Wainwright bagging, leisurely stroll, stunning landscapes, the challenge of reaching the top…whatever your reason for striding out onto the fells The Northern Lake District and her mountains can satisfy every one of them. So what are you waiting for?
I’ve designed this section as walks that are a little quieter than the usual trails for people who like to get away from the hustle and bustle and have a walk through the woods with your dogs. The walks are away from farm animals, so our furry friends can be off the lead with the usual countryside code observed and caution advised.
Dodd Wood -- Short non-Summit Route Dodd Wood -- The Long Way Round with
summit
Dodd Wood has lots of paths away from the usual marked trails provide some of my favourite walks, they are not a direct path to anywhere in particular but do provide some great views over Bassenthwaite Lake and on a good day with a fair wind, out to the Irish Sea.
Dodd Wood has lots of paths away from the usual marked trails provide some of my favourite walks, they are not a direct path to anywhere in particular but do provide some great views over Bassenthwaite Lake and on a good day with a fair wind, out to the Irish Sea.
This is one of my secret places. Not many people seem to know about this place. It is a bit out of the way, but if you want a nice dog walk with a lovely little tarn, great forest, and somewhere off the beaten track that’s just a little bit different...then this is a great place to try.
Whinlatter is a very popular local location, with a Go Ape high rope adventure play area, popular family walking trails, including the Gruffalo trails, a large children’s play area, and it is a veritable Mecca for Mountain bikers with miles and miles of technical tracks for the adventurous. However, it’s such a large area, that the woods have been split into several different woodlands, all of them are less popular than the main wood where the visitor's centre is, but as usual, some are quieter than others—such as Darling How Plantation.
The scenic way via Bakestall, Carlside, Longside, and Ullock Pike.
From the campsite a pleasant hills and dales walk a low level circular walk on good tracks at a distance of approx. 2.5 miles, or with Great Cockup approx 6 miles
This is lovely 3 mile round walk to the village, through the woods – a great place for letting your dogs off as there is no livestock and then back the same way or over the fields in front of the site.
You can walk Dodd Wood with other walks from Kestrel Lodge, however if you just want a nice little walk, with—depending on the season—an Osprey Viewing point and a great view from the top then you can drive to Dodd Wood and park there in less than 10 minutes.
Bakestall is usually done with Skiddaw, however if you’re like me and like an easy descent you may have missed out Bakestall because you’ve come off Skiddaw via Sale How to Skiddaw House. If that’s the case, then Bakestall makes a nice ½ day walk from Kestrel Lodge after a leisurely breakfast.
We like to do walks from the door with as much of a round and as little road as possible, so we tried Great Calva. You can see little Calva from the campsite, Great Calva is hidden behind it. The walk is 12 miles with 1 steep mile the rest is a nice walk.
There are various walks and various routes to bag Wainwrights, these are two multi-hill routes that can be done from the campsite.
The start of this walk is just a 10 minute drive from Kestrel Lodge. You could walk from the campsite and add additional fells and mileage, but for me it’s a nice walk done from the small free carpark or layby at Longlands. Far enough if you don’t want a full long day on the fells, or your walking in winter and short days curtail the time outdoors.
A walk to the summit of Binsey 1467ft Approx 7.5 miles from Kestrel Lodge or 1.5 miles from the base, and another Wainwright bagged.
Bassenthwaite Lake has a unique position at the foot of the Skiddaw fells on one side and Barf, Ladies Table and Sale Fell on the other. The lake is approximately four miles long and ¾ mile wide.
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Kestrel Cottage
Kestrel Lodge
Bassenthwaite
Keswick
Cumbria
CA12 4QX
T: 07786 434411
E: [email protected]
