There is a good reason as to why The Lake District is the UK’s most visited national park. The mountain scenery, which has been carved by glaciers and rivers over thousands of years, is surely some of the best you’ll find on these shores. As you’d expect, the walking opportunities are almost endless. I’ve been lucky enough to enjoy many of them, but one particular Buttermere circular walk I completed is up there as one of the best. Despite its relatively short distance, it packs in such variety. Dramatic scenery, steep climbs, gorgeous mountain tarns and challenging descents are all to be enjoyed. It’s a walk that’s likely to live in the memory bank for some time.
The Buttermere Circular Walk Route
Ideally this walk will start and finish at the car park just to the eastern end of Buttermere itself. It is a pay and display area though and can often be full. This was the case when I visited in late October. Mid summer would be even busier again. For this reason and the fact that I can be a bit of a tight git, I decided to park my car a little way up the stunning Honister Pass. There are plenty of places to pull in and I left my car beside one of the huge boulders deposited by a glacier that had shaped the valley I was now in.
Route Statistics
Distance: 14.96km
Elevation Gain: 1076 metres
Estimated walking time: five hours and thirty minutes
Leg One- Buttermere To Warnscale Bothy
You’ll struggle to find a walk anywhere in the UK that has a more spectacular start than this walk. Right from the off you are surrounded by tall craggy mountains such as Fleetwith Pike and Haystacks. You can’t help but gaze up and around in awe at where you find yourself.
Soon you will enter Warnscale Bottom, which is a truly beautiful valley. Its bottom is wide and open with the beck in the middle starting as a series of waterfalls off in the distance. As beautiful as it is though, you can’t help but notice that the valley head in front of you will need to be scaled. It’s worth savoring the easy walking while you can before legs and lungs are properly called into action.
As you reach the head of the valley, so you cross a bridge and the path splits in two. For easiest access to the bothy, it is worth veering right and following the rocky path all the way up. The going is steep right from the off and it doesn’t ease off at all really until you’re there. You might be puffing and panting your way up, but once again the views in all directions prove to be an excellent distraction. My challenge to you though is to try not to look back towards Buttermere until you get to the bothy. That’s about as difficult as it is to eat a doughnut without licking your lips.
Warnscale Head Bothy Is Reached
Around a hundred metres from the bothy you’ll finally catch first sight of it. For me this a relief as I thought I’d got lost. When you see it, you then understand why it is so well hidden. Warnscale Head Bothy sits o the site of a former slate mine and indeed this is what the building is built from. It blends in almost perfectly with the slate strewn mountainside behind it.
Once here, you must pop in to have a quick look and read of the bothy book. If the weather is grim, it also makes a great spot to dry off and enjoy some food and shelter from the elements.
You could even stay overnight if you wish. I’ve been to many bothies and Warnscale Head must be gifted with one of the finest views I’ve come across. Click here to read about my very interesting stay here.
Leg Two- Warnscale Bothy To Haystacks
If you are familiar with Alfred Wainwright, then you’ll know that this area of Haystacks was his favourite. I always wondered why and so on this leg of the walk I would find out. It turns out he had great taste. Haystacks may lack the elevation of other mountains in the area, but it more than makes up for it in character and setting.
On leaving the bothy, you climb initially until you catch sight of another mountain bothy called Dubs Hut ( this could be used for an overnight stay if Warnscale Bothy is full.) From here you will need to take the path right towards Blackbeck Tarn. Once again you’ll find yourself completely immersed in the landscape you’re exploring and will likely feel so fortunate to be up here enjoying a real sense of adventure.
As you follow that path you can see above and crest the hill in the distance, you get a real sense of remoteness. There are no signs of civilisation whatsoever and only mountains can be seen in all directions. Despite rain falling when I completed this part of the Buttermere circular walk, I couldn’t help but take my time and stop every now and then to take photos. The scenery before you almost demands that you do!
After a short while you catch your first glimpse of Blackbeck Tarn. Being a keen wild camper, I couldn’t help but note what a great spot it would be to spend the night.
