The Struggle (Kirkstone Road)
1286.7 m · net rise 157.1 m · total ascent 159.9 m · overall 12.2% · confidence: good · Ambleside · Cumbria · share
Shape: sustained — 31% of the climbing sits in a quarter of the distance; longest continuous stretch at 10%+ is 200 m.
Matches: 100 Greatest Cycling Climbs (Simon Warren), British National Hill Climb Championship — Venue 2023.
≈ Overhead cover (tree canopy or structures) spans 12% of this route — detected by comparing the surface model (DSM, treetops and rooftops) against the terrain model (DTM, bare ground). Under cover the bare-ground model is built from fewer laser returns, so metre-scale readings can wobble; maxima whose window sits in a covered zone are marked ≈ below — less certain — the flag does not say whether the true value is higher or lower. Longer windows average over more clean ground and are steadier.
Gradient ladder what do windows mean?
| Window | Maximum | Located at | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 m (diagnostic) | ≈50% | 752–754 m | under overhead cover terrain reads 61.3% at 789–791 m across a structure — excluded |
| 3 m (diagnostic) | ≈43% | 752–755 m | under overhead cover terrain reads 49.1% at 788–791 m across a structure — excluded |
| 5 m | ≈33% | 751–756 m | under overhead cover |
| 10 m | 32% | 752–762 m | |
| 20 m | ≈25.1% | 751–771 m | under overhead cover |
| 25 m | 23.2% | 752–777 m | |
| 50 m | 19.3% | 948–998 m | |
| 100 m | 18.2% | 909–1009 m |
may_start_earliermay_continue_beyond_end Extent detection suggests reviewing where this climb starts/ends.
Map
Check this route yourself: Google Maps route via their router · Street View at the base where coverage exists · OSM way 4733484 highlights the mapped road · geojson.io our exact measured line · OpenTopoMap
This climb's data: OCL JSON — the full gradient ladder, quality flags and provenance in the OpenClimb Ladder format.
Measured, not vetted. This page records what the laser record shows about the road's shape — nothing more. Nobody has necessarily ridden or inspected this road for the survey, and a page here is not a recommendation and no guarantee that the road is open, surfaced, rideable or safe. Gates, private sections, missing rights of way and hazards do not show up in elevation data. Check access and conditions on the ground and make your own judgment.
Ridden it, or know better? Submit data for this climb no account needed · Share this climb
© OpenStreetMap contributors · topo tiles © OpenTopoMap (CC-BY-SA) · vector tiles OpenFreeMap
Profile
Provenance
{
"analysis_version": "0.1.0",
"sample_interval_m": 1.0,
"interpolation": "bilinear",
"smoothing": "none",
"gradient_windows_m": [
5.0,
10.0,
20.0,
25.0,
50.0,
100.0
],
"diagnostic_windows_m": [
2.0,
3.0
],
"elevation_crs": "EPSG:27700",
"elevation_resolution_m": 1.0,
"elevation_tiles": [
"data/cache/england/dtm_1m/E336000_N504000_2000m.tif",
"data/cache/england/dtm_1m/E338000_N504000_2000m.tif"
],
"calculated_at": "2026-08-12T09:12:21+00:00",
"road_source": "OpenStreetMap",
"road_attribution": "\u00a9 OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL",
"osm_ids": [
4733484,
954875010,
954875011,
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264354108
],
"osm_versions": {
"4733484": 19,
"954875010": 4,
"954875011": 3,
"954875012": 4,
"4733481": 23,
"264354108": 7
},
"osm_timestamps": {
"4733484": "2026-03-31T18:27:42Z",
"954875010": "2025-10-27T21:11:52Z",
"954875011": "2025-10-27T21:11:52Z",
"954875012": "2025-12-28T21:58:48Z",
"4733481": "2022-07-13T07:26:31Z",
"264354108": "2025-12-28T21:58:48Z"
},
"osm_retrieved_at": "2026-08-12T09:12:21+00:00",
"elevation_provider": "Environment Agency",
"elevation_dataset": "EA LIDAR Composite DTM 1m (2022)",
"elevation_licence": "Open Government Licence v3 \u2014 \u00a9 Environment Agency",
"elevation_coverage_id": "13787b9a-26a4-4775-8523-806d13af58fc__Lidar_Composite_Elevation_DTM_1m",
"elevation_tile_ids": [
"E336000_N504000_2000m.tif",
"E338000_N504000_2000m.tif"
],
"climb_origin": "competition",
"notes": "Ambleside to Kirkstone Pass. National HC Championship 2023 course.",
"license": "ODbL-1.0",
"license_url": "https://howsteep.org/licensing.html"
}