Bowfell
Bowfell from Shelter Crags, about a mile south along the ridge
Elevation	902 m (2,949 ft)
Location	Cumbria,  England
Range	Lake District, Southern Fells
Prominence	146 m
Parent peak	Scafell Pike
Topo map	OS Landrangers 89, 90 Explorer OL6
OS grid reference	NY245064
Listing	Hewitt, Nuttall, Wainwright

Bowfell (named Bow Fell on Ordnance Survey maps) is a pyramid-shaped mountain lying at the very heart of the English Lake District, in the Southern Fells area. In topography a summit is a point on a surface which is higher in Elevation than all points immediately adjacent to The metre or meter is a unit of Length. It is the basic unit of Length in the Metric system and in the International A foot (plural feet or foot; symbol or abbreviation ft or sometimes &prime – the prime symbol) is a non-SI unit Boundaries and divisions Cumbria is neighboured by Northumberland, County Durham, North Yorkshire, Lancashire, and the Lieutenancy England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland A mountain range is a chain of Mountains bordered by highlands or separated from other mountains by passes or valleys The Lake District, also known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a rural area in North West England. |} At 978 metres (3209 feet Scafell Pike is the highest mountain in England. A topographic map is a type of Map characterized by large-scale detail and quantitative representation of relief, usually using Contour lines in modern Ordnance Survey (OS is an Executive agency of the United Kingdom government The British national grid reference system is a system of geographic grid references commonly used in Great Britain, different from using Latitude and Longitude There are many notable lists of mountains around the world Typically a list of mountains becomes notable by first being listed or defined by an author or group (e The mountains and hills of Great Britain, and to a lesser extent Ireland, are the subject of a considerable number of lists which categorise The mountains and hills of Great Britain, and to a lesser extent Ireland, are the subject of a considerable number of lists which categorise Wainwrights are the 214 Fells (hills and mountains described in A The mountains and hills of Great Britain, and to a lesser extent Ireland, are the subject of a considerable number of lists which categorise The mountains and hills of Great Britain, and to a lesser extent Ireland, are the subject of a considerable number of lists which categorise Ordnance Survey (OS is an Executive agency of the United Kingdom government A pyramid is a Building where the upper surfaces are triangular and converge on one point England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland The Lake District, also known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a rural area in North West England. It is the sixth highest mountain in the lakes and one of the most popular of the Lakeland fells, and there are many different routes to the summit. A mountain is a Landform that extends above the surrounding Terrain in a limited area with a peak Fell (from the Old Norse fjall, 'mountain' is a word used to refer to Mountains or certain types of mountainous landscape in Scandinavia

Topography

The Southern Fells include the highest ground in England, a horseshoe which begins with Scafell and Scafell Pike in the west and then curves around the north of Upper Eskdale to take in Great End, Esk Pike, Bowfell and Crinkle Crags. |} Sca Fell (also spelled Scafell, and traditionally ˈskɔːfəl ( Scawfle) though the alternative pronunciation /skɑːˈfɛl/ is common nowadays is a |} At 978 metres (3209 feet Scafell Pike is the highest mountain in England. |} Great End is the most northerly Mountain in the Scafell chain in the English Lake District. Esk Pike is a Fell in the English Lake District, one of the great cirque of hills forming the head of Eskdale. |} Crinkle Crags is a Fell in the English Lake District in the county of Cumbria.

In addition to Eskdale, Bowfell has a footing in two other well known Lakeland valleys. It stands at the head of Great Langdale — its east ridge dividing the two branches of Mickleden and Oxendale — while to the north is the Langstrath branch of Borrowdale. Great Langdale is a Valley in the Lake District National park in the county of Cumbria, in the northwest of England. From all of these valleys Bowfell presents a striking profile with a conical top resting upon a wider summit plateau.

To the north west of Bowfell the main ridge drops to the depression of Ore Gap, named for its reddish soil, rich in haematite. Hematite, also spelt hæmatite, is the Mineral form of Iron(III oxide (Fe2O3 one of several Iron oxides Below the col on the northern side is Angle Tarn. In a range of hills or especially of mountains, a pass (also gap, notch, col, saddle, bwlch, A tarn (or corrie loch) is a mountain Lake or pool formed in a Cirque excavated by a Glacier. This round waterbody occupies a corrie beneath Hanging Knotts, small trout lurking in its 50 ft depths. A cirque ( French for " Circus " is an Amphitheatre -like Valley, or valley head formed at the head of a Glacier by Its outflow is a tributary of the Langstrath Beck, making for Stonethwaite. ^[1] To the south of Ore Gap runs Yeastyrigg Gill, the main headwater of Lingcove Beck, flowing into the fastness of upper Eskdale. Beyond the Gap the ridge makes the stoney three tiered climb to the white rocked summit of Esk Pike.

