Raven Crag is one of those fells I’ve seen lots of photos of on Instagram. The summit offers a beautiful view over Thirlmere, and the walk up the hillside diverges from the usual open fell side of Lakeland, taking you through a young woodland for a there and back walk which can easily be done in a morning or afternoon. We decided that a saunter up Raven Crag would be the perfect stop off on our way home from our trip to the Western Lakes at the start of November – another Wainwright ticked off but not a huge delay when we just wanted to get home.
Raven Crag is one of the smaller Wainwrights. Don’t let it’s relatively low height deceive you: like Castle Crag and Binsey, Raven Crag has outstanding views of the surrounding fells. We found a linear route on the OS maps app, starting from a small lay-by (free parking for around 4 cars) at the edge of the United Utilities woodland where you set off on the walk.
Passing through a gate into the woodland, you set off on a permissive path pitched relatively steeply uphill all the way to the top. Although, I think we took the more direct route to the top – coming down on a different path it was slightly less steep! The path is pretty well surfaced most of the way but there are a few sections where it is uneven or boggy underfoot.
On the way up we had tantalising glimpses of the infamously beautiful view – Thirlmere stretches out behind you on the climb up and we were treated to a spectacular display of autumn colour from the trees. At the summit there is a viewing platform where you can admire the view as your reward for all your hard work – unless the cloud comes down at the top like it did for us!! We hung around for 5 minutes to see if it would clear up (it didn’t) before setting off back down to the car.
All in all it took us just over an hour to get up and down this little fell – definitely a good one for a sunrise or a sunset view (weather dependent!). Also a good choice to take a flask of hot chocolate (or something stronger) and take your time enjoying the view.
Dog friendly rating – 4/5. Walking through the woods is one of those rare Lakeland opportunities to be able to let your dog off the lead without worrying about livestock. Do watch out though for sudden drops near the summit – we put ours back on the lead near the top. There are no stiles to climb over and no road walking. I was also very surprised by how quiet this walk was – given how many Instagram posts I’d seen up Raven Crag recently I was expecting it to be busier, but in fact, we only saw one other couple. I suppose everyone else was waiting for a clear day to get ‘that view’!
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