England

Hardknott Pass

A steep single-track road across the western Lake District, linking Eskdale with Little Langdale over the Hardknott and Wrynose passes.

Where is the Hardknott Pass?

The Hardknott Pass is in England. The route on this page: Eskdale (Boot) over the Hardknott and Wrynose passes to Little Langdale, 15.9 km.

Why the Hardknott Pass is famous

Hardknott is usually named, with Rosedale Chimney Bank, as the steepest road in England, with gradients of up to 1 in 3. It passes the remains of the Roman fort at Hardknott.

Hardknott Pass corners

Over 15.9 km Turini calls 3 hairpins, 1 square corner and 175 corners graded 1 to 6. That is 184 calls in all, one every 86 metres on average. Grade 1 is the tightest, 6 is nearly straight (how to read pace notes).

Hardknott Pass elevation profile

From 60 m at the start to 120 m at the finish, with a highest point of about 400 m. Red marks are the hairpins.

Hardknott Pass pace notes, first few km

The first 25 calls, exactly as Turini reads them, with the distance from the start.

That takes you to 3.87 km. 159 more calls follow over the remaining 12.0 km.

Before you drive the Hardknott Pass

Open all year, but often closed in winter when ice makes it impassable.

Hairpins and blind crests make visibility poor, and the surface is rough and slippery when wet. Not suitable for large vehicles or caravans; use a low gear going down.

How to drive the Hardknott Pass with Turini

Set the route before you leave and Turini saves its notes on the phone, so it works with the screen off and no signal. On the road it reads each call about 4.5 seconds before the corner, timed to your speed, and you never touch the phone. It also works through Android Auto. If pace notes are new to you, start in Simple mode (Easy, Medium, Hard) and switch to the 1–6 scale once it feels natural.

Always drive within the law, the conditions and what you can see. Turini tells you what the map says; the road is what counts.

More roads like the Hardknott Pass

Best driving roads in Europe · Best driving roads in the UK · All famous roads · How to read pace notes

Sources: Wikipedia: Hardknott Pass, Wikipedia: Wrynose Pass.