Sergeant Man is a
fell
A fell (from Old Norse ''fell'', ''fjall'', "mountain"Falk and Torp (2006:161).) is a high and barren landscape feature, such as a mountain or Moorland, moor-covered hill. The term is most often employed in Fennoscandia, Iceland, the Isle o ...
in the
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
Lake District
The Lake District, also known as the Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous for its lakes, forests, and mountains (or ''fells''), and its associations with William Wordswor ...
. It is properly a secondary summit of
High Raise, but is given a separate chapter by
Alfred Wainwright
Alfred Wainwright MBE (17 January 1907 – 20 January 1991), who preferred to be known as A. Wainwright or A.W., was a British fellwalker, guidebook author and illustrator. His seven-volume ''Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells'', published ...
in his third
Pictorial Guide nonetheless, as it "is so prominent an object and offers so compelling a challenge". Its rocky cone is indeed in great contrast to the grassy dome of High Raise.
Topography
Sergeant Man lies a third of a mile to the south east of the parent fell and is the pivotal point for a complex system of ridges radiating eastward from High Raise. Sergeant Man is not actually visible from the peak of High Raise and Sergeant Man only comes into view as you gently descend from High Raise. South east, passing between Codale and Stickle Tarns is the broad spur leading to
Blea Rigg
Blea Rigg is a fell in the English Lake District, lying between the valleys of Easedale and Great Langdale. One of the Central Fells, it is a broad plateau with a succession of rocky tops. Many routes of ascent are possible, beginning either fr ...
,
Silver How
Silver How is a fell in the English Lake District, standing over the village of Grasmere. How, derived from the Old Norse word ''haugr'', is a common local term for a hill or mound.
Topography
Silver How forms part of the Blea Rigg ridge and w ...
and
Loughrigg
Loughrigg Fell is a hill in the central part of the English Lake District. It stands on the end of the long ridge coming down from High Raise over Silver How towards Ambleside, and is separated from its neighbours by the depression of R ...
. Sitting above Codale Tarn is the rocky subsidiary top of
Codale Head — a grandchild of High Raise. From here further ridges run east to
Tarn Crag and north east to
Calf Crag
Calf Crag is a fell in the English Lake District, on the eastern side of the High Raise massif.
Topography
The spine of the Central Fells runs on a north–south axis with the high point at High Raise. A complex system of daleheads to the east ...
and the circuit of Greenburn.
Steep ground falls away to the south of Sergeant Man, down to the valley of Bright Beck, this being the main feeder of Stickle Tarn. All water from this flank flows to
Great Langdale
Great Langdale is a valley in the Lake District National Park in North West England, the epithet Great distinguishing it from the neighbouring valley of Little Langdale. Langdale is also the name of a valley in the Howgill Fells, elsewhere i ...
. East of the summit between the Tarn Crag and Blea Rigg ridges, lie Codale Tarn and the headwaters of Easedale, streams bound for
Grasmere. To the north of Sergeant Man are the upper gathering grounds of Wythburndale, which flow via
Thirlmere
Thirlmere is a reservoir in the Allerdale, Borough of Allerdale in Cumbria and the English Lake District National Park, Lake District. The Helvellyn ridge lies to the east of Thirlmere. To the west of Thirlmere are a number of fells; for inst ...
to the sea at
Workington
Workington is a coastal town and civil parish at the mouth of the River Derwent on the west coast in the Allerdale borough of Cumbria, England. The town was historically in Cumberland. At the 2011 census it had a population of 25,207.
Loca ...
.
Ascents
The popular ways up Sergeant Man are either from Great Langdale via Stickle Tarn, or by a variety of routes from
Grasmere village. These can take in the Blea Rigg, Tarn Crag or Calf Crag ridges, or ascend via Far Easedale or Easedale Tarn. The latter route takes the walker past Belles Knott, a striking feature near Codale Tarn. From below it appears as a sharp peak, etched against the skyline, but from above an easy grassy promenade is revealed behind.
[Mark Richards: ''The Central Fells'': Collins (2003): ]
Summit
The area between Sergeant Man and Codale Head has a rash of small tarns, but the summit area is otherwise reasonably dry. The final cone is most easily climbed via a ridge on the northern side, and has good all round views except where obscured by High Raise.
References
{{Central Fells
Fells of the Lake District