Walking with Polartec Keswick route: Skiddaw via Jenkin Hill Skiddaw’s simple symmetry appeals to the child in us all. Its form needs no explanation; it is a mountain simple as that, with steep slopes and a summit. It might lack the drama of the great crags of its peers, and its open flanks hold no secrets but who can fail to be drawn by its minimalistic form. It stands statuesque above Keswick and has a comparable impact on the town as the Matterhorn does on Zermatt. From the most ardent mountaineer to the most languid couch potatoes the appeal of this great mountain is uniquely strong. The most popular route to Skiddaw’s wild and open summit is the Jenkin Hill Path. This route was established as a pony route for Victorian tourists and still attracts the greatest number of ascentionists, partly out of habit and partly because it can be started high and if you want a route for your first three thousand foot mountain then you can do no better. It climbs the line of least resistance up the moderate slopes of Jenkin Hill and then reaches the summit via the rounded southeast ridge. Grade: Strenuousness 4, Navigation 3, Technicality 3 Start/Finish: Keswick, GR NY267234 Distance: 10 miles (16km) Time: 5-6 hours Height gain: 940m Terrain: town centre, low fells, steep-sided valley, open moorland, grassy fellside, broad summit ridge, steep fell side. Maps: OS Landranger 90, OS Explorer OL4, HarveysÕ Superwalker (1:25 000) Lakeland North, British Mountain Maps Lake District (1:40 000). 1. There are two ways of starting this route. If you have transport you can cheat a bit and start at the Latrigg car park. Alternatively you can do it properly and start in Keswick. To start from Keswick follow the Cumbria Way out over the River Greta bridge past Fitz Park and on up to the Leisure Pool. From the pool continue along the Cumbria Way to Briar Rigg then follow it North East along a track and across a bridge over the A66. On the other side of the A66 continue North East along the bridleway which skirts around Latrigg to Latrigg car park. 2. From the car park follow the fenced bridleway North East then North to a fork. Take the left branch past the Hawell Monument and climb the steep fellside North West towards Jenkin Hill. 3. As Jenkin Hill is approached the bridleway eases considerably: continue along it to a gate. At the gate either pass through it or turn West then North West to make a short diversion to the summit of Little Man. The bridleway skirts the northeast side of Little Man and is followed to another gate and up a final climb onto the summit ridge. Turn North and follow the crest to Skiddaws summit. 4. To descend head South along the summit ridge then South East and descend to a fence and gate. Continue South East around the North East flank of Little Man to another gate and follow the bridleway as it descends the steep fellside to the Hawell Monument and onto the intake wall. Join the fenced bridleway and follow it South West back to the car park. To get back to Keswick retrace your steps back down the Latrigg bridleway. Map .