It’s sometimes easy to see why a road got its name. That’s the case with The Struggle which links Ambleside to The Kirkstone Pass – even in a car it’s a tricky climb. But the views, and the walks, that are on offer make the effort thoroughly worthwhile.
The mountain that dominates the view from the Kirkstone Pass Inn is Red Screes. The mountain is separated by two passes, Kirkstone Pass to the east and Scandale Pass to the west, and when viewed from the south it appears as a standalone peak.
When viewed from the car park where this walk starts, it looks a formidable climb to its 2546ft/776metre summit. However, the car park is at an elevation of 1490ft/454 metres but even, so the 1056ft/322 metres of climbing doesn’t look easy.
The walk I describe here climbs the very steep eastern face that is a splendid scramble to the summit. It then drops down to the col of Scandale Pass and down the valley of Caiston Glen and returns via the Kirkstone Pass to the start. The walk can be done the other way round and although this avoids climbing the steep face, it does mean descending it, which isn’t pleasant with tired legs.
1. Leave the car park at the Kirkstone Pass end and go through a gate stile then turn left and take the path leading directly to the face of Red Screes. The path rises gently then turns into steep stone steps and once these end it becomes a very steep rocky scramble before levelling off to reach the summit triangulation pillar.
Note: The views over Windermere are stunning and stretch as far as Ingleborough in the Yorkshire Dales and beyond.
2. Leave the summit cairn and follow the wide track directly ahead as it turns left then right and becomes a footpath heading downhill to reach a wall corner. Keep the wall on the left and follow the path that has a few steep rocky sections to reach the stile in the wall at Scandale Pass.
3. Do not cross the stile but turn sharp right and descend into the valley of Caiston Glen. The paths are very indistinct as the glen is not much visited therefore the people who have visited have tended to forge their own routes, but they are easily manageable when you find one and keep going downhill.
There is a series of waterfalls on upper Caiston Beck running through steep sided gullies but once below these bear right and cross the beck and, with this on the left, keep on downhill. Once again, the paths are indistinct.
4. Reach a post with yellow footpath arrows on it. At this point, turn sharp right and start climbing uphill and cross a broken wall then keep on the path that climbs up Kirkstone Pass running parallel with the road that is on the left.
There are a couple of gate stiles on the way up and at one point some steps leading up to the road but don’t take these as there is no reason to enter the road. The path passes a small car park and then passes a distinct pointed boulder – that’s the Kirkstone that gives its name to the pass – and, eventually reaches the gate stile you left the main car park by.
COMPASS POINTS
START: Car park opposite Kirkstone Pass Inn
DISTANCE: 4.25 miles/6.8km TIME: 4 hours
TERRAIN: Very steep and rocky climb at the start, then footpaths, though very indistinct in Caiston Glen. Boots the obvious choice and good waterproofs just in case MAP: OS Explorer OL7 The English Lakes South-eastern area
FACILITIES: None when I went as the Kirkstone Pass Inn was being refurbished
