Raven Crag, Wainwright 13.
This was our first walk since being struck down with Covid, and what a wet day it was ? We knew that the weather forecast wasn’t looking great so we had a last minute change of plan and decided on Raven Crag to be our children’s 13th Wainwright due to its short, yet exciting nature! This walk is relatively easy, coming in at under two miles, and while it is steep in parts it isn’t a strenuous walk to complete. The trees also offer some shelter, although on this particular day it was so wet I’m not sure anything could shield us from the rain.
I would highly recommend this walk to those with small children as it is one of the more interesting walks for little legs; the summit is truly breathtaking, the boardwalks, and stairs, offer an air of excitement and the trees can offer shelter from the wind/sun/rain, depending on the time of year.
The route:
You are able to begin this 1.6 mile route just off the A591 on the West Road to Thirlmere. There is a lay-by that offers parking for 2-3 cars directly opposite the start of this walk. The gate is on the right hand side, with Thirlmere on your left. Please note this road is currently closed until 2023 due to storm damage however, you are able to still reach the lay-by. You can see photo 1 showing the road closed sign, the lay-by parking is just before this sign. The summit is directly behind us in this photo. The road is still accessible to cyclists and pedestrians. See the full Strava map below to see exactly where we started this walk. We opted to park here for this particular day as it was very wet, and it makes the walk much shorter, however you could begin at many of the United Utilities car parks around Thirlmere. Many walkers begin at Legburthwaite and walk across to the west side of Thirlmere before ascending up to Raven Crag.
Having located the path up towards Raven Crag the route is extremely easy to follow – just keep climbing up! Photo 4 shows Raven Crag summit in the background, keep heading towards this! As you begin getting closer to the summit you will see a sign for Raven Crag (photo 5), go through this gate and you will soon reach the steps that lead you to the top of this spectacular Wainwright (photo 6). Unfortunately we picked an incredibly wet day and the views weren’t great but we shall certainly be back. We counted 209 steps … can you count the same?
The terrain is difficult in places, good walking boots would be advised for older children and adults. My three year old and five year old wore their wellies.
Overall, this is a truly fantastic Wainwright walk for the whole family. It is relatively short in distance and took us two hours to complete – remember that is also with a three year old in tow!
We cannot wait to return on a sunny day to really appreciate the views of Thirlmere! This walk can be tied in with many other walks in Thirlmere, one of our favorite’s being Harrop Tarn.
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