High Street summit as seen from Kidsty Pike
High Street is mountain range in the north-eastern Lake District, with its summit standing at a 828m (2,718ft). It is famous for the Roman road that once traversed its ridge, running between the former Roman forts of Brocavum (near Penrith) and Galava (near Ambleside).
In the 18th and 19th centuries the summit plateau was used for summer fetes by the locals, which included sports such as wrestling and horse racing, adding to this particular fell’s colourful history. To this day the summit is still named Racecourse Hill on Ordnance Survey maps.
For mountain biking, High Street has a decent selection of bridleways and offers high altitude ridge riding at its best. To the west a bridleway descends steeply through a field towards Hayeswater and beyond along a hard-packed path leading eventually into Hartsop. This can also be mostly ridden as an ascent to get onto the plateu in the first place, but expect some pushing up the section just above Hayeswater.
Heading north, a bridleway follows the former Roman road along the ridge. This route takes in Rampsgill Head, High Raise and Loadpot Hill before turning into sweet single-track leading all the way to The Cockpit and Pooley Bridge beyond.
South from the summit will drop you down the edge of Park Fell and into the valley that contains Troutbeck and Limefitt Park, and eventually joins a road leading into Windermere.
The follow routes include High Street:
