Cross Fell

The Walks
Cross Fell is the highest point in the Pennines at 893m in altitude. It is located at the northern end of the Pennine moors and has extensive views of The Lake District. On a clear day both the west and east coasts may be seen. The Southern Uplands of Scotland and the Cheviot can also be seen from here. The hiking club was here last in October 1999. Before that, it was last visited in 1985 and it certainly deserves more attention than that. The villages of Appleby and Dufton can be reached in under two hours from Manchester and are thus easy to get to.

Cross Fell occupies a high expanse of moorland that is gentle and vast. It's thus a good place to practice navigation. The escarpment facing the Lake District looks quite steep from the M6 motorway but in actual fact, it is very gentle. The distance of Cross Fell from the road is therefore quite large at 5km from the nearest access point and ~12km from Dufton. The walks to the summit are hence fairly long.

The Pennine Way goes over Cross Fell from Dufton via Great Dun Fell. Anyone who has seen the erosion on that trail further south will notice that the trail here is distinctly less eroded - often just slightly flattened grass shows the way sometimes! Cross Fell can be identified from far away by the air traffic control and radar station "golfball" located on the neighbouring summit of Great Dun Fell at 848m.

Further south lies the impressive High Cup. Many Pennine Way travellers will tell you that this is their favourite part of the walk. High Cup is a perfect, narrow U-shaped valley cutting into the plateau. It is best approached from the east where it suddenly reveals itself after many miles of walking on the high plateau. The valley starts abruptly at a place called High Cup Nick and is lined by crags and dolorite towers near its head.

Easier walks to do include climbing the numerous outlying spurs of the high plateau. Spurs to try include Knock Pike, Dufton Pike and Murton Pike. They can offer good views when the main plateau is secluded in mist. Climb them individually for an easy day out or all together for a longer challenge.

Travel
The Settle to Carlisle line serves the station at Appleby.

No details are known about bus services in the area.

Food and Drink
The Stag Inn in Dufton is said to provide some very good meals

Check out this map

Trip Reports

 * Cross Fell 1999 Trip Report