Fair Snape Fell

Fair Snape Fell is the highest point in the Forest of Bowland. The walk up is straightforward, if at times wet. The final section to Parlick is a delight, the walking often accompanied by gliders.

The Walk

The one mile between the western summit of Fair Snape Fell and Parlick is the best in the Forest of Bowland (and competes well with the best in the Dales). The track is excellent. The views south and west impressive and to add to the perfect scene you may be accompanied by hang gliders decorating the skies with their bright colours. Sadly I saw little wildlife. This is unusual as this is a relatively new and large area of Open Access land. As a result this should be encouraging more native species of bird and beast.

The challenge on this walk though is how to showcase this special mile without the remainder seeming to be antclimactic. The first time I visited the area I simply climbed Parlick, walked up and back but I felt I was missing something. This time I included the round of Saddle Fell, the well named Wolf Fell before reaching the ‘real’ summit of Fair Snape Fell. The climb up Saddle Fell is on an excellent bridleway. However the crossing to Fair Snape is rather a peat hopping challenge. It is only an aperitif to the main course which is truly something to savour,

Recommend

Visit the large cairn and O/S pillar which is marked Fair Snape Fell to the west of the plateau but it is not the highest point. This lies half a mile to the north east.

Navigation Tips on Fair Snape Fell

The highest point lies just to the north of a three way junction of boundaries/fences. It is a simple cairn in the middle of some peak hags, not easy to find in bad weather. It is just to the east of the north heading fence.