Great Langdale

Great Langdale is a broad U-shaped valley in the Lake District National Park, opening near Skelwith Bridge west of Ambleside. Two villages, Chapel Stile and Elterwater, sit along its floor, with a hamlet at High Close. The valley is ringed by fells, the most famous being the Langdale Pikes on its northern side. From the dale floor these peaks form a sharp rocky ridge, though their northern slopes rise more gently. Scafell Pike, England’s highest mountain, can be climbed from Langdale via routes that cross the valley’s head. The valley was a major Neolithic axe-making site, where fine-grained greenstone was collected from scree slopes on Harrison Stickle and Pike of Stickle. These polished axes, known as Group VI, have been found across Britain and into Europe. Nearby Copt Howe holds England’s largest Neolithic rock art site, with incised motifs linked to Irish passage tomb art. The axe industry declined as large megalithic monuments appeared across Cumbria, marking a shift in regional culture. Paths lead from the villages up to Stickle Tarn, a deep corrie pool dammed for drinking water. A stone-slabbed route climbs Stickle Ghyll behind the New Dungeon Ghyll Hotel, while Dungeon Ghyll Force waterfall can be reached from the Old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel. The valley’s crags, including Gimmer Crag, are top climbing venues first pioneered in the 1880s. Views take in the Langdale Pikes themselves and distant fells like Bowfell and Crinkle Crags.