Harter Fell

Harter Fell stands in the western Lake District between Eskdale and the Duddon valley. It is a conical fell rising to 653 metres and capped by three rocky tors. The fell forms part of a fifteen-mile ridge that stretches from Crinkle Crags to Black Combe. Alfred Wainwright once dismissed the southern section of this ridge as unworthy, but later guidebooks included it. The summit offers views of the Eskdale Horseshoe fells and Morecambe Bay. Wainwright himself called Harter Fell beautiful when seen from Eskdale. The fell’s geology reveals layers of Ordovician andesite lava flows and dacite units. These include the Great Whinscale Dacite and the Little Stand Tuff. Faulting exposes different rock types on the southern slopes. Near Spothow Gill, traces remain of Victorian copper mining. The fell’s structure shows how ancient volcanic activity shaped the landscape. Visitors reach the summit via paths from Jubilee Bridge or Hardknott Pass. The summit tor supports an Ordnance Survey column. From the top, Sca Fell, Scafell Pike and Bow Fell form a ring of peaks. To the south, the Duddon estuary and Irish Sea stretch to the horizon. The surrounding slopes are covered in Forestry Commission conifers, especially on the eastern side.