Sale How set against the wide expanse of the Northern Fells
Sale How
The northern and eastern slopes of the Skiddaw range present a striking contrast to the rugged, steep profiles found elsewhere in the Lake District. Here, the mountainside softens, running down in vast, rolling sweeps of grass and heather to meet a lonely wilderness of high moors known affectionately to walkers as the "Back o' Skidda." The uniform simplicity of this quiet landscape is broken only by the deep, chiseled paths of mountain streams and the occasional fragment of weathered slate crag.
Nestled directly below the eastern folds of Sale How lies the historic Skiddaw House. Originally constructed as a remote shooting lodge, this resilient stone building has transitioned through various roles over the generations, serving as a lonely shepherd's bothy before becoming one of the most delightfully isolated Youth Hostels in the country. The small clump of trees planted as a windbreak around the house forms the solitary patch of woodland across the entirety of Skiddaw Forest, accessed primarily via a long, evocative track winding up through the Dash Valley.
The unassuming rock pile marking the summit of Sale How
The quiet high point of Sale How rises as an unassuming, gentle dome along the eastern shoulder of the massif, marked simply by a small, loose pile of local slate stones. Because it sits on a minor rise with just 18 meters of independent prominence, it bypasses standard Wainwright status, yet it is recognized as a separate top within the Nuttall and Birkett systems. Standing at this solitary stone heap offers a profound sense of isolation, looking straight out over the empty expanse of the forest basin and back up into the immense, soaring curves of Skiddaw's eastern slopes.
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