Striding Edge, Helvellyn & Swirral Edge loop from Glenridding — Lake District National Park

Striding Edge and Swirral Edge Loop from Glenridding

I did this 8.35 mile loop yesterday with my boyfriend, with 2,750ft of elevation gain and about 3 hours 35 minutes of moving time. We started from Glenridding car park which is £10 for all day and headed straight up Striding Edge.

I’d actually done this walk solo a couple of weeks ago via Striding Edge, and the descent that day was a nightmare with bush, moss and no real path for about a mile so this time I planned for us to come back down via Swirral Edge instead and it made such a difference.

The scramble up Striding Edge felt relatively easy this time around. Honestly this place is nothing compared to Tryfan 🙂 I took my time like I always do, just breathing in the views and the feeling and focusing on my moves, so we ended up parting a couple of times because my partner is always faster than me 😁

We bagged three peaks on the way. First was Striding Edge itself at 2,825ft, then the main one Helvellyn at 3,125ft which is a Marilyn and a Hewitt, and on the way back over we also picked up Catstycam at 2,925ft. Standing on Helvellyn with that full 360 view across the Lake District never gets old.

We had slight fog on the way up and the summit was a bit chilly but it cleared completely before we started heading down. The way back via Swirral Edge was really enjoyable with beautiful views the whole time, BUT please do not underestimate it. When I was at Helvellyn summit last time the Pride of Cumbria air ambulance was searching for a walker who’d fallen 200m off Swirral Edge.

If you’re planning to do this walk it’s so important that you take it seriously. You are responsible for your decisions up there and it doesn’t matter if you’re not doing it solo, you still need to be focused and honest about your own abilities. Proper gear, food and plenty of water is a must because going unprepared is reckless and very dangerous. Also worth knowing, heading up Striding Edge there is a hiking path that runs next to the ridge so if you’re unsure about walking the ridge itself you can take that path instead and still get to the summit safely.