UKH

Hi,

I am mum to two very enthusiastic outdoor lovers and want to be mountain climbers. They are only 10 and 6 so between us we are starting small and over the years will progress. The goal they have set is to climb as many "Big Hills/mini mountains" as we are calling them - ideally with Trigs at the top to aim for as a goal.

The last they walked was up Arthurs Seat (251m) and The Worcestershire Beacon in The Malvern Hills (425m). They loved this, and it was a good days challenge for them, so I am aiming to find more around the 400m - 500m mark.

I am having problems though and wondered if any of you could help me. I have bought books, searched websites extensively, and am really struggling to narrow the search to find hills of this size without clicking on ALL of them around England and Wales. I tried limiting searches to Munros but they were all around 100ft near us and after 3hours I gave up. The other factor is we are in Warwick (CV34), so not a great place for (big) hills, but willing to drive to them if we can get up and down in a day.

The other factor is I try to get hills where we can park/cycle relatively close to, without a significant walk to get to the foot of on PRoW by which point legs are tired before the start.

Routes ideally relatively easy level for little people, (a path and secure/safe environment) fully kitted out and watched like a hawk carrying a backpack full of gear.

I thought I would ask for some help on here as I am sure I am not the first to be hill walking with children and there must be a source of guidance out there or just recommended hills you think would be meet this criteria?

Fingers crossed and thank you in advance for any help you can give.

Kinder Scout on a nice day is an obvious choice.

Hi, 

Have you tried the hillbagging website? On there you can refine your search to hills between 400m and 499m, along with a whole host of other options. The hills appear on a map, so you can see ones that are close to you.

I'm near the Peak District and obvious choices here are Mam Tor, Win Hill, Lose Hill, Shutlingsloe, The Roaches, Shining Tor, Kinder Scout, Alphin Pike and Higger Tor. With the exception of Kinder Scout (assuming you went to the actual 636m summit) they all have the feeling of a 'proper' mountain but with easy/short routes to the top. 

In the west Midlands ther is the Long Mynd, Clee Hill and Wenlock Edge. Great for kids, as I know from personal experience.

From a time when we were in a similar position; Castle Crag (Borrowdale) and Cnicht (Moelwyns) ticked the box for us - both a bit further afield but have a proper mountain feel to them. 

post lockdown suggestions....

Moel Famau and Foel Fenlli - cool Iron Age fort, burial mound and hidden spring on Foel Fenlli 

moel y Gamelin and Moel Morfydd from the horseshoe pass (easily accessible from A5 and Llangollen is a nice place to grab lunch)

Loughrigg and Catbells also popular in the lakes.

You can browse OS maps as a layer on Bing maps (Microsoft's search engine) for free to look for smallish ones in whatever area you're interested in. If your navigation is good you can plan the route yourself using footpaths, or you could then search the hill name on your walking sites to look up routes that others recommend.

Take extra care heading into winter as it will be easier to get caught out by the weather and conditions.

Good afternoon to you. 

Warwick is a lovely place, I used to live there myself. 

As has been mentioned, Long Mynd is relatively close by. There's also a lot in the Brecon Beacons - Sugar Loaf springs to mind.

Smaller, but closer by is Bredon Hill, with Banbury Tower atop it's always an interesting walk - least in my book.

Perhaps looking at an OS Map together or trying to find different ways up the Malverns, walking one end to the other along the Ridge might also be fun. 

All the best with your budding adventurers. 

The Brecon Beacons aren't too far, though you may have to wait for lockdown to end to go to Wales. 

There are lots of hills there that are often a nice circuit from a town with good paths and the hills often have quite gentle inclines.

The Sugarloaf near Abergavenny would be a good one, and there a few different routes up it, including some short ones with only about 300ft of climbing: https://www.walkingbritain.co.uk/walk-1664-introduction

Edit: I see OBW got in there first

Great minds. That's an excellent link, I'd not heard of that site before. 

My favourite mini mountain in that area is Caer Caradoc. There's also The Wrekin but I prefer CC.

