Not every Wainwright needs to be an epic. Rannerdale Knotts is proof of that. At 355m it is one of the lowest fells in the books, a compact rocky summit sitting above the western shore of Crummock Water in the North Western Fells. It takes a couple of hours at a relaxed pace and asks relatively little of your legs. What it gives back in views is wildly disproportionate to the effort involved. Paul and I did this one as an evening stroll and it was exactly the right call. The kind of walk that reminds you that you don't always need to be out for six hours to feel like you've properly been somewhere.
Getting There
Park in the small car park on the B5289 near St James’ Church at Buttermere. It is a free National Trust car park with limited spaces so arriving earlier in the day is advisable if you’re visiting in peak season. In the evening on a clear day you may well find it quieter. From the car park it is a stone’s throw down into Buttermere village, where the route begins.
The Route
From Buttermere village the walk sets off alongside Mill Beck, heading into Ghyll Wood on a clear, straightforward path through the trees. It is a gentle and pleasant start, the beck running alongside as the path climbs gradually through the woodland before opening out onto the open fell above.
The ascent of Rannerdale Knotts is steady, the grassy gradually climbs to 355m, with the final section involving a short ‘scramble’ over the craggy summit rocks. Nothing technically demanding, but enough to make it feel like a proper fell top rather than a gentle stroll. The cairn sits at the highest point with views that open up in every direction.
The descent heads northwest from the summit, dropping down towards Crummock Water and back towards the south beach of the lake. The path picks up Mill Beck again along the shoreline, following it back towards Buttermere village to complete the circuit. It is a satisfying loop with the lake on the return leg and the fell above you on the ascent, each half of the walk offering something quite different.
The Views
This is where Rannerdale Knotts earns its place in the book. From the summit, Crummock Water stretches out to the south and east in the evening light, backed by the great bulk of Grasmoor to the north and Mellbreak to the west. Buttermere comes into view to the southeast, the two lakes appearing almost as one from this angle. On a clear evening the light on the water is genuinely extraordinary, the kind of view that stops you mid-sentence and makes everything else feel very far away. It may be a small fell, but it is very well positioned.
After the Walk: The Bridge Hotel, Buttermere
The Bridge Hotel sits right in the heart of Buttermere village, a proper Lakeland hotel in the traditional sense with a bar, a restaurant and a location that has been drawing walkers and visitors to this valley for well over a century. There are no TVs in the rooms and no phone signal to speak of, both of which are features rather than shortcomings as far as the Bridge Hotel is concerned. The bar food is generous and well-made (the kind of honest pub cooking that does exactly what it needs to after a day outdoors). The Mill Beck Dining Room offers an a la carte menu with regularly changing specials for something a little more formal. We had a lovely meal in the public bar and left feeling that the evening had been very well spent indeed.
On the map
Interests
