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Hartsop Dodd

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619 mWainwright — Far Eastern Fells+2 bonus Birketts within 3 km Serious in Clag

Hartsop Dodd at 619m (2,031ft) is a grassy ridge summit above Hartsop village, its long slope rising to a broad top with fine views of Brothers Water and the Patterdale valley below.

Summit conditions on Hartsop Dodd

On the summit on Tuesday 27 October: 11° to 5°C, gusts to 57 mph, 9.3 mm of rain forecast over the whole day, midnight to midnight.

Against our lines, Tuesday 27 October: wind, cold and cloud from the Met Office UKV 2 km model (daylight hours, as in the verdict above); rain from the summit line’s forecast (the whole day). A tile is large when this top is past its line.

Wind on the top

Past the line

52 mph, our estimate for the open top in the worst daylight hour

The Met Office 2 km model’s gust of 44 mph times our exposure factor of 1.18. The summit line above gives Open-Meteo’s highest gust for the whole day, 57 mph, before any exposure factor.

The line Our line: 25 mph, where our wind Scale begins its 25–35 band: “balance affected; buffeting on exposed ground”. MWIS describes what wind does to a walker across a range rather than at a line: from about 20–25 mph it starts to affect your balance.

Estimated: it is not calibrated against summit readings, and the two forecasts can disagree by more than a band.

Rain, and the becks

Past the line

9.3 mm of rain over the whole day, midnight to midnight

The same figure as the summit line above and the 7-day forecast.

The line Our line: 6 mm in the day, where our scorer counts a day as soaking. We read rainfall, never river levels: becks in spate.

Open-Meteo’s forecast. It says nothing about rain already in the ground.

Also checked cold: feels like 1 °C, no ice or snow forecast; cloud: a clear-top reading of 28 out of 100, over our in-cloud line of 20. Under a line is not the same as fine: it means only that these figures are under the lines we use.

Not in these tiles Lightning, river levels, snow or ice already lying, and the ground under your feet. A tile cannot see them, so an empty space here never means they are absent.

Snow figures with a second opinion: Powered by Met Office data

Full 7-day summit forecast ↓

Wainwrights are scored for walking conditions each morning from the Met Office’s UK forecast model, read for each summit through Open-Meteo; the forecast figures are Open-Meteo’s, worked out for the summit’s height. How we check →

Weather data by Open-Meteo.com

Routes up Hartsop Dodd

Both start from Hartsop village (donation); the last two rows give its parking and bus. Full maps further down.

Hartsop Dodd, Stony Cove Pike, Thornthwaite Crag and Gray CragCaudale Moor & St Raven's Edge
Starts fromHartsop villageHartsop village
Distance and climb10 km, 858 m of climb12.96 km, 732 m of climb
Time, fast to steady~3¼–4¾ h~3¾–5¼ h
ScramblingHands for a few steps: a couple of rock steps between Stony Cove Pike and Thornthwaite Crag (km 3.3–5.4).Hands for a few steps: small rock steps on the descent to St Raven's Edge (km 4.0–6.1).
ExposureModerateNot assessed
NavigationModerateHard
Steepest stretchClimb of about 51% at 0.6 km (Severe)Climb of about 50% at 0.7 km (Severe)
After the summitOver Stony Cove Pike (Caudale Moor), Thornthwaite Crag and Gray CragOver Stony Cove Pike (Caudale Moor), Caudale Moor - John Bell's Banner and St Raven's Edge
Walked or plannedWalked by Lee, February 2025Planned: drawn, not yet walked
Car park at the startHartsop village (donation)Hartsop village (donation)
Bus to the start508, 590 m walk from Hartsop, adjacent to road end508, 570 m walk from Hartsop, adjacent to road end

Times run from fast to steady pace (Naismith’s rule). Scrambling quotes each route’s own notes; “not mentioned” means they do not say, not that the ground has none. Each route’s page has its map, stages and GPX.

Distance, climb and the steepest stretch are measured from each route’s GPX track; the other grades are set on the ground, judged from the map or estimated from OpenStreetMap, and each route page says which. How we check →

Conditions and 7-day summit forecast

Modelled for the 619 m summit (Open-Meteo). Check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.

