North Pennines
Brownber Hill
519M
1703FT
About Brownber Hill
Rising above the Eden Valley near Appleby-in-Westmorland, this grassy North Pennines summit offers a quiet moorland experience. Its broad, rounded profile is characteristic of the Western Fells, providing an expansive sense of space and clear, unobstructed views across the rolling landscape toward the distant, rugged silhouettes of the Lake District fells.
Key Statistics
Rank
171st Highest in Region
Parent Range
North Pennines
Prominence
?
36m
Nearest Town
Westmorland and Furness
Geology
You’re walking over layered beds of sandstone, limestone, and slate. These mixed bands of rock and clay-like sediment form the sturdy foundation of Brownber Hill.
Find It
OS Grid Reference
NY705275
Latitude
54.6417°N
Longitude
2.4586°W
Did You Know?
- •The name likely derives from the Old Norse 'brún', meaning brown or a brow/edge, and 'berg', meaning hill or rock, reflecting the significant Viking heritage found throughout the Eden Valley and Westmorland.
- •Following the 2016 expansion of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, Brownber Hill now sits within the park's northwestern tip, forming part of the limestone-fringe uplands known as the Orton Fells.
- •The summit provides a distinct vantage point over the upper Eden Valley, offering a clear view of the dramatic western scarp of the North Pennines, including Cross Fell, the highest point in the range.
- •While the famous Coast to Coast path skirts the lower slopes near Smardale Gill, the summit itself remains a lonely spot, often bypassed by walkers heading between Kirkby Stephen and Orton.
- •In a region famed for its treacherous limestone pavement, the summit is a relatively simple grassy dome, making it one of the few places in the Orton Fells where you can walk for ten yards without worrying about twisting an ankle in a grike.