Dow Crag and Goat's Water

Overview

About Dow Crag and Goat's Water

This is a 6.5-mile circular loop from the Walna Scar Road car park, with the distance measured for the complete loop. It follows the broad Walna Scar track to the ridge, crosses Brown Pike and Buck Pike to Dow Crag, then descends to Goat's Hawse and returns around the left shore of Goat's Water before rejoining the road.

Why go

Big mountain views and a memorable cliff-and-tarn sequence
A compact loop with a scenic shore-path return

Heads up

Rough, exposed ridge with an awkward summit block
Steep, narrow approach road to the starting car park

Map & elevation

The route

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Full map

Elevation224–746 m

TrailheadDow Crag and Goat's Water54.36355, -3.09578

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Plan your hike

Before you go

Parking

Use the Walna Scar car park at the end of the steep, narrow road above Coniston. Start on the rough Walna Scar track at the far end of the car park; do not continue beyond the public parking area onto the bridleway.

Best time to go

Allow about four to five hours for the loop, including pauses and time on the ridge. Late spring through early autumn usually gives the easiest combination of daylight and footing. In winter, snow and ice can turn the exposed ridge, summit rocks and descent toward the tarn into a substantially more serious outing. An early start is useful for clearer summit views and calmer conditions around the tarn.

Park at the Walna Scar car park at the end of the steep, narrow road above Coniston. The tarmac ends at the car park; the route begins on the rough track at its far end. If you mainly want a higher summit rather than Dow Crag's cliffs and Goat's Water, the Coniston Old Man route from the village is the more direct alternative, but it is a different walk.

Dogs may be brought, but keep them under close control and on a short lead around livestock. The exposed boulders and steep drops on the ridge make this a poor choice for dogs that are not confident on rough mountain ground.

Safety

The Dow Crag ridge has unprotected drops, loose and uneven boulders, and an awkward summit block. The descent toward Goat's Water is steep and rocky. There is no reliable water on the ridge, and cloud can make the route and cairns difficult to follow. Keep dogs close around livestock and away from exposed edges.

8 active Lake District alerts

ClosureChapel Stile footpath closed for retaining-wall riskPart of Footpath 543030 between Chapel Stile and Baysbrown campsite is closed because a retaining wall beside the path could collapse and material it supports could fall across the footpath.Official details
ClosureStanley Ghyll Lower Falls footpath closed for rockfallThe section of Footpath 408037 leading towards Stanley Ghyll Lower Falls is closed because severe rockfall damage has made the path unstable and further rockfall remains a danger.Official details

See all 8 alerts

A park ranger sits on a dash-mounted phone, talking, as Parkwolf’s Tour Guide plays “Army Cutworm Moths: A Grizzly Bear Buffet” on Grand Loop Road below Dunraven Pass in Yellowstone — Parkwolf Tour GuideThe highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.

Lake District Tour Guide

Your drive to Dow Crag and Goat's Water, narrated.

Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Lake District National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.

Recorded for this trailhead

Walna Scar: Dow Crag and Goat’s Water

0:00 / 1:15

“Up ahead is Walna Scar car park, the starting point for a mountain loop over Dow Crag and the Old Man of Coniston.”

Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Lake District Tour Guide.

Hiking Dow Crag and Goat's Water

What the walk is likeThe opening track is steady and straightforward, but the upper section becomes rough, rocky…

The opening track is steady and straightforward, but the upper section becomes rough, rocky fell walking. The ridge gives open views over Coniston Water, the Duddon Estuary, Morecambe Bay and the Scafells. Dow Crag is the payoff: a dark, broken wall of buttresses and gullies above the tarn. The summit rocks are awkward enough that hands may help, although the standard route does not require a technical climb. Bypass the roughest blocks if you prefer a more cautious line.

The return beside Goat's Water is quieter and more enclosed, with a clear engineered path in places but plenty of boulders and short steps. The basin and The Cove retain evidence of the area's slate-quarrying past, including spoil below Brown Pike. There is little shade, no reliable water on the ridge, and limited wayfinding once cloud hides the landmarks, so this is a mountain day rather than a casual lakeside walk.

Wildlife

Wildlife in Lake District

All Lake District wildlife maps

81 sightingsRed DeerMost seen around 7 PMSighting map

13 sightingsEurasian OtterMost seen around 6 AMSighting map

76 sightingsOspreyMost seen around 8 AMSighting map

51 sightingsEuropean BadgerMost seen around 8 PMSighting map

233 sightingsMute SwanMost seen around 6 PMSighting map

176 sightingsGrey HeronMost seen around 7 AMSighting map

Sighting maps show where each species has been reported across Lake District. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.