A difficult route in Far Eastern Fells. Check the GPS track on Outdooractive for full details of the route, waypoints, and terrain.
Starting Point: Church Bridge car park, Troutbeck (NY 412 026)
Terrain: Road, clear track south then northeast, stile, open fell, Backstone Barrow, crags, Sour Howes summit, path east then north, Moor Head, Sallows summit, Garburn Pass, wild descent westerly through crags, Roman road north along Hag Gill, The Tongue, ridge path south, Troutbeck Tongue summit, steep descent, footbridge, Hall Hill, Hagg Bridge, Ing Bridge, Ing Lane, Troutbeck village, A592, fields, churchyard NAVIGATION WARNING — GARBURN PASS TO ROMAN ROAD: Between Garburn Pass and the Roman road at NY 422 048 there is no path. The descent is westerly through crags and rocks on open fell. The target is visible in clear conditions so navigation is straightforward on a good day, but a compass bearing is advisable in poor visibility. Take care on the crags.
A varied and thoroughly enjoyable circuit above Troutbeck, combining three Wainwrights of very different character across a compact and satisfying round — and memorable from the first moment for the encounter in the car park with a fellow Wainwright chaser who had driven from Kent and slept the night there rather than miss a single fell. The climb to Sour Howes via Backstone Barrow is a fine open ascent, and Sallows gives the day its highest point with excellent views in all directions. The pathless descent from Garburn Pass to the Roman road is the walk's most character-building section — not difficult in clear conditions but a proper piece of fell navigation rather than path-following — and the Roman road itself, running north along Hag Gill toward The Tongue, is one of the most atmospheric stretches of walking in the southern Lake District. Troutbeck Tongue is the day's finest summit — its position jutting into the valley giving views that a fell of barely 364 metres has no right to possess. The return through Troutbeck village and the churchyard completes a circuit of considerable variety and charm.