The Mount

The Mount rises abruptly from the flat coastal plain near Millom, a stark grey fell that catches your eye long before you arrive. It's only 355 metres, but standing alone like this it feels properly impressive - the kind of hill that dominates the landscape for miles around.

The walk up takes about forty minutes from the car park at the base, following a well-trodden path through rough grassland. It's steep in places, nothing technical, but it'll get your heart rate up. The reward at the top is real though: on a clear day you can see right across to the Lake District fells, and south towards Walney Island and the coast. Walkers in the area often combine this with other peaks nearby - it's not a long commitment, which makes it handy if you're staying at Harbour Lights Campsite just down the road and fancy a proper stretch without disappearing for hours.

The hill itself is bare and windswept, so choose your weather carefully. Summer afternoons work well when the light's good and the wind isn't howling. Winter visits mean fewer people but you'll need decent kit - it's exposed up there. Kids will manage it fine if they're used to walks, though younger children might find the steep sections tedious. The views are the whole point here - there's no café or shelter on top, just the fell itself and the surrounding landscape spread out in front of you. Worth the trip if you're in Cumbria anyway, but don't expect a destination attraction.