KYQ4: Barf and Lord's Seat

Sunday, 28 June 2026

Barf and Lord's Seat

Looking down the ascent route from Barf

Saturday, 27 June 2026

Ascent: 545 metres

Distance: 6 kilometres

Time: 2 hours 35 minutes

Barf 468 m 1hr 15mins
Lord's Seat 552m 1hr 40mins

A couple of years ago, I thought I would be finishing another round of Wainwrights this year. I had been averaging about 25 a year. However, things changed, and I have managed only two Wainwrights since my hill-walking days were put on hold in March 2025. I decided to leave early for Langdale on Saturday morning and climb two small Wainwrights, Barf and Lord's Seat, overlooking Bassenthwaite Lake. I was parked just north of Thornthwaite by 11:15am after travelling through a heavy shower in the North Lakes.

I found a parking spot behind the Swan House and wasted little time getting on the path. On previous visits to Barf, I have attacked it directly by climbing a steep scree path marked by a white painted rock outcrop. It took about 25 minutes. I had no intention of doing the same and took what I thought would be a more leisurely path alongside Beckstones Gill, and then, after leaving the forest and crossing a stile, cutting back to the cairn. The path was far steeper and rougher than I had anticipated, with tree roots, brambles and at times streams from the rain making progress slow. The top third of the path towards the stile was deep and dark, with two sections of scrambling up exposed rocks that had become water features. My nerve held, and I reached the stile after almost an hour of climbing the 2 kilometres from the car park.

The final section from the stile and on the open hillside was a delight, with wonderful views to Skiddaw, Derwentwater and the Lakeland fells and decorated by foxgloves. A cool breeze moderated the now-emergent midday sun, a treat after the humid conditions, as I traipsed up the Beckstone Gill. I was soon at the grassy summit with splendid views of Bassenthwaite to the east and the easy-looking path to Lord's Seat to the west. A mountain biker arrived from Lord's Seat shortly after me. We both hunkered down behind grassy banks to avoid the stiff breeze.

The walk across the path to Lord's Seat was pleasant apart from the final ascent into a wind that stopped you in your tracks. The mountain biker had made the return trip, and he arrived a few minutes later after lugging his bike up the last 75 metres of ascent. A family arrived from Broom Fell, the smiling five-year-old boy leading the way, the father eked out a smile; he was carrying a baby and dragging a three-year-old, while the morose-looking mother brought up the rear, eyes focused on her feet. I recognised the feelings, having been there during our first visit to Langdale when Gregor was three months old, and the girls were two and four. I had foolishly thought we could pop up the Langdale Pikes after breakfast. Aileen did not agree, and the girls had to be bribed to keep moving by bars of Twix.

The hillwalk had taken longer than I had anticipated, and there were no direct paths from Lord's Seat back to the stile, so I went off piste, through long grass, bogs and nettles to save time. The descent of the rock outcrops required some care. I reached the car park by 2:30pm and set off for Langdale, stopping at Grasmere for a coffee and cake with Gregor and Emily. It had been my first real hill walk for a year and had drained me of energy with just 13,000 steps completed.