The Calf from the Cross Keys

Route Overview & Local Insights

This 11.3km out-and-back journey is a quintessential Howgill Fells experience, starting from the iconic Cross Keys Inn near Sedbergh. The route is defined by its relentless "Hilly 5" rating, delivering 556m of vertical gain primarily on soft, grassy fellside. Unlike the rocky crags of the nearby Lake District, the terrain here features smooth, velvet-like slopes that offer excellent underfoot spring, though they can become slippery after a typical Cumbrian downpour. As you grind toward the summit of The Calf—the highest point in the range—the trail opens up into a high-plateau paradise where the lack of walls and fences gives a true sense of mountain freedom, culminating in a fast, flowing descent that lets you open up your stride on the way back down.

Steeped in local history, the start point at the Cross Keys Inn is a rare example of a temperance inn, serving weary travelers and runners since the 16th century without a drop of alcohol. The Howgill Fells themselves were famously described by hill-walking legend A.W. Wainwright as looking like "a herd of sleeping elephants," thanks to their rounded, undulating silhouettes. Running here feels like stepping back in time; the landscape has remained largely unchanged for centuries, used primarily for hill sheep farming. Keep an eye out for the wild fell ponies that often graze near the lower slopes—they are as much a part of this rugged Sedbergh landscape as the trig point at the summit of The Calf itself.