Lake District
Pipers Hill
485M
1591FT
About Pipers Hill
Sitting on the quiet, windswept eastern edge of the Lake District near Shap, this unassuming grassy summit offers a peaceful escape from the busy central fells. Part of the Far Eastern range, it provides a unique perspective over the M6 corridor and across to the distant, rounded tops of the Howgill Fells.
Key Statistics
Rank
449th Highest in Region
Parent Range
Far Eastern Fells
Prominence
?
80m
Nearest Town
Orton
Geology
You are walking on the Bannisdale Formation. This foundation consists of alternating layers of compressed mud and fine sand.
Find It
OS Grid Reference
NY558045
Latitude
54.4347°N
Longitude
2.6819°W
Did You Know?
- •The name likely originates from local folklore or historical markers along the old droving routes that criss-cross this part of the Westmorland Plateau, where names like 'Piper' often suggest a gathering place for music or a specific landmark for travellers.
- •Classified as a Synge, it is included in Tim Synge’s comprehensive guide to the Lake District, which identifies peaks over 300 metres that were omitted from Alfred Wainwright’s more famous pictorial guides.
- •The hill is frequently climbed as part of a quiet, pathless loop from the village of Keld, often paired with the nearby summit of Seat Robert to the west.
- •From the summit, you can see the engineering contrast of the M6 motorway cutting through the Lune Gorge to the south, set against the wild, empty backdrop of the eastern Lakeland fells.
- •If you encounter another person on this summit, you have likely either taken a significant wrong turn or met the only other walker in the county who is methodically ticking off the Synge list.