the road is a narrow single track with passing places, meaning no roadside parking either. You’ll not find a pub, shop, or cafe here, so make sure you’re well stocked before heading there for a walk.
Garburn Pass, Kentmere Horseshoe - Lake District
Walking the Kentmere Horseshoe
Staying in a holiday cottage located in the village meant we could start walking right from the front door. Heading in a clockwise direction, we began climbing up the Garburn Pass. The wide track rose steadily, warming up our legs.
At the top of the pass, a right turn took us to Yoke (706m) and our first Wainwright summit of the day. From here, we stayed high for the rest of the walk, before dropping off Kentmere Pike on the way back.
But don’t be fooled, that didn’t mean the climbing was over!
Looking back towards Froswick and Ill Bell
Ridge walking with stunning views
Continuing on along the wide ridge to Ill Bell (757m), Froswick (720m), and Thornthwaite Crag (784m) involved some pretty steep ups and downs. But the effort paled into insignificance with the amazing views on both sides of the ridge.
If you’re thinking about walking the Kentmere Horseshoe, I highly recommend waiting for a clear day. I promise you, it’ll be well worth the wait.
After the beacon at Thornthwaite Crag the walk continued on towards High Street before turning right across the plateau towards Mardale Ill Bell (760m). If you’re bagging Wainwrights and High Street (828m) is still on your list, you may want to add it as another summit. But, we’d already ticked High Street a few years before, so took the right turn to enjoy some snowy walking across the plateau.
The going was generally easy and it was good fun walking in the snow line.
View from Nan Bield Pass
Incredible views looking across Haweswater
To tick the summit of Mardale Ill Bell, we had to make a short detour from the path. It was definitely worth the effort - sitting at the cairn, resting our legs, we looked out across Haweswater. It was simply stunning, and a good enough reason for the detour, even if you’re not interested in ticking summits.
A little wander from the cairn opened up even more, looking over Blea Tarn with the steep sided cliffs above. These views are simply some of the most incredible I’ve ever seen in the Lake District.
This is definitely an area I want to visit again!
The Nan Bield Pass
As we continued on towards the Nan Bield Pass, our legs began protesting the miles. Walking down 130m on the rocky drop to the pass was especially disheartening, knowing there was a similar climb back up the other side.
The summit cairn of Harter Fell (778m) was a welcome sight. We stopped for a brew and emergency butty to get some energy, ready to do the return leg of the horseshoe.
Dropping off Harter Fell, a short climb up to Kentmere Pike (730m) gave us our last summit of the day. From here, we took a path diagonally back downhill towards the Kentmere valley and Hallow Bank/Brockstones where a gentle meander back along the bridleway brought us into Kentmere village.
For the full Kentmere Horseshoe (and to tick the maximum number of Wainwright summits) we should have carried onto Shipman Knotts (587m) before dropping into to Kentmere. But the walk had taken it out of us and we were ready to get back to the cottage.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing but, looking back, I wish we’d carried on and finished the full route. Maybe I’ll just have to go back and do it all again!
One of my favourite mountain days
Even though I struggled with a spasming leg muscle after the Nan Bield Pass, this walk will still go down as one of my all time favourite days in the mountains.
The weather was perfect with sunny, still conditions and far reaching views across the Lake District. It’s rare to bask in sunshine without a breath of wind at summit cairns, especially in March. The memories and the views will last a lifetime.
But, I also loved exploring a completely different area of the Lake District. I saw so many well-known mountains from a totally new angle. And those views! Wow, those views, they’re worth another mention!
Planning your visit
Map: OS 1:25,000 (OL7 The English Lakes, South Eastern Area)
Cafe: Wilf's Cafe, Staveley
Pub: Eagle and Child, Staveley
Shops: Local shops in Staveley
Parking: Very limited parking in Kentmere
Public Transport: Bus to Staveley from Kendal or Windermere, Train to Windermere
Accommodation: Lake District National Park website
Snowy plateau on the Kentmere Horseshoe, Lake District
Walking off Kentmere Pike
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