Birkrigg Knowe

The walk up Birkrigg Knowe, just outside Penrith, rewards you with proper views across the Eden Valley - on a clear day you can see right across to the Lake District fells. It's not a massive effort, more a steady climb through moorland that takes the best part of an hour depending on your pace and how often you stop to catch your breath.

What you're actually doing is ascending a fell that sits in the Pennines foothills, part of that brilliant walking country that stretches south from Carlisle. The summit itself is unremarkable - a trig point and some moorland - but the reason folk make the trip is the panorama. Stand up there with a decent wind and clear skies and you'll understand why locals rate it.

It works best for walkers who know the Lakes but fancy something less crowded, or anyone staying at one of the nearby parks - Crossfells Campsite and Howdy Glamping are barely twenty minutes away - wanting a half-day outing without driving anywhere special. You won't need crampons or technical kit, just decent boots and weather sense. Families with kids of ten or older will manage it fine; younger ones might flag on the return leg.

The approach is free, naturally - it's open moorland. Spring and early autumn are cracking times, when the light holds better and the weather's more cooperative. Summer can be muggy and crowded compared to other fells, and winter brings those sudden mist banks that turn it from pleasant to frustrating rather quickly.