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Mountain: Scafell Pike
Elevation: 978m (3210 ft)
Location: Cumbria, England
OS grid ref: NY2146107227
Nearest village(s): Wasdale Head
Coordinates: 54° 27′ 15.2″ N, 3° 12′ 41.5″ W
Scafell Pike and Sca Fell
Scafell Pike, which at 3210 feet, is not only England’s highest mountain but also the hardest to get to. Some people count Scafell Pike and Sca Fell as one mountain, this is incorrect as they have separate summits and Sca Fell is around fifty feet lower than Scafell Pike. This Lake District mountain has unfortunately seen many terrible accidents.
However, if you honestly get to the top you get the feeling of great accomplishment and the scenic views from the top is truly breathtaking – well worth the climb. Scafell Pike is part of a range of peaks known as the Scafell Pikes, which is what you have to work your way over or around before you can actually start climbing the big one. This is the reason you need a relatively long time to get to the summit, unlike the other mountains which are closer to civilisation or offer parking nearby.
First recorded climb
The first person to record his climb of Sca Fell (or better known as Scafell) was Samuel Taylor Coleridge, he did this in 1802 on his own with a pen and a bottle of ink. He wrote a letter once he reached the summit of Sca Fell, hence the first recorded climb of Sca Fell. In 1921 someone fell down a ravine called Piers Gill. He broke both ankles and was forced to lay there for eighteen days before he was found.
Fortunately he landed near a pool of water and it was this that kept him alive. The route from Wasdale Head, which contains England’s deepest lake Wast water, is the shortest and quickest, however, this is the steepest route. Unfortunately, you still have to get round and into Wasdale and this is a long drive from central Lakeland. Another route is to go up by Esk House and then to come down the Corridor Route.
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