Ingleborough Summit

The summit carries the remains of a Brigantian (Celtic) hill fort, and hut circles are still clearly visible on the plateau. There is also a low stone summit shelter, enough of a windbreak to get out of the worst of the blast while you eat something, though it is not a comfortable place to linger. Take a slow lap of the top rather than turning straight around, but tread carefully and stick to worn ground where you can.

The flat plateau is genuinely hard to navigate in poor visibility, and it is easy to set off down in the wrong direction. Carry a compass and know how to use it in cloud, and don't rely on a phone alone. Much of the approach follows clear paths, but expect a steeper, rockier top section with a short scramble. This is a strenuous mountain day, not a stroll, even though plenty of walkers of mixed ability enjoy it.

The slopes take in a 1,014 hectare National Nature Reserve of limestone and acid moorland habitats. Limestone ground supports limestone pavement, calcareous grassland, rock outcrops, cliffs and scree, juniper, Yorkshire primrose, bloody crane's-bill and common rock-rose, while the acidic moorland holds bilberry, hare-tail cotton grass, cranberry, round-leaved sundew and bog asphodel. Watch and listen for northern brown argus butterfly, curlew and roe deer.

There are no toilets, no water and no food on the summit, and the stone shelter is a rough windbreak rather than any kind of facility, so it won't guarantee you comfort in bad weather. Sort out food, water and layers in Clapham before you set off. The final climb and the exposed top are where most of the effort and most of the weather live, and on a grey day the views that justify the walk simply won't be there.