Parking
Use Walna Scar Car Park at the end of the steep single-track Walna Scar Road from Coniston. It has roughly 70 spaces. Do not confuse the car park with the named fell or with parking farther along the route.
Overview
About Walna Scar, White Maiden and White Pike
Why go
- Three quiet fell summits in one outing
- Big views toward Coniston Water and the Duddon Valley
Heads up
- Faint, boggy paths make navigation part of the hike
- Rough stone road and exposed tops
This is a good way to collect three quiet summits in one outing. White Pike gives the more pointed profile and broad views down the Duddon Valley, while White Maiden and Walna Scar open the view back toward Dow Crag, the Coniston fells, and Coniston Water. Blind Tarn is a peaceful place to pause, but the route-finding around it is part of the experience. Compared with the busier Old Man of Coniston approaches, this is a more niche choice with less obvious footing and a smaller sense of occasion.
Parkwolf’s verdictThe payoffMap & elevation
The route
Loading the Lake District map
Full mapElevation236–600 m
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
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
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Lake District Tour Guide
Your drive to Walna Scar, White Maiden and White Pike, 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 Water0:00 / 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.
More stories near here in the app
- Coniston Water: Gondola and the Shore
- Coniston: Old Man and Coppermines
- Brantwood: Ruskin’s House and Gardens
- Monk Coniston: A Gentle Lakeside Walk
- 298 audio storiesacross Lake District’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Red Deer, Eurasian Otter, Osprey, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 265 trails, 89 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Walna Scar, White Maiden and White Pike
The routeThis is a 6.
This is a 6.8-mile loop from Walna Scar car park, measured as the complete outing including the return to the start. It follows the rough stone Walna Scar Road to the pass, then leaves the main track for a faint grassy ridge to White Pike and White Maiden. The route also makes a short excursion to Blind Tarn before rejoining the road back to the car park.
What it feels likeThe road climb is steady and stony, with loose rock and several zigzags.
The road climb is steady and stony, with loose rock and several zigzags. Above the pass, the character changes to soft grass, boggy patches, and faint sheep trods. There is no consistently engineered path around the two named tops, so a map and compass or a reliable offline route are useful. Allow about 4 to 5 hours at a normal fell-walking pace with summit and tarn stops.
Access and dogsThe route uses a public road, bridleway, and open fell access.
The route uses a public road, bridleway, and open fell access. No route-specific permit is identified. Dogs may come, but keep them under close control around livestock. On Open Access land, dogs must be on a short lead from 1 March to 31 July, and a lead is also needed whenever livestock requires it. Spring through autumn usually gives the best daylight and visibility; clear early or late light brings out the shape of the ridges and the views toward the water.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Lake District
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 mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Lake District. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
