Fell list

Wainwrights with summit tarns

Seventeen Wainwrights with a tarn on the summit itself, from Red Screes and Haystacks to Thunacar Knott and Lank Rigg, and the famous tarns that sit too far below their fells to count.

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Updated
23 Sept
Red Screes in the Eastern Fells of the Lake District
Red Screes

Photo: Dunpharlain via Wikimedia Commons

Seventeen Wainwrights have a tarn on the summit area. The nearest to a summit cairn is Red Screes Tarn, about 40 m from the trig point on Red Screes. Steel Fell, Thunacar Knott, Grey Knotts, Seathwaite Fell, Place Fell and Brock Crags all have tarns within about 100 m of the top, and Haystacks has an unnamed tarn just below its highest point, with Innominate Tarn further along the ridge.

What counts as a summit tarn

A tarn counts here if it sits on the fell's own summit area: on the top, or on the plateau or ridge between that fell's own tops, and within about 400 m of the highest point. A tarn in a corrie below the summit doesn't count, and nor does one on a col shared with the next fell, however close it looks on the map.

That rules out some of the best-known tarns in the Lakes. Red Tarn is in the corrie under Helvellyn and Catstycam, and Stickle Tarn sits below the crags of Pavey Ark and Harrison Stickle. There are two Angle Tarns, one under Angletarn Pikes and one under Rossett Pike, and both lie well below their summits. Three Tarns is on the col below Bowfell.

We checked each fell against its written description and measured the distance to the nearest mapped water on OpenStreetMap. Distances are approximate, and many of these tarns are small pools that can shrink in a dry summer. Broad, boggy tops such as Ullscarf also hold pools after rain. We have only counted tarns that written descriptions of the fell mention.

The seventeen, nearest first

  • Red Screes. Red Screes Tarn, a small permanent pool a few metres south of the trig point, about 40 m away.
  • Steel Fell. The summit plateau is dotted with small tarns, the nearest about 40 m from the top.
  • Thunacar Knott. A small tarn on the summit, between its two tops, about 50 m from the highest point.
  • Grey Knotts. Several small tarns on the summit, between about 50 and 140 m from the highest point. It is a short climb from Honister.
  • Seathwaite Fell. The summit ridge carries many small tarns, the nearest about 60 m from the top. Sprinkling Tarn lies just below, towards Great End.
  • Place Fell. Small tarns along the short ridge of Hart Crag on the summit plateau, the nearest about 75 m away.
  • Brock Crags. A small tarn between the two highest knolls, about 80 m from the top.
  • Haystacks. An unnamed tarn just below the highest point, often called the summit tarn. Innominate Tarn lies halfway along the summit ridge and Blackbeck Tarn at its east end.
  • Lank Rigg. A small tarn just below the summit to the south west, about 130 m away.
  • Rosthwaite Fell. Tarn at Leaves, about 100 m long, fills the hollow between its two tops, Bessyboot and Rosthwaite Cam, about 180 m from the summit.
  • Caudale Moor. The grassy summit area holds several small tarns between its two tops, the nearest about 200 m from the highest point.
  • High Spy. A small unnamed tarn beside the path up the south ridge, just before the top, about 200 m away.
  • Loughrigg Fell. Its top is a spread of knolls and small tarns, the nearest about 200 m from the trig point.
  • Calf Crag. A tarn between the summit knoll and a lower top to the west, about 230 m away.
  • Kirk Fell. Kirkfell Tarn, in fact two small tarns, lies between the summit and the East Top, about 290 m away.
  • Birkhouse Moor. Small tarns in marshy ground between its two tops, about 290 m from the highest point.
  • Blea Rigg. A long, knobbly fell with many rocky tops and several sizeable tarns, the nearest about 340 m from the highest point.

Seventeen Wainwrights with a summit tarn

Near misses

Carl Side's Carlside Tarn is on the col that joins it to Skiddaw, and in dry weather it often empties. Dock Tarn is half a kilometre from Great Crag and well below it. Greycrag Tarn, a string of small pools, sits in a boggy dip between Grey Crag and Tarn Crag. On Scafell, Foxes Tarn is in a gully below the summit on the Eskdale side. High Street has no tarn on its summit at all. Blea Water and Small Water are in corries under its eastern crags.

Planning a tarn day

In mist, the pools and knolls on these tops can be confusing, especially on Blea Rigg, Loughrigg and Seathwaite Fell. Carry a map and compass and check the Mountain Weather Information Service (MWIS) forecast before you go. For a short tarn day, Red Screes from Kirkstone Pass and Grey Knotts from Honister are the quickest of the list, when those passes are open. Steel Fell, Calf Crag, Blea Rigg and Loughrigg Fell are all within reach of Grasmere; the Grasmere and Ambleside guides have more walks from there.

Summit tarns

Which Wainwright has a tarn closest to the summit?

Red Screes. Red Screes Tarn lies a few metres south of the trig point, about 40 m away, and the fell is a short climb from the top of Kirkstone Pass.

Does Haystacks have a summit tarn?

Yes. An unnamed tarn sits just below the highest point, and Innominate Tarn, where Wainwright's ashes were scattered, lies further east along the same summit ridge.

Does High Street have a summit tarn?

No. Its two tarns, Blea Water and Small Water, lie in corries under the eastern crags, well below the summit plateau.

Is Red Tarn a summit tarn on Helvellyn?

No. Red Tarn fills the corrie between Striding Edge and Swirral Edge, more than 200 m below the summit, so it doesn't count for Helvellyn or for Catstycam.

What counts as a summit tarn?

On this page, a tarn counts if it lies on the fell's own summit area, within about 400 m of the highest point. Tarns in a corrie below the top, or on a col shared with the next fell, don't count.