The Calf

The Calf stands on the high ground of the Howgill Fells in north-west England. It reaches 676 metres above sea level and is the highest point in the range. The fell lies in the north-west of the Yorkshire Dales, close to the boundary of Westmorland and Furness. Walkers can reach it from Sedbergh to the south, from Cautley Spout on the east, or up Langdale valley from the north. The route from Sedbergh is the most popular and follows good paths all the way to the top. The summit gives a wide view across the countryside. A skyline of Lakeland peaks stretches for twenty miles, and the Yorkshire Three Peaks appear to the south-east. The flat plateau at the top makes the horizon easy to see. Alfred Wainwright wrote about the fell in his book Walks on the Howgill Fells. He called the walk from Sedbergh to Calders and The Calf the classic high-level route on the fells. Nearby Calders is almost as high, at 674 metres, and lies about one kilometre south-south-east of The Calf. Wainwright also describes routes from Castley, Beck Houses farm and Bowderdale. Each offers different views of the Howgill Fells and the Lakeland skyline. The standing stone 400 yards north-east of the summit appears on Ordnance Survey maps.