White Howe (Bannisdale)

Rising above the quiet, lonely valley of Bannisdale, this hill is the culminating point of the sprawling Bannisdale Horseshoe. It is a landscape of grassy ridges and peat hags, far removed from the crowded central fells. The summit provides a vast, open perspective over the rolling hills of the Fawcett Forest.

• •The name 'White Howe' is rooted in Old Norse, combining 'hvītr' (white) and 'haugr' (hill or mound), likely describing the pale, bleached appearance of the moorland grasses during the winter months.
• •Alfred Wainwright included this summit in the final chapter of 'The Outlying Fells of Lakeland', where he detailed the circuit of the Bannisdale Horseshoe—a walk he championed for those seeking solitude away from the busier central fells.
• •From the summit, there is a particularly clear view west towards the Kentmere Horseshoe, where the steep, rhythmic profiles of Ill Bell and Froswick look surprisingly mountainous from this lower vantage point.
• •The hill lies within the Fawcett Forest, an expansive area of upland that served as a medieval hunting forest before being transitioned into the mix of open sheep pasture and forestry seen today.
• •While the route is technically a horseshoe, the presence of persistent peat hags and numerous wire fences ensures that your progress will be significantly less graceful than the name suggests.