Sheffield Pike
Encyclopedia
Sheffield Pike is a fell
in the English
Lake District
, an outlier of the Helvellyn range
in the Eastern Fells
. It stands on the eastern side of the range, looking down on Ullswater
.
, crossing a grassy saddle to the subsidiary top of White Stones. The rocky fall into the head of Glencoyne prevents further eastward progress and the ridge splits into two, flanking the valley to north and south. The northern arm continues to Hart Side
, while the southern branch drops down a heavily quarried slope to the depression of Nick Head (1,919 ft). From here it rises again to the top of Sheffield Pike.
Broadly oval in plan, Sheffield Pike separates Glencoyne from the Glenridding valley to the south. Both flanks are steep, the Glenridding Screes particularly so, and the upper slopes have substantial outcrops of rock. East of the summit is a second top named Heron Pike (c.1,985 ft), a rock turret backed by a couple of tiny tarns
. Beyond here the ridge tumbles down a further rocky slope to The Rake (1,300 ft), a narrow col connecting to Glenridding Dodd
. A further ridge descends from the summit area of Sheffield Pike, also running eastward, but a little to the north of Glenridding Dodd. This falls to the shore of Ullswater through Glencoyne Wood.
-phyric andesite
lava
s of the Birker Fell Formation. A vein of quartz
-feldspar
-phyric microgranite runs along the southern slopes and across Nick Head.
The area around Nick Head, on the Glenridding side, was the site of Greenside Mine. This operated from around 1750 until final closure in 1962, winning lead
and silver
in what was the District's most successful mining operation. The estimated yield was almost 2,500,000 tons of ore during the lifetime of the mine. Work commenced from levels driven into the higher slopes of Sheffield Pike, but by the closure of operations the mine had descended 3,000 ft below the summit of the fell. As a bizarre post-script to the underground activity, in 1960 the Atomic Energy Authority used the mine for seismic tests. Charges were to be detonated and the shock waves studied, in an effort to improve monitoring of underground nuclear tests by other nations. Two charges were fired, but the smaller one failed to go off. Considerable evidence of mining remains with extensive tips below Nick Head and water leats on both sides of Glenridding Beck. Part of the mine buildings have been converted into a Youth Hostel.
marks the summit, also carrying an old stone boundary marker dated 1830. Given that this was not noted by Alfred Wainwright
in his 1955 Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells
the exact provenance of this stone is uncertain. Heron Pike bears a single iron post, another boundary marker. The view from the top is restricted by the higher fells of the Helvellyn range and Ullswater can be better seen from either Heron Pike, or from the cairn above Black Crag on the Glencoyne side.
for a much longer horseshoe of Glenridding.
Fell
“Fell” is a word used to refer to mountains, or certain types of mountainous landscape, in Scandinavia, the Isle of Man, and parts of northern England.- Etymology :...
in the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
Lake District
Lake District
The Lake District, also commonly known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous not only for its lakes and its mountains but also for its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth...
, an outlier of the Helvellyn range
Helvellyn range
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. The name comes from Helvellyn, the highest point of the group....
in the Eastern Fells
Eastern Fells
The Eastern Fells are a group of hills in the English Lake District. Centred on Helvellyn they primarily comprise a north south ridge running between Ullswater and Lakeland's Central Valley.-Partition of the Lakeland Fells:...
. It stands on the eastern side of the range, looking down on Ullswater
Ullswater
Ullswater is the second largest lake in the English Lake District, being approximately nine miles long and 0.75 miles wide with a maximum depth of slightly more than ....
.
Topography
A broad ridge runs eastward from the summit of Stybarrow DoddStybarrow Dodd
Stybarrow Dodd is a fell in the English Lake District. It stands on the main spine of the Helvellyn range in the Eastern Fells, situated between Thirlmere and the Ullswater catchment.-Topography:...
, crossing a grassy saddle to the subsidiary top of White Stones. The rocky fall into the head of Glencoyne prevents further eastward progress and the ridge splits into two, flanking the valley to north and south. The northern arm continues to Hart Side
Hart Side
Hart Side is a fell in the English Lake District, being an outlier of the Helvellyn range in the Eastern Fells. The Ordnance Survey maps give the name to a broad saddle dropping from White Stones on Stybarrow Dodd, but Wainwright in his Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells gave the name to the...
, while the southern branch drops down a heavily quarried slope to the depression of Nick Head (1,919 ft). From here it rises again to the top of Sheffield Pike.
