Mountains & hills · Scottish Lowlands
Barf
Barf — Named summit at 469 m.

Wikimedia Commons contributors — see linked file page for photographer and licence licence
Plan your visit
- Typical visit
- 3 h–8 h
- Best time of year
- Late spring – early autumn (May–Oct)
- Free entry
- Dog-friendly
About
Barf is a named summit in the United Kingdom. Wikidata describes it as: "Named summit at 469 m.". Coordinates: 54.6296°, -3.2181°.
Photo gallery
Protected designations
- Site of Special Scientific Interest: Bassenthwaite Lake SSSI
- Site of Special Scientific Interest: River Derwent and Tributaries SSSI
- Site of Special Scientific Interest: Barf and Thornthwaite SSSI
- National Nature Reserve: BASSENTHWAITE LAKE
Designations sourced from Natural England open data under OGL v3.
From the Wikipedia article
Barf is a fell in the north-western Lake District in Cumbria, UK. It stands on the south-western shore of Bassenthwaite Lake. Barf is well known for a whitewashed pillar of rock on the lower slopes, the so-called "Bishop's Rock" or "Bishop of Barf". The name is thought to be a derivative of "burgh".
Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.
Background
Description
On a rocky site at 700 ft and clearly visible from the Cockermouth to Keswick road, is the "Bishop of Barf", a white painted stone marking the spot where, according to local legend, the Bishop of Derry was killed falling from his horse in 1783, after drunkenly betting he could ride up the hill. Both the Bishop and his horse are said to be buried near a smaller stone, the Clerk, at the base of the hill. Sadly, the story, although imaginative, forgets that the Bishop of Derry of the time died 20 years later in Italy. However, this Bishop's colourful life no doubt inspired a tale capable of capturing the imagination. The stone was whitewashed each year by staff at the nearby Swan Hotel, until…
Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates
- 54.6296, -3.2181
- District
- Cumberland
- Parish
- Above Derwent
- Postcode
- CA12 5SJ
- Parliamentary constituency
- Penrith and Solway
Sources
- osm: n8411090525 (ODbL)
- wikipedia: Barf (Lake District) (CC BY-SA 4.0)
- commons: Barf LD.jpg (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Other places nearby
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Barf
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Frequently asked questions
- Where is Barf?
- Barf is in the Scottish Lowlands, United Kingdom (postcode CA12 5SJ), in the parish of Above Derwent.
- Is Barf a protected site?
- Yes — Barf is part of the Bassenthwaite Lake SSSI Site of Special Scientific Interest and the River Derwent and Tributaries SSSI Site of Special Scientific Interest.
- Is Barf free to visit?
- Yes, Barf is free to enter.
- How do I get to Barf?
- Drivers can navigate to postcode CA12 5SJ. It sits within the Penrith and Solway parliamentary constituency.