Thornthwaite Crag is a fell

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...

, standing to the west of Haweswater Reservoir

Haweswater Reservoir

Haweswater is a reservoir in the English Lake District, built in the valley of Mardale in the county of Cumbria. The controversial construction of the Haweswater dam started in 1929, after Parliament passed an Act giving the Manchester Corporation permission to build the reservoir to supply water...

. It is a focal point of the Far Eastern Fells

Far Eastern Fells

The Far Eastern Fells are a group of hills in the English Lake District. Reaching their highest point at High Street they occupy a broad area to the east of Ullswater and Kirkstone Pass. Much quieter than the central areas of Lakeland they offer in general easier but less exciting walking as the...

, standing at the head of several valleys.

Topography

The summit area is broadly horseshoe shaped, concave to the north with the head of Hayeswater Gill in the opening. The northwestern horn of the shoe connects to Gray Crag

Gray Crag

-Topography:The fell reaches a height of 699 metres at the northern end of its summit ridge and this is the accepted highest point which gives the best views, although there is a spot height of 710 metres less than a kilometre to the south. Both tops have small cairns set on grass...

 and the north eastern ridge to High Street

High Street (Lake District)

High Street is a fell in the English Lake District. At 828 metres , its summit is the highest point in the far eastern part of the national park. The fell is named after the Roman road which ran over the summit.-History and Naming:...

 and Mardale Ill Bell

Mardale Ill Bell

Mardale Ill Bell is a fell in the English Lake District, rising to the south west of Haweswater Reservoir. It stands on the watershed between Mardale and Kentmere and is the highpoint of the south eastern ridge of High Street, midway on its course to Harter Fell.-Topography:The head of the Kentmere...

. Two other principal ridges run south to Froswick

Froswick

Froswick is a fell in the English Lake District, standing on the fine narrow ridge between the valleys of Kentmere and Troutbeck.-Topography:To the north is Thornthwaite Crag, while the adjoining fell to the south is Ill Bell. Froswick is shorter in stature than either of its neighbours and also...

 and west to Caudale Moor

Stony Cove Pike

Stony Cove Pike is a fell in the Far Eastern part of the English Lake District. It stands on the other side of the Kirkstone Pass from Red Screes, and is on the end of a ridge coming down from High Street...

.

The north eastern and southern ridges enclose the head of Kentmere

Kentmere

Kentmere is a valley, village and civil parish in the Lake District National Park, a few miles from Kendal in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria, England. It is historically part of Westmorland...

 with scree and crag predominating. To the south west of Thornthwaite Crag is the craggy head of the long valley of Troutbeck, emptying into Windermere

Windermere (lake)

Windermere is the largest natural lake in England. It is a ribbon lake formed in a glacial trough after the retreat of ice at the start of the current interglacial. It has been one of the country’s most popular places for holidays and summer homes since the arrival of the Kendal and Windermere...

. Between the western and north western ridges is the head of Pasture Beck, which ultimately joins Hayeswater Beck en route to 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 ....

.

The western ridge to Caudale Moor is narrow and rough, dropping very steeply to the depression of Threshwaite Mouth at 1,950 ft. The other ridges are broad and grassy, although there is some marshy ground when crossing the depression toward High Street. The southern ridge does narrow considerably before reaching Froswick.

Summit

The grassy top is crossed by a stone wall which rises up from Threshwaite Mouth and then peters out a few hundred yards to the east of the summit. A section of old fence posts then continues the boundary line toward High Street before again being replaced by stone wall. The actual top is marked by one of the most impressive columnar cairn

Cairn

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...

s in the district. Named Thornthwaite Beacon it towers 14 feet above an angle in the wall.

Ascents

The High Street Roman road reaches the summit plateau along the south ridge, but then detours east around the actual top, making a bee-line for the fell bearing its name. All of the connecting ridges carry good paths from the summit, which is an important walkers crossroads. The view is good, particularly westwards, although it can be improved by moving to the edge of the plateau in various directions.

Thornthwaite Crag can be climbed direct from Hartsop via Pasture Beck and from Troutbeck via Scot Rake (the roman road), or via Threshwaite Mouth. Various ascents from Kentmere are also possible.