What Is a Wainwright?
A Wainwright is one of the 214 fells described by Alfred Wainwright in his seven-volume series "A Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells," published between 1955 and 1966. Each volume covers a different area of the Lake District: the Eastern, Far Eastern, Central, Southern, Northern, North Western and Western Fells. Wainwright hand-drew every page, combining meticulous pen-and-ink maps with route descriptions, summit panoramas and personal observations.
The Pictorial Guides
Wainwright's guides remain in print over sixty years after first publication, a testament to their enduring quality. He approached each fell as a complete study, describing multiple routes of ascent, noting points of interest and sketching the view from the summit. His personal ranking system marked certain summits with stars, and his writing combined practical route guidance with dry humour and genuine affection for the landscape.
The 214 fells range from Scafell Pike at 978 metres — the highest point in England — down to Castle Crag at just 290 metres in Borrowdale. This wide range means there is a Wainwright suitable for every ability, from families with children to experienced fell runners tackling long ridge traverses.
Wainwright Bagging
Completing all 214 Wainwrights has become one of the most popular hillwalking challenges in England. Many walkers spend years working through the list, visiting different areas of the Lake District in all seasons. The challenge is well suited to weekend trips, as most Wainwrights can be combined into circular walks of 4 to 8 hours. Classic multi-summit rounds include:
- The Helvellyn ridge via Striding Edge and Swirral Edge
- The Fairfield Horseshoe from Ambleside
- The Newlands Round taking in Catbells, Maiden Moor and Dale Head
- The Langdale Pikes circuit from the New Dungeon Ghyll
Planning with Elevation Profiles
Lake District terrain is steep and varied. A short distance on the map can involve hundreds of metres of ascent over rough, rocky ground. Our route planner overlays 10-metre contour lines on an OS-style base map and generates elevation profiles as you plot your route, so you can see exactly how much climbing each fell walk involves. Export your planned route as a GPX file to carry on a GPS device or smartphone.
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