High Stile [Grey Crag - High Stile]

About High Stile [Grey Crag - High Stile]

Dominating the skyline above Buttermere, this rugged Marilyn serves as the dramatic centerpiece of the ridge between Red Pike and High Crag. While its southern slopes fall gently towards Ennerdale, its northern face is defined by dark, vertical crags and the high, lonely waters of Bleaberry Tarn tucked into its amphitheatre.

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Did You Know?

• •The name derives from the Old Norse 'stigill', meaning a steep path or narrow ladder. It refers to the 'High Steep Path', an apt description for a fell that rises so abruptly from the valley floor.
• •The summit offers a celebrated perspective of three distinct bodies of water: Buttermere, Crummock Water, and Loweswater. Looking north across the valley, the massive, flat-topped bulk of Grasmoor dominates the view.
• •There is a stark geological contrast between its two sides. The Ennerdale slopes are relatively smooth and grassy, whereas the Buttermere face consists of 'Buttermere Granophyre', an igneous rock that forms the precipitous Grey Crags.
• •Bill Birkett, in his guide to the peaks of the Lake District, describes High Stile as the 'undisputed king of the Buttermere fells', noting that it possesses a greater physical presence than its better-known neighbours.
• •In the Synge guidebooks, the author highlights the summit as one of the best locations to study the Scafell massif to the southeast, as the high elevation provides a clear line of sight over the intervening Ennerdale valley.
• •The summit is a broad, stony plateau rather than a sharp peak; walkers arriving from the direction of Red Pike in thick mist frequently celebrate reaching the first large cairn, only to find the actual 806-metre high point is several hundred yards further along the ridge.