Helvellyn
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| Helvellyn | |
|---|---|
 Helvellyn from the air in December. Red Tarn (centre) is flanked by Striding Edge (left) and Swirral Edge. |
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| Elevation | 950 m (3117 ft) |
| Location | Lake District, England |
| Prominence | 712 m |
| Topo map | OS Landrangers 90 |
| OS grid reference | NY342151 |
| Listing | Marilyn, Hewitt, Wainwright, County Top |
| Translation | Yellow upland (Cumbric) |
Helvellyn is a mountain in the English Lake District. At 950 metres (3,117 feet) above sea level, it is the third highest peak in both the Lake District and England.
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[edit] Topography
The peak of Helvellyn is the highest on the north-south ridge situated between the Thirlmere valley to the west, and Patterdale to the east. This ridge continues north over Helvellyn Lower Man, White Side, Raise, Stybarrow Dodd and Great Dodd, and south leads to Nethermost Pike and Dollywaggon Pike.
The eastern side of the fell is geographically the most dramatic. Two sharp arêtes lead off the summit, Striding Edge and Swirral Edge, either side of Red Tarn. The knife-edged Striding Edge provides one of the best-known scrambles in Lakeland, while the Swirral Edge ridge leads to the conical summit of Catstye Cam.
The western slopes are relatively shallow, and partially forested, with many gills leading down to the Thirlmere valley.
The summit of Helvellyn takes the form of a broad plateau about 500 metres long. The highest point is marked by a cairn and a cross-shaped dry stone shelter; to the north is an Ordnance Survey trig point, a little lower than the summit at 949 m.
There is a subsidiary top, Helvellyn Lower Man, about a third of a mile to the north-west. Its summit is small compared to the plateau of Helvellyn and offers better views north-westwards, as the ground falls steeply away from it on this side.
[edit] History
Helvellyn is strongly associated with the poet William Wordsworth, who used regularly to climb the mountain. Benjamin Robert Haydon's painting Wordsworth on Helvellyn epitomises Romanticism in portraiture. Wordsworth wrote about the mountain several times. In particular he commemorated the death of Charles Gough, a tourist in the Lake District. Gough set out to cross Striding Edge to reach the peak of Helvellyn. He perished there with his dog, who stood at his side for three months before his corpse was found. A plaque commemorating this event can be found close to the peak.
The somewhat flat summit made the first British mountain-top landing of a plane possible, when John Leeming and Bert Hinkler successfully landed and took off again, in 1926.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: |
- Maps and aerial photos
- Surrounding area map from Google Maps
- Detailed topography from Ordnance Survey Get-a-map
- Computer-generated virtual panoramas North South Index
- Illustrated Lake District Guide
- Helvellyn Photo Guide
[edit] Picture gallery
 Helvellyn from Red Tarn |
 Striding Edge |
 Janet on Striding Edge |
 Helvellyn from below Red Tarn, late afternoon October 16, 2006 |
 Helvellyn summit, 15 April 2006 |
 Striding Edge (right) and Red Tarn from the summit of Helvellyn |
| Helvellyn range |
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Clough Head | Great Dodd | Watson's Dodd | Stybarrow Dodd | Raise | White Side | Helvellyn Lower Man | Helvellyn | Nethermost Pike | Dollywaggon Pike |
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Outliers: Green Side | Hart Side | Sheffield Pike | Catstye Cam | Striding Edge | Birkhouse Moor |