Broadly oval in plan, Sheffield Pike separates Glencoyne from the Glenridding valley to the south. Both flanks are steep, the Glenridding Screes particularly so, and the upper slopes have substantial outcrops of rock. East of the summit is a second top named Heron Pike (c.1,985 ft), a rock turret backed by a couple of tiny tarns
Tarn (lake)
A tarn is a mountain lake or pool, formed in a cirque excavated by a glacier. A moraine may form a natural dam below a tarn. A corrie may be called a cirque.The word is derived from the Old Norse word tjörn meaning pond...
. Beyond here the ridge tumbles down a further rocky slope to The Rake (1,300 ft), a narrow col connecting to Glenridding Dodd
Glenridding Dodd
Glenridding Dodd is a fell in the English Lake District, an outlier of the Helvellyn range in the Eastern Fells. It looks down the upper reach of Ullswater.-Topography:...
. A further ridge descends from the summit area of Sheffield Pike, also running eastward, but a little to the north of Glenridding Dodd. This falls to the shore of Ullswater through Glencoyne Wood.
Geology and Mining
The summit area is composed of the plagioclasePlagioclase
Plagioclase is an important series of tectosilicate minerals within the feldspar family. Rather than referring to a particular mineral with a specific chemical composition, plagioclase is a solid solution series, more properly known as the plagioclase feldspar series...
-phyric andesite
Andesite
Andesite is an extrusive igneous, volcanic rock, of intermediate composition, with aphanitic to porphyritic texture. In a general sense, it is the intermediate type between basalt and dacite. The mineral assemblage is typically dominated by plagioclase plus pyroxene and/or hornblende. Magnetite,...
lava
Lava
Lava refers both to molten rock expelled by a volcano during an eruption and the resulting rock after solidification and cooling. This molten rock is formed in the interior of some planets, including Earth, and some of their satellites. When first erupted from a volcanic vent, lava is a liquid at...
s of the Birker Fell Formation. A vein of quartz
Quartz
Quartz is the second-most-abundant mineral in the Earth's continental crust, after feldspar. It is made up of a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall formula SiO2. There are many different varieties of quartz,...
-feldspar
Feldspar
Feldspars are a group of rock-forming tectosilicate minerals which make up as much as 60% of the Earth's crust....
-phyric microgranite runs along the southern slopes and across Nick Head.
The area around Nick Head, on the Glenridding side, was the site of Greenside Mine. This operated from around 1750 until final closure in 1962, winning lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
and silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
in what was the District's most successful mining operation. The estimated yield was almost 2,500,000 tons of ore during the lifetime of the mine. Work commenced from levels driven into the higher slopes of Sheffield Pike, but by the closure of operations the mine had descended 3,000 ft below the summit of the fell. As a bizarre post-script to the underground activity, in 1960 the Atomic Energy Authority used the mine for seismic tests. Charges were to be detonated and the shock waves studied, in an effort to improve monitoring of underground nuclear tests by other nations. Two charges were fired, but the smaller one failed to go off. Considerable evidence of mining remains with extensive tips below Nick Head and water leats on both sides of Glenridding Beck. Part of the mine buildings have been converted into a Youth Hostel.
Summit and view
The summit of Sheffield Pike has varied terrain with areas of bog between the rocky outcrops. A broad cairnCairn
Cairn is a term used mainly in the English-speaking world for a man-made pile of stones. It comes from the or . Cairns are found all over the world in uplands, on moorland, on mountaintops, near waterways and on sea cliffs, and also in barren desert and tundra areas...
marks the summit, also carrying an old stone boundary marker dated 1830. Given that this was not noted by Alfred Wainwright
Alfred Wainwright
Alfred Wainwright MBE was a British fellwalker, guidebook author and illustrator. His seven-volume Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells, published between 1955 and 1966 and consisting entirely of reproductions of his manuscript, has become the standard reference work to 214 of the fells of the...
in his 1955 Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells
Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells
A Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells is a series of seven books by A. Wainwright, detailing the fells of the Lake District in northwest England...
the exact provenance of this stone is uncertain. Heron Pike bears a single iron post, another boundary marker. The view from the top is restricted by the higher fells of the Helvellyn range and Ullswater can be better seen from either Heron Pike, or from the cairn above Black Crag on the Glencoyne side.
Ascents
Ascents are usually made from Glenridding village, either via The Rake or Nick Head. These two depressions can also be used to provide access from the quieter valley of Glencoyne. A popular indirect route is to climb Glenridding Dodd first, and then proceed either to Hart Side for a circuit of Glencoyne, or to Stybarrow Dodd and HelvellynHelvellyn
Helvellyn is a mountain in the English Lake District, the apex of the Eastern Fells. At above sea level, it is the third highest peak in both the Lake District and England...
for a much longer horseshoe of Glenridding.