Grey Crag

Grey Crag is a fell in the English Lake District, standing east of Longsleddale in the Far Eastern Fells. The valley of Longsleddale narrows sharply north of Sadgill, its sides lined with crags. Great Howe, a flat-topped spur jutting southwards at about 490 metres, forms the eastern wall of the valley. Grey Crag itself is a second tier of crags set back from Great Howe, just below the summit. The fell gives its name to an extensive ridge system stretching eastwards toward the Lune and Eden Valleys. The fell sits on the main watershed of the Cumbrian hills, with water flowing to both the Solway Firth and Morecambe Bay. Its long eastern ridges have a moorland character and offer easy walking in quiet conditions. Principal tops along these ridges include Ancrow Brow, White Howe, Lords Seat, and Great Yarlside. These ridges enclose valleys such as Bannisdale, Crookdale, Wet Sleddale, Borrowdale, and Wasdale. To the north of the summit lies a marshy depression containing Greycrag Tarn, a series of small pools in the bed of a larger historic water body. The summit is a short ridge with the highest point at the south-west end. Half a mile to the north-east is Harrop Pike, only slightly lower, connected by a fence. The true top has a small cairn, while Harrop Pike has a more impressive beacon. Views stretch east and south, while westwards the Coniston and Scafell groups are visible. Great Howe carries the remains of a surveying pillar, part of the Haweswater aqueduct construction from the 1930s. The pipeline below carries water from the reservoir toward Manchester, with the tunnel requiring 250 tons of gelignite for blasting.