Irton Fell

About Irton Fell

Rising above the village of Eskdale Green, this unassuming ridge serves as the western gateway to the dramatic Wastwater Screes. It offers a gentle introduction to the Southern Fells, with a summit providing a rare perspective of the Ravenglass estuary meeting the Irish Sea, framed by the dark, looming slopes of Whin Rigg.

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Did You Know?

• •The name Irton derives from the Old English 'Ire-tun', meaning the farmstead or settlement of the Irish. This refers to the Hiberno-Norse settlers who arrived on the Cumbrian coast during the 10th century.
• •While it was omitted from Alfred Wainwright’s seven volumes, the hill is a listed Birkett. Bill Birkett describes the fell as the start of a 'superb high-level traverse' that leads walkers along the spectacular rim of the Wasdale Screes.
• •The summit offers a specific, topographical curiosity: a view of Wastwater from its western foot. Unlike the famous view from Wasdale Head, here you see the lake narrowing significantly as it becomes the River Irt, which eventually flows past Irton Hall to the sea.
• •Walkers can often hear the distinct whistle of the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway echoing up the fellside. Known locally as 'La’al Ratty', the narrow-gauge steam engines pass directly below the southern slopes near Irton Road station.
• •The fell is a victim of its own geography; most walkers treat the summit merely as a necessary bit of uphill work to be dispatched as quickly as possible on the way to the far more famous precipices of Whin Rigg.