Hills of Britain and Ireland
OS Map of Hard Knott
Height: 550m / 1803ft • Prominence: 156m / 512ft • Summit : rock 8m NW of cairn • Trip reports (hill-bagging)
Climbing the Hardknott Pass, Cumbria, England
This is well-known as a difficult and challenging road in the English Lake District. On the day I drove up it the weather didn't help! The road is single-track and has a 1 in 3 (33%) gradient. The pass is described as one of the most challenging roads in Britain. A series of hairpin bends make visibility difficult in various places and the road surface is in poor condition and slippery when wet. It runs between Eskdale in the west and Wrynose Pass in the East. I made this journey back in 1982 but very little has changed since. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardknott_Pass" rel="noreferrer nofollow en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardknott_Pass
england cumbria hardknottpass challenging rain 33 steep narrow wet mountain flood renault r5 nikkormat prime 50mm ais ektachrome 1982 54395108511
Hardknott Pass, February 2025
hardknottpass hillpass eskdale duddonvalley lakedistrict cumbria england hardknottfell 2025 southlakes 54319719855
OS Map
This is OS mapping. In some areas, OpenStreetMap shows more footpaths
Spatial NI has online OSNI mapping. Click "Basemap Gallery" (4 squares icon at the top).
Now would be a good time for a cup of tea.
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Photos
Please tag your photos and upload them to the British and Irish Mountains group on Flickr
The other photos have been geo-tagged as on or around the summit. For less busy mountains, it can be a little hit and miss.
Climbing the Hardknott Pass, Cumbria, England
This is well-known as a difficult and challenging road in the English Lake District. On the day I drove up it the weather didn't help! The road is single-track and has a 1 in 3 (33%) gradient. The pass is described as one of the most challenging roads in Britain. A series of hairpin bends make visibility difficult in various places and the road surface is in poor condition and slippery when wet. It runs between Eskdale in the west and Wrynose Pass in the East. I made this journey back in 1982 but very little has changed since. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardknott_Pass" rel="noreferrer nofollow en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardknott_Pass
england cumbria hardknottpass challenging rain 33 steep narrow wet mountain flood renault r5 nikkormat prime 50mm ais ektachrome 1982 54395108511
Hardknott Pass, February 2025
hardknottpass hillpass eskdale duddonvalley lakedistrict cumbria england hardknottfell 2025 southlakes 54319719855
Before The Sun Hardknott Pass From the road by The Roman Fort
The Sun was yet to come and light seemed to leak with a delicate gleam onto the pass and fall further still into the deep ravine cut by the stream. © PHH Sykes 2024 phhsykes@gmail.com Hardknott Roman Fort English Heritage www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/hardknott-roman-fort/" rel="noreferrer nofollow www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/hardknott-roman-... Hardknott Roman Fort en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardknott_Roman_Fort" rel="noreferrer nofollow en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardknott_Roman_Fort The Fort at River's Bend en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fort_at_River%27s_Bend" rel="noreferrer nofollow en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fort_at_River%27s_Bend Roman Lake District Audio Guides English Heritage Audio Guides soundcloud.com/ehaudio/sets/roman-lake-district-audio-guides" rel="noreferrer nofollow soundcloud.com/ehaudio/sets/roman-lake-district-audio-guides Hardknott mentioned in this Sonnet. William Wordsworth From, The River Duddon, A Series Of Sonnets, 1820. Numbered XVII 17 A dark plume fetch me from yon blasted yew, Perched on whose top the Danish Raven croaks; Aloft, the imperial Bird of Rome invokes Departed ages, shedding where he flew Loose fragments of wild wailing, that bestrew The clouds and thrill the chambers of the rocks; And into silence hush the timorous flocks, That, calmly couching while the nightly dew Moistened each fleece, beneath the twinkling stars Slept amid that lone Camp on Hardknot’s height, Whose Guardians bent the knee to Jove and Mars: Or, near that mystic Round of Druid frame Tardily sinking by its proper weight Deep into patient Earth, from whose smooth breast it came!
06-Oct-24 • PHH Sykes • flickr
hard knot knott dawn predawn sony alpha 7c a7c ilce7c ilce7b sel24105g fe24105mm f4 g oss lens 54387148572
Aerial View Along Wrynose Bottom Towards Wrynose Pass From Above Hardknott Pass, Lake District, Cumbria
Early morning 9-image panoramic drone view from atop the Hardknott Pass looking along Wrynose Bottom towards the Wrynose Pass.
28-Sep-24 • st3v3cook3 • flickr
copyright wrynosebottom wrynosepass river riverduddon duddonvalley lakedistrict lakedistrictnationalpark aerialview aerial cumbria cockleybeckbridge cockleybeck hardknottpass romanroad drone mavic djimavic2pro scdronemedia landscape scenery ulphafell wrynosefell coldpike beck fell dawn mountain valley mountainrange ngc panorama pano autumn fall 54323053628
Videos
A solo hike up to the Hard Knott Lake District summit taking in the Hardknott Roman Fort also known as Mediobogdum by the ...
AMAZING HARDKNOTT ROMAN FORT in this WAINWRIGHT walk More LAKE DISTRICT walks ...
Video from Bian.
Join me on a solo wild camping adventure at the end of Winter. I explore Hard Knott fell and fly you over the Eskdale valley. (I term ...
Mid-February 2024, Neil heads out from beside the River Duddon, through Hardknott Forest (and a red squirrel encounter) and up ...
Notes
- Data: Database of British and Irish Hills v18.2
- Maps: We use OS mapping for England, Scotland, Wales, and the Isle of Man. Sadly, Channel Islands, Northern (OSNI) and Southern Ireland (OSI) mapping isn't available online, so we use Openstreetmap.