Birks Fell

About Birks Fell

Birks Fell rises near Hubberholme in the Yorkshire Dales and only became a Marilyn in 2006, when a resurvey established its height as 610 m rather than the 608 m previously accepted. Late 19th and early 20th century books had listed it at 2,001 feet, and it appears the hill lost height in the metric conversion. The correction put it above neighbouring Horse Head Moor at 609 m, taking over its Marilyn status.

Birks Tarn lies between the summit and a trig point 1.6 km to the south-west, and is one of the largest tarns in the Dales, held in place by impermeable layers in the bedrock and by the peaty soil above. The top of the fell is a broad ridge with wide views.

Background written from facts in the Wikipedia article on Birks Fell (CC BY-SA 4.0). Heights, prominence and grid references come from the Database of British & Irish Hills, not from Wikipedia.

Access rights here

General position for England — local byelaws, seasonal restrictions and closures can override it. Full details: access rights in England ·check another location.

Daylight at this summit today

Sunrise

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Sunset

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Daylight

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Civil twilight ends

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Computed astronomically for 54.183, -2.126. Plan your finish with the daylight safety planner.

Finding the summit

The recorded summit point is cairn. That distinction matters on broad or flat tops, where the obvious cairn is not always the true high point.

Survey method

Leica Runner 20

Record revised

05-Jan-20

Drop measured from

SD 8364 7603 · 452.2 m

Classification history: See Database Notes.

Survey notes are field observations recorded in the Database of British & Irish Hills (v18.3, CC BY 4.0) by the hill-surveying community.

Long-distance paths past this hill

2 waymarked long-distance routes run within 2.5 km of the summit — useful if you are linking this hill into a longer walk, or want a made path for the approach.

Route lines © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL); distance from the summit computed by OpenFell.

Get food nearby

3 places to eat or drink within 10 km of the summit, rated under the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (Scotland runs its own Food Hygiene Information Scheme, a pass/fail equivalent).

Classifications and ratings are the local authority's own and can be coarse — this is a lead, not a guarantee of opening hours or that food is served to non-residents. Follow a name through to the official rating page to check, and confirm before you rely on it.

Food hygiene data from the Food Standards Agency and Food Standards Scotland (Open Government Licence v3.0). Distances and directions computed by OpenFell from the summit.

The Birks Fell group

4 other listed summits sit in the same prominence group, with Birks Fell as the independent hill at its head.

Grouping is by prominence alone: a summit belongs to the nearest higher Marilyn it connects to without a deeper intervening col. Over a large massif that can gather hills no one would walk in a single day, and which few would describe as parts of the same mountain — it is a measure of independence, not a suggested route.

Nearest listed peaks