Glaramara 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 moor-covered hill. The term is most often employed in Fennoscandia, Iceland, the Isle of Man, pa ...

in the English

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 ...

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. ...

. It is a substantial fell that is part of a long ridge that stretches for over six kilometres from

Stonethwaite Stonethwaite is a small village in the Lake District in the English county of Cumbria, historically part of Cumberland, it is situated in the valley of the Stonethwaite Beck, a side valley of Borrowdale, and within the Lake District National ...

Borrowdale Borrowdale is a valley and civil parish in the English Lake District in the Borough of Allerdale in Cumbria, England. It lies within the historic county boundaries of Cumberland. It is sometimes referred to as ''Cumberland Borrowdale'' ...

up to the important

mountain pass A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both human and animal migr ...

Esk Hause Esk Hause is a mountain pass in the English Lake District, England. It is where the paths from Eskdale, Borrowdale, Langdale and Wasdale all meet. Esk Hause is a first step to reaching higher summits, such as Scafell Pike, Great End, Esk Pike and ...

. The summit of Glaramara at 783 m (2,569 ft) is the central point of this ridge, which separates the valleys of Langstrath and Grains Gill. However, the ridge has two additional fells, numerous subsidiary tops and several small tarns making its traverse an appealing and challenging walk.

Name

The fell’s unusual and pleasant-sounding name, previously only applied to the summit rocks, has now been accepted as the name for the whole fell. Like many fells of the district the name comes from a series of

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and their overseas settlement ...

words which in this case is translated as ''“Hill with the mountain hut by a chasm”''.

Topography

Glaramara’s most striking feature is Combe Gill on its northern slopes, a classic example of a hanging valley that was formed by

glacial A glacial period (alternatively glacial or glaciation) is an interval of time (thousands of years) within an ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are periods of warmer climate betwe ...

erosion during the last

ice age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gre ...

. The gill is full of crags and according to

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'', publis ...

contains the only natural cave in the Lake District, these are the Dove Nest Caves, a rock slip from Dove Nest Crags has partly covered the cave which has three entrances. On its east and west flanks the fell falls away steeply with rocky slopes and

scree Scree is a collection of broken rock fragments at the base of a cliff or other steep rocky mass that has accumulated through periodic rockfall. Landforms associated with these materials are often called talus deposits. Talus deposits typically ...

to the valleys. To the south the ridge continues from the summit of Glaramara for two kilometres over various tops (some of which are Hewitts or

Nuttalls Nuttall may refer to: People * Nuttall (name) * Nuttall baronets Nature * Nuttall's oak, a fast-growing large deciduous oak tree native to North America * Nuttall's woodpecker, a species of woodpecker found in oak woodlands of California * Nutt ...

) with little loss of height to the adjoining fell of Allan Crags before descending to Esk Hause.''"Wainwright's Favourite Lakeland Mountains"'', Alfred Wainwright, , Gives details of topography.

Ascents

The direct ascent of the fell is usually started from the Borrowdale road midway between Rosthwaite and Seatoller. From here it is possible to ascend on either of the ridges to the east or west of Combe Gill, the east ridge being the best because it allows for the climbing of

Rosthwaite Fell Rosthwaite Fell is a fell in the English Lake District. It is situated some due south of Keswick and south of the village of Rosthwaite in Borrowdale. Rosthwaite Fell also has loose connections to the Scafell group of fells. The fells nam ...

and its subsidiary summit of Dovenest Top (632 metres). On this route two other tops of Glaramara, Combe Door Top (676 metres) and Combe Head (735 metres), are passed over. Both of these are Nuttalls. Combe Head gives fine views down into Combe Gill and from here it is short climb to the twin summits of Glaramara.''"The Mountains of England and Wales, Volume 2"'', John & Anne Nuttall, , Gives details of ascents, view, Nuttall tops and name meaning.''"A Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells, The Southern Fells"'', Alfred Wainwright, , Gives details of ascents and view.

Summits

The view from the top of the fell is very good. Glaramara’s position in the centre of the Lake District and its relative isolation from other fells by deep valleys gives a good all-round panorama with the view north down Borrowdale towards

Skiddaw Skiddaw is a mountain in the Lake District National Park in England. Its summit is the sixth-highest in England. It lies just north of the town of Keswick, Cumbria, and dominates the skyline in this part of the northern lakes. It is the ...

being especially fine. Most walkers will continue south along the ridge towards the next main fell of Allen Crags taking in three more subsidiary tops on the way. The first of these is Looking Steads (775 metres) which has Nuttall status, the second is Glaramara South Top / Red Beck Top / Lincomb Head (721 metres) which is a Hewitt and also a Nuttall (called Red Beck Top on the list) and finally High House Tarn Top (684 metres) which is also a Nuttall.''"The Mountains of England and Wales, Volume 2"'', John & Anne Nuttall, , Gives details of ascents, view, Nuttall tops and name meaning.

Fell race

The fell is the scene of the annual Glaramara Fell Race which has taken place in April in the past but the 2006 event was switched to July. This is an eight-kilometre (five-mile) race fro
Glaramara Outdoor Centre
near Seatoller to Glaramara’s summit with 640 metres (2100 feet) of ascent. The winner of the race usually takes around 47 minutes to complete the course.Borrowdale Fell Runners website
Gives details of fell race.

References

External links

{{Southern Fells Hewitts of England Fells of the Lake District Nuttalls Allerdale