Helvellyn
Encyclopedia : H : HE : HEL : Helvellyn
| Helvellyn | ||
|---|---|---|
 Helvellyn from Red Tarn | ||
| Location: | Lake District, England | |
| Summits: | ||
| Elevation: | 950 m (3117 ft) | 925 m (3034 ft) |
| Prominence: | 712 m | 18 m |
| Topo map: | OS Landranger 90 | OS Landranger 90 |
| OS grid reference: | ||
| Listing: | Marilyn, Wainwright, Hewitt, Nuttall | Nuttall |
| Translation of name: | yellow moor hal =upland + melyn =yellow. (Old Celtic) Brewer's Britain and Ireland. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson (2005) | (none) |
| Pronunciation: | /hɛlvɛlɪn/ | n/a
|
The peak is the highest on the north-south ridge situated between the Thirlmere valley to the west, and Patterdale to the east. This ridge continues north over Helvellyn Lower Man, White Side, Raise, Stybarrow Dodd and Great Dodd, and south leads to Dollywaggon Pike and Seat Sandal.
The hill has a subsidiary summit, Helvellyn Lower Man, about a third of a mile to the north west. It has better views to the northwest and a nicer summit.
The eastern side of the fell is geographically the most dramatic. Two sharp spurs lead off the summit, Striding Edge and Swirral Edge, either side of Red Tarn. The knife-edge Striding Edge provides one of the best-known scrambles in lakeland, while the Swirral Edge ridge leads to the conical summit of Catstye Cam.
William Wordsworth romanticised the death of Charles Gough, a Tourist in the Lake District. Gough set out to cross Striding Edge to reach the peak of Helvellyn. He perished there with his dog, who stood at his side for three months before his corpse was found.
The western slopes are relatively shallow, and partially forested, with many gills leading down to the Thirlmere valley.
The somewhat flat summit made the first British mountain-top landing of a plane possible, when John Leeming and Bert Hinkler successfully landed and took off again, in 1926.
Nearby fells include Fairfield, Nethermost Pike, Raise and White Side.
References
External links
- http://www.stridingedge.net for further details of Striding Edge and all Lake District fells.
- Computer-generated virtual panoramas [North] [South] [Index]
- http://www.english-lakes.com/helvellyn.html Illustrated Lake District Guide]
| Helvellyn range |
|---|
| Clough Head | Great Dodd | Watson's Dodd | Stybarrow Dodd | Raise | White Side | Helvellyn Lower Man | Helvellyn | Nethermost Pike | Dollywaggon Pike |
| Outliers: Green Side | Hart Side | Sheffield Pike | Catstye Cam | Striding Edge | Birkhouse Moor |
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