Stickle Tarn Trail

This is an out-and-back walk of 1.9 miles total round trip, with the mapped corridor drawn once from the car park up to the tarn, a little over 1.4 km in each direction. Allow around 2 hours. It is rated challenging, about 6 out of 10, with roughly 400 m of climbing.

Start at the top end of Stickle Ghyll car park near the welcome hut, follow the wall to the gate, then climb beside Stickle Ghyll on stone pitching. Cross the wooden footbridge, take on steeper rocky sections with short easy scrambles, then cross back on stepping boulders. The payoff is Stickle Tarn sitting below the crags of Harrison Stickle and Pavey Ark. The path does not continue to either summit, so return the way you came.

The path is well defined but steep, rocky and uneven, with stone-pitched steps and short easy scrambles where hands are useful. It becomes slippery in wet or wintry weather, so choose boots with grip and allow extra time. The route is not suitable for visitors with limited mobility.

There are two crossings of the ghyll: a wooden footbridge lower down and a set of stepping boulders higher up. Waterfalls and rock pools line the climb, and both crossings need care after rain. Treat the tarn and pools as scenery rather than a place to swim.

The walk trades height for views back across Great Langdale, and the surroundings turn rockier and more open as you gain the upper section. There is little shade on the climb, so carry water and sun cover in warm, bright conditions.

The strongest pictures come from stopping where the path opens out over Great Langdale, and at the tarn itself with Harrison Stickle and Pavey Ark rising behind the water. The waterfalls and rock pools beside the ghyll are worth pausing for on the way up, ideally from stable ground rather than mid-scramble.

The crags above the tarn were once the outer rim of a massive volcano, and the rock underfoot reflects that violent origin. Lower down you pass the remains of a fulling mill, evidence of the valley's working past, while the dam at the tarn dates from 1838 and a hydroelectric scheme still draws on the water here. Livestock graze the surrounding fell.

Begin at Stickle Ghyll car park in Great Langdale, near Ambleside, Cumbria, LA22 9JU, which is a National Trust pay-and-display car park with public toilets; members park free. Dogs are welcome on leads because of livestock. If the steep climb sounds like too much, the nearby Blea Tarn trail is easier and still delivers big views of the Langdale Pikes without the sustained ascent.