Full 7-day forecast
Tue 27 Oct
11° / 5°
57 mph
9.3 mm (100%)
Wed 28 Oct
9° / 6°
40 mph
9.2 mm (100%)
Thu 29 Oct
9° / 7°
28 mph
0.8 mm (33%)
Fri 30 Oct
8° / 6°
29 mph
0.0 mm (23%)
Sat 31 Oct
10° / 1°
12 mph
0.0 mm (18%)
Sun 1 Nov
8° / 1°
13 mph
0.0 mm (10%)
Mon 2 Nov
7° / 1°
16 mph
0.0 mm (0%)

Taken 27 October 2026, 08:13 UTC; the live forecast replaces it when it loads. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com

Pro mountain forecasts: MWIS · Met Office mountain forecast

Parking & buses for Hartsop Dodd

Parking

Route starts first, then the car parks nearest the summit, which are not always a way up.

Hartsop village (donation) — at the start of Hartsop Dodd, Stony Cove Pike, Thornthwaite Crag and Gray Crag and Caudale Moor & St Raven's Edge
For Hartsop Dodd, Gray Crag, High Street via Hayeswater, Brock Crags. It asks an optional donation, not a charge (Lee, who walked past it on 14 August 2026). People also use the Cow Bridge car park, 0.9 km away, if they would rather not drive down the lane.
Directions Something changed here?
If it is full: Cow Bridge, Hartsop (paid) (0.9 km, 32 m up)
Brothers Water, east shore (free) — 0.9 km from summit (straight line)
On the A592 by the east shore of Brothers Water (OpenStreetMap, 26 m from the road). The nearest route starts are 'Finishing of the Far Eastern Fells', 0.8 km north on foot at Hartsop, and the two at Cow Bridge, 1.0 km north on foot. Free (OSM-tagged). Compacted surface (OSM-tagged).
Directions Something changed here?
Caudale Bridge (layby) — 0.9 km from summit (straight line)
On the A592 south of Brothers Water, near Caudale Bridge and about 290 m from the Brotherswater Inn bus stops. The nearest route starts are 'Finishing of the Far Eastern Fells', 1.8 km north on foot at Hartsop, and the two at Cow Bridge, 2.0 km north on foot. Free (OSM-tagged).
Directions Something changed here?
2 more places to park near Hartsop Dodd
Windy Corner (layby) — 1.1 km from summit (straight line)
On the A592 at Windy Corner, beside the Windy Corner bus stops. The nearest route starts are 'Finishing of the Far Eastern Fells', 2.1 km north on foot at Hartsop, and the two at Cow Bridge, 2.3 km north on foot. Free (OSM-tagged).
Directions Something changed here?
A592 south of Windy Corner (car park) — 1.4 km from summit (straight line)
South of Windy Corner on the Kirkstone Pass side, about 480 m south of the Windy Corner bus stops. The nearest route starts are 'Finishing of the Far Eastern Fells', 2.6 km north on foot at Hartsop, and the two at Cow Bridge, 2.9 km north on foot. Free (OSM-tagged).
Directions Something changed here?

Positions are approximate.

Vehicles are left at their owner’s risk: we list places people park and cannot vouch for any of them. Take valuables with you and leave nothing on show.

Buses

The 508 and 509 stop at Hartsop, adjacent to road end, a 570 m walk and 28 m of ascent from the start of Caudale Moor & St Raven's Edge — a route we rate Severe overall (hardest: steepness). The last bus is 19:51 towards Windermere (508), every day. Checked against the operator’s timetable, 7 September 2026; that timetable runs to 1 November 2026. Times here are a guide, not a promise — leave yourself more than the minute.

Stagecoach 508 “Ullswater Bus”
Penrith – Pooley Bridge – Aira Force – Glenridding – Patterdale (summer services continue over Kirkstone Pass to Troutbeck and Windermere)
Catch it from: Penrith · Windermere (summer only)
The key route from Penrith for the Eastern and Far Eastern fells: Helvellyn from Glenridding, Place Fell, the Hartsop fells. The summer Kirkstone extension drops you at the pass for Red Screes and Caudale Moor.

Rural routes change seasonally — confirm on stagecoachbus.com or Traveline before relying on a last bus.

Getting there across the Lake District: Buses · Parking map · By train · By boat

Hazards on Hartsop Dodd

Notes from the Hartsop Dodd, Stony Cove Pike, Thornthwaite Crag and Gray Crag route

  • The climb from Threshthwaite Mouth to the beacon is steep, rough and loose in places; take it slowly, especially when wet.

If you need to get off (the leg from Hartsop village): Turn around and carefully descend the steep grassy path the way you came, back to Hartsop; the wall is beside it only for the last 0.45 km.

Quoted from the route page: its warnings and the note for the leg that reaches Hartsop Dodd.