Hi Heather

We're in roughly the same boat age-wise and I'd say that kids can manage more than you might think. We can do Munro sized walks with ours, though definitely not every weekend. I accept we may be lucky insofar as they're willing and able to do big days. And smaller days are more the norm still.

UKH have done a couple of articles on this sort of thing over the years:

Ten Fab Family Hills https://www.ukhillwalking.com/articles/destinations/ten_fab_family_hills-63...

Mini Mountains that Pack a Punch https://www.ukhillwalking.com/articles/destinations/10_mini_mountains_that_...

And some more general pointers/inspiration:

How to Enjoy the Hills with your Kids https://www.ukhillwalking.com/articles/skills/series/children/how_to_enjoy_...

Why you should get out more with the kids https://www.ukhillwalking.com/articles/opinions/why_you_should_get_out_more...

Meet the mini Munro baggers https://www.ukhillwalking.com/articles/features/meet_the_mini_munro_baggers...

It'd be worth looking through the Route Cards: https://www.ukhillwalking.com/logbook/r/find.php

Admittedly there's not much in your general area, but if you can get over to the Peak District then there's tons.

Shropshire could be a good shout too - unfortunately we haven't got good coverage there yet

Also, Munro is a word used exclusively for mountains in Scotland over 3000ft in height, so you'll only find big and far away things by looking for Munros. 

In England & Wales you've got Birketts (over 1000ft), Wainwrights (anything Al liked the look of), and Nuttalls/Hewitts (over 2000ft).

Bredon Hill also has the Elephant Stone, which the kids may like.

Shell Top on the southern edge of Dartmoor would fit the bill if you're down that way - great views.

I'm going to do Win Hill in the peak district, next door to Kinder Scout, with my little one soon (he'll be in a backpack mind) it's 462m from Wikipedia and you can park quite nearby on the road if you find a space. Beautiful reservoirs and view from up there. From Yorkshire bridge you can do a 5km loop to get to the top then back along the shore of the res, albeit the ascent appears to be some sort of fitness test piece due to it's gradient!!

If you read Mrs Tiggywinkle with the original pics, one of them is from Catbells looking down onto Little Town farm. You can stand on more or less the same spot and look down, which kinda makes the story come alive.

Also, you can wander down the hill and get a boat back across the lake to Keswick. Which is an exciting end to the day and saves walking back when tired.

Mine was Moel-Y-Gest when I was a little lad, at least 60 years ago. 

John-

You might find the Stiperstones more interesting than the Long Mynd.

consider the hills above Conway starting from Sychnant pass: Alt Wen - Penmaenbach- Conway Mtn should do the trick.

Have fun!

Bredon Hill is a good stroll, not a mountain but I enjoyed it as an excursion from a narrowboat on the Avon.  Excellent views and I think it has some ancient sites up there.

More votes for Shutlingsloe, Win Hill, Lose Hill, MamTor, Catbells, Caer Caradoc, High Neb (at Stanage Edge), Ringing Roger (on Kinder, from Edale), Black Crag in Borrowdale (continue past the climbing up the descent path to the right), Tryfan Bach and even on to Tryfan itself - majestic epic for little ones.

So much fun to be had  

(reply intended for Heather rather than dread-i)

And Chrome Hill (just south of Buxton).

Middle Dodd & Red Screes in the Lake District (bigger hills, but starting higher up from Kirkstone Pass)

Wansfell Pike (above Ambleside) from Troutbeck   

Shropshire has lots of accessible hills and is an easy drive from Warwickshire. This website might give you some ideas https://www.shropshirehillsaonb.co.uk/explore-and-enjoy/places-to-visit/50-...

and

http://www.shropshire6summits.co.uk/the-hills.html

Thorpe Cloud in the southern Peak.

Sounds like a wonderful future awaits 🙂

Another vote for a trip to Abergavenny - Blorenge, Skirrid & Sugarloaf just 3 top trigs to visit. All wonderful tops with trigs and easy ways to suit little legs with more adventurous alternative routes for return future visits. 

