Hopegill Head is the middle fell of three fells on a ridge that starts at
Braithwaite and goes west for to conclude at the northern end of
Crummock Water. The other two fells on the ridge are
Grisedale Pike and
Whiteside. The fell is often referred to locally as Hobcarton Pike as it stands at the head of Hobcarton Gill. However, the
Ordnance Survey have officially named the fell Hopegill Head on maps after Hope Gill, which is another valley that goes north-west from the summit. Hopegill Head reaches a height of and has two subsidiary summits,
Ladyside Pike () and
Sand Hill () both of which have
Nuttall status. Hopegill Head’s most striking feature is the cliff of Hobcarton Crag, which drops precipitously to Hobcarton Gill on the fell's north east side. These cliffs are unsuitable for conventional
rock climbing because they are made of crumbly
Skiddaw Slate but they do provide good
winter climbing with the best known routes being Thompson’s Chimney and Cave Route. The crags, which are owned by the
National Trust, are the only location in England of
Viscaria alpina, the red alpine catchfly. ==Geology==