Cunswick Scar

Overlooking Kendal, this impressive limestone escarpment offers a gentler but equally scenic alternative to its neighbour, Scout Scar. The easy ascent rewards walkers with a vast panorama across the Kent valley to the Whinfell ridge, while the summit cairn provides a grandstand view of the Lake District’s higher eastern fells.

• •The name likely derives from the Old Norse personal name Kunne combined with vic, meaning a dairy farm, while 'Scar' comes from the Old Norse skere, denoting a precipitous rock face.
• •Alfred Wainwright included this hill in his Outlying Fells of Lakeland guide, pairing it with Scout Scar; he praised the area for its 'tremendous views,' which he considered far superior to many of the higher peaks.
• •The summit offers a clear, unobstructed sightline across the Lyth Valley to the prominent silhouettes of the Langdale Pikes and the Coniston Fells in the west.
• •As part of a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), the limestone pavement here supports specialized flora and is a noted spot for finding 300-million-year-old fossils, including ancient coral and brachiopod shells.
• •Despite being a Wainwright summit, the ascent is so civilised that the primary navigational hazard is often the temptation to spend more time in a Kendal tea room than on the actual hillside.