Side Pike 2

A closer view of Side Pike at the western end of Lingmoor Fell, Great Langdale. The western slopes of Side Pike are relatively gentle and descend to the valley floor and Blea Tarn, but the to the east of the summit is a wall of crags, as shown here. There is just one chink in this armour which allows ordinary fell walkers descending from Lingmoor Fell to gain access to Side Pike's summit without having to lose height and approach it from the west. The chink involves a tight squeeze (see note) behind a flake of rock leading on to flat shelf (visible on the far left in the photo) followed by a curving path up to Side Pike's summit.



Curiously, this route is not mentioned at all by Wainwright (Book 4, The Southern Fells, Lingmoor Fell p. 6) who regarded Side Pike as inaccessible from this direction.