Around a kilometre further on you reach another tarn which is perhaps one of the most well known in The Lake District- Inominate Tarn. When you see it for the first time, you understand why it is so well loved. What has made it even more famous is that it was one of Alfred Wainwright’s favourite spots. He loved the tarn so much that he even had his ashes spread there, so he would remain there forever more. If you’d like to find out more about this man and why he loved the place, please click here.
Shortly after leaving Inominate Tarn and enjoying the view back down towards it, you pass very close to the summit of Haystacks. It is easy to take the short detour to its highest point, however I didn’t bother due to the view being completely hidden by fog.
The grim conditions meant I didn’t stay long. Many do though and you can read here about why many consider Haystacks to be a very special mountain.
Leg Three- Haystacks To Red Pike
You are unlikely to forget this part of the walk in a hurry. The terrain you cover and the views you enjoy are simply amazing.
From Haystacks you first have some descending to do. Some loose scree and wet rocks made me very pleased to be carrying a walking pole. You may prefer walking without one, but in my opinion it is well worth using and helps take the strain off of your knees too. Click here to find out more about the excellent budget pole I always carry with me.
You are heading for Scarth Gap, which is the only downhill section you’ll really experience until you reach Red Pike. Once you get here, it is better to continue along the route up to High Crag, but you can turn right and follow Scarth Gap Pass if you feel like cutting the route short.
I was early into the climb of Seat and High Crag when I heard a voice from behind me. As I turned, so I saw a lone woman a little way down the mountain making her way towards me. I waited, pointed out the good line I’d taken up the steep slope and then we got chatting. We’d end up sharing the rest of the hike to Red Pike together.
Danielle ended up being great company and I soon learned she was Norfolk and like me was a teacher making the most of the half term holiday. It is amazing how many teachers I meet on these trips. Perhaps we need escapism more than the average person!
High Crag To Red Pike
This section is an absolute joy, as there is hardly any more climbing to do. The views in all directions are also incredible and will make all the previous climbing feel more than worth it. This is the Lake District though. You could very easily be shrouded in clouds and see no more than fog. Luck of the draw I guess. Thankfully, the weather Gods were on our side for this final part of the ridge walk and we were blown away by what we saw.
With relative ease we soon passed High Stile’s 806 metre summit and pushed on to Red Pike. The changing colour of the rock and boulders strewn around the summit soon showed how this place earned its name. It was at this point that myself and Danielle parted ways. She was staying at the youth hostel down in Ennerdale, whereas I needed to descend back down to Buttermere and eventually Honister Pass.
The Most Challenging Part Of The Buttermere Circular Walk
After wishing each other a good luck and all the best, the most challenging part of the walk began. I knew the descent down towards Bleaberry Tarn would be steep when looking at the map, but in person it was tougher than I imagined.
The path marked on the map is a little misleading on the ground. The slope is so steep and littered with loose rocks and scree that the route branches off and offers many options. Clearly, previous hikers have picked different lines, which they thought offered the easiest route down. I was very pleased to be carrying my walking pole on this part as it steadied me and took the strain off of the knees once again. Gravity nearly defeated me on more than one occasion, but thankfully I kept it upright.
My confidence wasn’t exactly boosted by the large team of mountain rescuers, who passed me heading back up towards the higher ground. I asked one chap what had happened and was upset to hear somebody had experienced a nasty fall. It was a reminder of how easily things can go wrong in the mountains and so I took things very easy down towards the tarn.
By the time I reached it, the views had been totally obscured by clouds once more. The only option was to push on, which was probably wise anyway due to the fading light. For more details about the tarn, please click here.
A Special Final Leg
My knees were very pleased to see the terrain finally level off. The moon was already out and the light almost faded with every footstep as I followed the path along the full length of Buttermere.
It was stunning. There was nobody else around and the moonlight reflecting off of the water was a magical sight. It was a certainly a fitting way to end such a brilliant walk.
