Coniston Old Man

Coniston Old Man (803m) is the defining mountain of the Coniston Fells and the most popular summit walk from the village. The direct route from the village takes about two hours up and is well-marked — but the direct route is also the most crowded and least interesting. A far better circuit leaves the village via the Walna Scar track, climbs to Goat's Water below the dramatic east face of Dow Crag, ascends via the crag's summit, then follows the ridge north across the Old Man to Swirl How and down via Wetherlam and Tilberthwaite. This is one of the finest ridge walks in the southern Lake District and rarely crowded on its upper sections.

The summit views on a clear day extend to the sea, to the Isle of Man, and in exceptional conditions to the mountains of Ireland. The old copper workings on the lower slopes are worth examining on the way up or down.

things to do sight
A story
The Old Man's name has nothing to do with the Norse term for a cairn or rocky outcrop — the "man" is indeed a man, the giant rock figure visible from the valley below that medieval walkers imagined as a seated figure watching over the surrounding landscape. The fell has been mined for copper since Roman times; the mines beneath it were once the most productive in England.