Yew Bank

Tucked away in the quiet southwest corner of the Lake District near Boot, this rugged Birkett offers an intimate perspective of lower Eskdale. A subsidiary shoulder of Hesk Fell, it provides pathless, grassy terrain and a superb front-row view across the valley to the craggy profile of Harter Fell.

• •The name likely derives from the Old English 'iw', suggesting that yew trees once flourished on these slopes or were a notable feature of the lower banks overlooking the valley.
• •Author Bill Birkett included this 499m summit in his survey of the Lakeland fells, marking it as a distinct peak despite its proximity to the higher Hesk Fell.
• •The summit offers a clear, unobstructed line of sight to the Scafell massif in the north, while the Duddon Estuary is often visible to the south on clear days.
• •Most walkers approach the hill from the village of Boot, crossing the Eskdale Valley to negotiate the often damp and trackless slopes near Crosby Gill.
• •Sitting at exactly 499 metres, the hill is a single, teasing metre short of the 500m mark, a height that would have seen it classified as a 'Hill' in many metric-based systems.