Walla Crag walk - Ashness Bridge - Derwent Water

Route: Walla Crag

Area: Central Lake District

Date of walk: 6th February 2025

Walkers: Andrew and Gilly

Distance: 4.3 miles

Ascent: 1,000 feet

Weather: Sunshine and blue skies

Today’s intended walk was Castle Crag, but as we arrived at the Borrowdale Road we were encountered by a ‘Road Closed’ sign. There was no indication of the location of the closure so we decided to see if we could get as far as Great Wood car park, from where we could climb Walla Crag instead.

Walla Crag near Keswick is a fell which we climb almost every year. There’s a wonderful panorama over Derwent Water and Keswick from the top and good views into the heart of Borrowdale on the way down

We parked in the National Trust car park at Great Wood and followed the footpath heading south through the wood. We ignored the first sign path to Walla Crag, which leads to the summit via a more circuitous, but gentler route. We carried on a little further until we reached the bridge over Cat Gill, which we didn’t cross, as our path ascends along the left side of the gill.

The Cat Gill path is quite steep and rocky (and is much easier to ascend than descend), but there are no dangers, though the rocks were wet and icy today, so we had to take care. Hands aren’t needed and the route provides a very quick way to the top. Much of the path is a rocky staircase, part man made and part natural. There are some attractive waterfalls along the way. Before long we arrived at Lady’s Rake from where it’s a short stroll to the summit. From here there are superb views over Derwent Water and to Bassenthwaite Lake beyond.

We retraced our steps for a short distance and then joined the path which leads up to Bleaberry Fell. This is a rather featureless section until the path branches off above Falcon Crag in the direction of Borrowdale. There are lovely views into the valley from here. We descended gently to Ashness Bridge. We normally branch off here to follow a terraced path below Falcon Crag but we decided to vary the route in order visit the shore of Derwent Water. The lake was like a mirror today. We followed the lane down from Ashness Bridge and then the footpath beside the Borrowdale Road. We made short detours to the lakeshore on a couple of occasions and then headed back up to the Great Wood car park to end another wonderful visit to Walla Crag

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Click on the icon below for the route map (subscribers to OS Maps can view detailed maps of the route, visualise it in aerial 3D, and download the GPX file. Non-subscribers will see a base map)