Castlerigg is a six thousand year old stone circle set in a stunning amphitheatre of high fells. Wainwright described the Pike O'Stickle as a "steep ladder to heaven" and declared, "no mountain profile in Lakeland arrests and excites the attention more than that of the Langdale Pikes". The two are linked by an ancient stone-age axe industry. In this article, I visit Castlerigg at sunrise and climb the Pike O'Stickle via Stickle Tarn and the magnificent cliff of Pavey Ark.