Illgill Head
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| Illgill Head | |
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| Elevation | 609 m (1,998 ft) |
| Location | Cumbria,  England |
| Range | Lake District, Southern Fells |
| Prominence | 314 m |
| Parent peak | Scafell Pike |
| Topo map | OS Landranger 89, Explorer OL6 |
| OS grid reference | NY169049 |
| Listing | Marilyn, Wainwright |
Illgill Head is a fell in the English Lake District. It is known more commonly as the northern portion of the Wastwater Screes. The fell is 609 metres high and stands along the south-east shore of Wast Water, the deepest lake in England.
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[edit] Topography
The panorama of the Wastwater Screes across Wast Water is one of the most famous and awe-inspiring views in England. Poet Norman Nicholson described the Screes as "like the inverted arches of a Gothic Cathedral".
The title Wastwater Screes applies to the scree-covered north-western fellside which plunges dramatically down into Wast Water. This also includes Illgill Head's neighbour Whin Rigg, the continuation of the ridge to the south-west. The scree slope continues beneath the lake to a depth of 79 metres. The screes were formed as a result of ice and weathering erosion on the rocks. Geologically, Illgill Head and Whin Rigg are part of the Borrowdale Volcanic Group, typical for the southern-western area of the Lake District.
In marked contrast to the north-western slope, the opposite flank of the fell, which descends to Burnmoor Tarn and Miterdale is much gentler and covered in heather and bracken.
[edit] Geology
The summit area has outcropping tuff, lapilli-tuff and breccia of the Lingmell Formation amid the drift deposits. The crags atop the screes reveal the plagioclase-phyric andesite lavas of the Birker Fell Formation.[1]
[edit] Summit and View
The summit is a flat sheepwalk, giving no clue to the drama of the Screes. North west from the cairn the grassy plateau gradually tilts, until a few yards away it simply disappears over the brink. Illgill Head is a fine viewpoint for Wasdale Head, the surrounding fells all appearing as they soar up from the dalehead. Nearer views, with care, are possible down the Screes themselves.
[edit] Walks
Illgill Head is commonly ascended from Wasdale Head over the north-eastern shoulder of the fell, skirting the edge of the Screes. There is also an ascent from Boot in Eskdale either over Whin Rigg or direct via Burnmoor Tarn.
A lakeside path along the south-eastern shore of Wast Water starts at Wasdale Head Hall and continues through the boulder field with exhilarating close-up views of the Screes.
[edit] References
- A Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells, The Southern Fells, Alfred Wainwright, ISBN 0-7112-2230-4
- ^ British Geological Survey: 1:50,000 series maps, England & Wales Sheet 38: BGS (1998)