Walks around Llanthony Abbey are a bit more challenging but still just about doable with little ones, in the right conditions. Not far out of Abergavenny.

Blorenge has a fab 11km circuit with minimal ups and downs, Keepers Pond car park as start/end.

Wherever you end up, have a fab time.

I

The Howgill Fells have that sort of ascent; generally loops rather than there-and-back-again walks are quite long but undemanding.  Cautley Spout is jolly nice as is the temperance pub at the bottom.

I wish I lived closer to the hills.... :v(

Its always a proper trek to get anywhere lumpy.

For my money you won't get any more bang for your buck than Chrome and Park house hill in the South Peak. They pack an extraordinary amount of mini mountain into just a few minutes walk.

Parlick on the southern edge of Bowland has a car park close under. It's a stiff pull up but the path zig zags. If the gliders are flying your kids will love to watch them soaring about. If you're minded, the walk on to Fairsnape is easier and the views even better - Lakes, Wales, Dales & Isle of Man.

Hi, Try the website below. You can put in the parameters and click submit and it comes up with a map view of those hills.

https://www.hill-bagging.co.uk/searchB.php?ct=EWM

Winter Hill, Lancs (456m) has several ways up and various masts on the top to pretend are space stations (or that's what my boy does at least). 

Bowland is also worth a shout. Pendle Hill to talk about witches and Longridge Fell is nice and easy with good views from the trig. 

"The Lump on the Bump" (Rivington Pike, 362m) was a big feature in my childhood and a great place to go with an imagination. Liverpool castle, the terraced gardens, imagining a Witch lives in the pigeon tower, trolls under bridges, legionnaires guardpost (that beacon thing on top).  Great day out!

I am slightly amused at the idea someone would travel from afar to sample it, but I dont know why, fits the brief perfectly.  Views as far as the eye can see, watersports, the finest grit quarries, world class mountain biking at Healey Nab. If Bolton Tourism Board needs to stop harping on about the Phoenix Club, it could be Outdoor capital of the UK!

I agree - my two were 9 and 6 when they first walked up Corn Du and Pen y Fan via the Storey Arms Route and back down the path to the Pont ar Daf car park. You need to get there early to park though.

We've done a lot of walking in the Brecon Beacon National Park. To the peaks already mentioned in the Black Mountains I'd add Hay Bluff, Black Hill/Crib y Garth and Crug Hywel/Table Mountain. In the central Beacons, you can get to the top of Fan y Big, with its famous "diving board", fairly easily from the Neuadd Reservoir car park. In the Fforest Fawr range the other side of the A470, Craig Cerrig-Gleisiad and Fan Frynych can be done on quite a short but steep route from the Nature Reserve layby parking. 

Finally if you can stay overnight in the far west of the National Park, the walk up the mountains around Llyn y Fan Fach is great - and the lake itself is worth the walk if you don't make it any further - and Garreg Lwyd is a short walk from the Black Mountain Car Park through an interesting quarry. Plenty of rocks to scramble around on.

Thank you all so much! Loving all these responses, we have our hills planned now for the next year by the looks!x

Too far for a day trip  but if you are ever on the Lleyn Peninsula, apart from the obvious Yr Eifl , there is a mini mountain further west called Garn Fadryn.

It actually falls short of your 400 m minimum by a small measure but don't let that deceive you.

Its actual height is 371 metres but it has a prominence of 343 m making outstanding in every sense.

Littered with stone forts as well, if that's a bonus.

I'll recommend my favourite hill, Simonside in Northumberland. Start from the Lordenshaws carpark (iron age cup and ring markings to marvel at) then you have a superb ridge walk across to Stell crag that is a great little area to explore before wandering over to the summit of Simonside itself.  With a little map reading you can make this a circular walk, dropping down into Selby's cove and coming back by Spylaw.  

edit. Oops - just realised you want close to Warwick - you could always come up for a long weekend and fit in walks around the Cheviots.

Second vote for the Black Hill/Cat's Back - It is in England too as are the Red/Black Darrens from the Olchon Valley. Great ridge walking and scrambling.