A circular route up the Old Man of Coniston.
View the route on plotaroute.com
5 miles, 730 metres ascent.
There is a nice circular route up and down the Old Man of Coniston, with lots of great photo opportunities on the way. Good in any season but very popular during school and bank holidays, when it might be best avoided. The Old Man is a very characterful hill with fantastic views from the top and flanks.
There are plentiful remains of the old copper mining operations all around. Part way up the hill you come across some fascinating bits of old machinery and diggings and you imagine what it was like when the place was full of miners instead of hill-walkers.
I usually start this walk from the hamlet of Haws Bank where there is some free parking. A longer walk but you save a bit and avoid a little bit of traffic.
