The long, elegant ridge of Souther Fell curving into the valley

Souther Fell

Height522m (1,713ft)

Prominence87m (285ft)

RegionNorthern Fells

Climbed1 Time

Souther Fell rises directly to the south of Mungrisdale village, acting as a striking eastern wingman to the mighty Blencathra range. Stretching out as a long, continuous grassy crest, it falls away abruptly at its northeastern tip into a patchwork of valley fields. This geography creates Mousthwaite Comb—a fascinating hydrological quirk where the River Glenderamackin runs eastward along the north of the ridge, and westward along the south, wrapping around the fell on three sides like a six-mile-long natural moat.

"Souther Fell, taking the form of a long ridge, extends Blencathra to the east and curves northwards to its extremity, where there is an abrupt fall of altitude to the fields of Mungrisdale - and no more high ground." — Wainwright 1962, Book Five

Beyond its landscape, Souther Fell holds legendary status in Cumbrian folklore due to the bizarre phenomenon of the "Spectral Army" witnessed on Midsummer’s Day in 1745. For several hours, twenty-six sober, sworn local witnesses watched a phantasmagoria of marching infantry, cavalry, and carriages traverse the precipitous summit ridge—terrain known to be far too steep for actual wheels. When investigators climbed the ridge the following morning, not a single boot print or broken blade of grass could be found on the soft turf. While modern theories suggest it was a rare atmospheric mirage reflecting Bonnie Prince Charlie’s troops drilling across the Solway Firth, or perhaps smoke from traditional Germanic bonfire rituals distorted by the popular press, the mystery still haunts the valley.

The completely unmarked, smooth grassy summit of Souther Fell

The spine of the ridge features several undulating bumps, with the true northeastern top rising some thirty feet higher than its southern partner. True to the minimalist character of the region, the summit area features no cairn or stone structure whatsoever, leaving the open turf completely unblemished. As the final high outpost of the Northern Fells in this direction, standing on its crest offers a magnificent, totally uninterrupted panoramic outlook eastward over the Eden Valley to the Pennines, balanced by a dramatic view of the Lakeland fells peeking around the massive, dark shoulders of Blencathra.

Trip Reports

Souther Fell, Mungrisdale Common, Bannerdale Crags & Bowscale Fell13/06/2015

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