Brock Crags is a

fell A fell (from Old Norse ''fell'', ''fjall'', "mountain"Falk and Torp (2006:161).) is a high and barren landscape feature, such as a mountain or Moorland, moor-covered hill. The term is most often employed in Fennoscandia, Iceland, the Isle of M ...

in the English

Lake District The Lake District, also known as ''the Lakes'' or ''Lakeland'', is a mountainous region and National parks of the United Kingdom, national park in Cumbria, North West England. It is famous for its landscape, including its lakes, coast, and mou ...

, standing above Hartsop in the Far Eastern Fells. It forms part of the perimeter of Martindale, lying on the long ridge from Rampsgill Head to Place Fell.

Location of summit

Wainwright gave the name Brock Crags to the section of ridge between

Rest Dodd Rest Dodd is a fell in the England, English Lake District. It is situated in the quieter Far Eastern Fells, far eastern region of the national park and reaches a height of . Rest Dodd is a fell that is often by-passed by walkers as they travel th ...

and

Angletarn Pikes Angletarn Pikes is a fell in the England, English Lake District near the village of Patterdale. Its most notable feature is Angle Tarn (Patterdale), Angle Tarn from which it derives its name. Topography Angletarn Pikes stands on the western arm ...

, although the summit carrying this name stands to the west of the watershed. A higher unnamed top, , was ignored in his ''

Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells ''A Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells'' is a series of seven books by A. Wainwright, detailing the fells (the local word for hills and mountains) of the Lake District in northwest England. Written over a period of 13 years from 1952, they ...

'', despite standing on the ridge. This is one of the many reasons why

Wainwrights Wainwrights are the 214 English peaks (known locally as '' fells'') described in Alfred Wainwright's seven-volume '' Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells'' (1955–66). They all lie within the boundary of the Lake District National Park in Cu ...

differ from more systematic hill lists such as Hewitts or Nuttalls.

Topography

Brock Crags sends out a narrow climbing ridge eastwards to Rest Dodd, having steep ground on both sides. Satura Crag is on the north face, looking down into the head of Bannerdale, while Prison Crag is halfway down the southern flank, above Hayeswater Gill. This stream flows into Goldrill Beck near Hartsop village and then heads northwards for

Ullswater Ullswater is a glacial lake in Cumbria, England and part of the Lake District National Park. It is the second largest lake in the region by both area and volume, after Windermere. The lake is about long, wide, and has a maximum depth of . I ...

. From the true, , summit the ridge turns north toward Angletarn Pikes. The picturesque, indented form of Angle Tarn lies just west of the depression between these fells. Protruding from this angle in the ridge like a swollen elbow is the main body of the fell. It consists of a circular area of high ground about half a mile across, with a number of rocky knolls. Brock Crags itself has two tops, the lower one having the OS spot height. North of here is Cat Crag, , an outlier overlooking Angle Tarn, and further subsidiary heights stand above Hartsop at the brink of Lingy Crag. Below Lingy Crag on the western side there is an area of broadleaved plantation above Goldrill Beck, but the slopes are invariably steep. Angletarn Beck forms the northern boundary of Brock Crags, as it cuts through the parapet between Cat Crag and its parent fell to run through a gully to Goldrill Beck. The steeply gouged head of Bannerdale, including Buck Crags below the 1,870 ft summit, forms the northeastern flank of the fell, the inside of the 'elbow'.

Summit

The summit has a small tarn between the two highest knolls and gives a fine all-round view. A short and simple ascent can be made from Hartsop,

Alfred Wainwright Alfred Wainwright Order of the British Empire, MBE (17 January 1907 – 20 January 1991), who preferred to be known as A. Wainwright or A.W., was a British fellwalking, fellwalker, guidebook author and illustrator. His seven-volume ''Pictorial ...

:''

A Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells ''A Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells'' is a series of seven books by A. Wainwright, detailing the fells (the local word for hills and mountains) of the Lake District in northwest England. Written over a period of 13 years from 1952, they ...

'', Book 2: although the upper section has no clear path.

Ascents

The main walkers' route from Patterdale to High Street is a clear path running along the ridge and passing just below the true summit.

References

{{Far Eastern Fells Fells of the Lake District Patterdale