Branstree

Branstree is a fell in the Far Eastern part of the English Lake District. It stands above the valley of Mardale and overlooks Haweswater Reservoir. The fell forms part of a high ridge that curves from High Raise in the north to Selside Pike in the south. As the ridge is followed eastward, the landscape shifts from steep crags and scree slopes to smoother, grass-covered hills. Branstree marks the point where the character of the fells changes from Lakeland to a more Pennine style. From many directions the fell appears as a smooth, rounded dome with a broad summit.

The fell has connections to nearby ridges and passes. To the southwest it links with Harter Fell across Gatescarth Pass at 1,900 feet. This old pedestrian route once carried trade between Mardale and Longsleddale. East of Branstree lies a stretch of rough moorland running for about eight kilometres between Mardale and Swindale. The summit is broad and flat, offering limited views, though higher fells to the west block the best sightlines. A small cairn marks the highest point, and two columnar cairns stand on the northern subsidiary top.

Walkers can reach Branstree from several valleys. Gatescarth Pass provides a clear route from the road ends of Mardale and Longsleddale. Other paths climb from near Mosedale Cottage or from the shore of Haweswater along the old Mardale Corpse Road. The fell’s eastern slopes include an unnamed summit of similar height and a small tarn with the remains of a survey pillar from the Haweswater aqueduct. The aqueduct’s first section runs below Tarn Crag and Great Howe, carrying water from the reservoir toward Manchester through a tunnel blasted with 250 tons of gelignite in the 1930s.