Southward of Bowfell the ridge falls steeply to Three Tarns, the col separating it from Crinkle Crags. In a range of hills or especially of mountains, a pass (also gap, notch, col, saddle, bwlch, The depression takes its name from a number of small pools, often two, but sometimes more after rain. ^[1] Busco Sike flowing to the east is the longest feeder of Oxendale Beck in Great Langdale.

The view southeast from the Great Slab, looking towards Pike of Blisco. Pike of Blisco, or Pike o' Blisco, is a Mountain in the Lake District in Cumbria, England.

Bowfell sends out two subsidiary ridges to the east. The Band is a descending rigg starting from the southern end of the summit plateau. It is this ridge which divides Oxendale from Mickleden, making straight for Stool End Farm on the valley floor. The Band has a minor top about halfway down named White Stones,^[2] although most guidebooks do not consider it notable. The second ridge begins at the northern end of the summit plateau and crosses a sharp depression at the head of Rossett Gill to make for Rossett Pike. Rossett Pike is a Fell in the English Lake District. It is located at the head of Mickleden one of two tributary valleys of Great Langdale The continuation of this ridge provides the connection to the Central Fells, forming the northern wall of Great Langdale as it crosses Martcrag Moor, bound for the Langdale Pikes. Great Langdale is a Valley in the Lake District National park in the county of Cumbria, in the northwest of England.

Geology

The predominant rocks on Bowfell are the volcaniclastic sandstones of the Seathwaite Fell Formation, with interbeds of andesite outcropping near the summit. Pyroclastic rocks or pyroclastics (derived from the Greek πῦρ, meaning fire and κλαστός, meaning broken are Clastic rocks Sandstone is a Sedimentary rock composed mainly of Sand -size Mineral or rock grains. For the extinct cephalopod genus see Andesites. Andesite (ˈændəsaɪt is an igneous, Volcanic rock, of intermediate The pebbly sandstone and breccias of the Pavey Ark Member also cross the fell. Breccia (ˈbrɛtʃiə ˈbrɛʃiə breach is a rock composed of angular fragments of several Minerals or rocks in a matrix, that is a cementing material ^[3]

Summit and View

Looking south west from just under Bow Fell summit towards Eskdale under darkening skies

The summit area is a ridge running north-south with the final pyramid near the southwest corner and crags on three sides. The southern face is formed by Bowfell Links, an impressive wall of crag scarred by nine vertical gullies and with corresponding tongues of scree at its foot. A climb up these is neither pleasurable nor safe as they are extremely active loose rock channels. The eastern face carries a wealth of features including Flat Crag, Cambridge Crag and the Bowfell Buttress, the latter two providing good climbing. Flat Crag includes the Great Slab, a remarkable tilted sheet of rock which looks exactly how it sounds. Below these faces runs the Climber's Traverse, a narrow path providing an excellent high-level walking route to the summit from the highest point of The Band. This largely horizontal line contours around beneath many of Bowfell's most dramatic crags, finally reaching the summit via a rocky route known as the River of Boulders, running parallel to the Great Slab. Finally on the north east corner of the summit ridge is Hanging Knotts, a complex series of faces and outcrops looking down upon Angle Tarn.

The highest point carries not so much a cairn as a rearrangement of some loose rock at the apex of the pyramid. A cairn ( carn in Irish is an artificial pile of stones often in a conical form The panorama is excellent, improved immeasurably by the steep final slope and lack of foreground. In its most general sense a panorama is any wide view of a physical space Every major group of fells in Lakeland is seen well from this superb vantage point — the Helvellyn range from end-to-end and the Langdale Pikes across Langdale — but the piece of the view is Scafell Pike towering above Eskdale. Helvellyn range is the name given to a part of the Eastern Fells in the English Lake District, Fell being the local word for hill Great Langdale is a Valley in the Lake District National park in the county of Cumbria, in the northwest of England. |} At 978 metres (3209 feet Scafell Pike is the highest mountain in England. ^[4]

Ascents

The pyramid shape of Bowfell viewed from Lingcove.

The Band provides the most popular means of ascent, Bowfell's majestic position at the head of Great Langdale acting as an irresistible magnet to many. Other routes from Langdale climb via Rossett Gill and Three Tarns. Bowfell can be reached from Stonethwaite via Angle Tarn although the way is long. Equally time consuming although perhaps more picturesque is the long march up Eskdale from Brotherikeld, gaining the ridge at either Ore Gap or Three Tarns. ^[5] Indirect climbs can also be made via Crinkle Crags, Esk Pike or Rossett Pike.

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Blair, Don: Exploring Lakeland Tarns: Lakeland Manor Press (2003): ISBN 0-9543-9041-5
2. ^ Birkett, Bill: Complete Lakeland Fells: Collins Willow (1994): ISBN 0-0021-8406-0
3. ^ British Geological Survey: 1:50,000 series maps, England & Wales Sheet 38: BGS (1998)
4. ^ Alfred Wainwright: A Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells, Book 4: ISBN 0-7112-2457-9
5. ^ Richards, Mark: Mid-Western Fells: Collins (2004): ISBN 0-00-711368-4