We have not written a hazard card for this fell yet, and that is not a sign that it is low-hazard. Read the warnings on the route pages that climb it, check the forecast, carry a map and compass, and turn back in cloud if the ground is not what you expected. The National Park Authority’s What to pack page, AdventureSmart’s hill walking kit list and Mountain Rescue England and Wales’s safety page are linked from our what to carry guide.

Navigating in cloud

Serious in cloud

Of the three things our terrain model measures, the highest reading here is the amount of walkable ground near the summit that lies close to steep ground or crag. A serious place to be caught in cloud: carry map and compass (or GPS) and know how to use them, or save it for a clear day.

In winter — snow, whiteout, cornices, buried features — every top demands full winter navigation skills whatever its band, and a broad, gentle summit can be the worst place of all. See walking in bad weather and the navigation guide.

How Hartsop Dodd compares with all 214: the Clag Index (experimental).

If you need Mountain Rescue

Dial 999 or 112 and ask for the Police, then Mountain Rescue.

Before you call, have ready: where you are (a grid reference if you can – the OS Locate app shows yours on your phone), what has happened, how many of you there are, and your mobile number.

Then stay where you are until the rescue team contacts you.

If you cannot make a voice call because of a hearing or speech impairment, emergency SMS works only if you have registered first: text “register” to 999.

From Mountain Rescue England and Wales’s guidance on calling them out (read 26 October 2026).

Map, GPX and nearby Birketts

Free mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap, with SRTM elevation data (switch layers top-right).

Parking, toilets and buses: Parking & buses ↑.

Birketts within 3 km of Hartsop Dodd

These Birkett tops are not Wainwright summits. Distances are straight lines: check the ground and access on a map before adding one.

1.8 km SCaudale Moor - John Bell's Banner755 m · Far Eastern
2.0 km WNWGale Crag512 m · Eastern

Routes over Hartsop Dodd

Caudale Moor & St Raven's Edge
Summits: Hartsop DoddStony Cove Pike (Caudale Moor)Caudale Moor - John Bell's BannerSt Raven's Edge

Download GPX Planned route · not yet walked

Picked for its light in: June, July

Warnings: The plateau link to John Bell's Banner and the descent line are only faintly pathed — broad, featureless ground where navigation needs care in cloud.

Route guide →

Hartsop Dodd, Stony Cove Pike, Thornthwaite Crag and Gray Crag
Summits: Hartsop DoddStony Cove Pike (Caudale Moor)Thornthwaite CragGray Crag

Download GPX Walked by Lee, February 2025

Warnings: The climb from Threshthwaite Mouth to the beacon is steep, rough and loose in places; take it slowly, especially when wet.

Route guide →

Every line here is a guide, not a guarantee — conditions change. Navigate for yourself and carry a map and compass. How to use this guide.

On the hill: terrain and water on Hartsop Dodd

Water & shelter on the way up

On the Caudale Moor & St Raven's Edge route:

toilets (64 m off the line) Road End (466 m from the start, straight line)

On the Hartsop Dodd, Stony Cove Pike, Thornthwaite Crag and Gray Crag route:

Road End (497 m from the start, straight line)

On-route facilities © OpenStreetMap contributors, per route — an absent marker doesn’t mean none.

About Hartsop Dodd

Hartsop Dodd, a Lake District fell
Photo: Mick Knapton at English Wikipedia, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

A pleasant Wainwright and Birkett fell above one of the Lake District's most attractive hamlets. The ascent from Hartsop goes straight up the steep northern nose on a good path. The views of the Caudale Moor ridges to the south and the Helvellyn range to the west are fine.

My Strava hikes over Hartsop Dodd

1 logged hike pass over this summit:

Data from Strava.

Classifications & hill data

Is Hartsop Dodd a Wainwright?

Hartsop Dodd is a Wainwright. It is also on the Birkett list, the Synge list, the Nuttall list and the Fellranger list.

Selected lists

Wainwright
Far Eastern
Birkett
Fellranger
Synge
Nuttall
619 m
Height
2,031 ft
In feet
NY 4113 1185
Grid ref

This is the summit’s grid reference. If you call from anywhere else, give your own position, not this one.

The summit is also a Birkett.

Lists, height and summit position from the Database of British and Irish Hills; the feet are converted from its metres and the grid reference from that position. How we check →

The view from Hartsop Dodd

The 360° skyline from Hartsop Dodd

A computed 360° skyline — every visible named top labelled by distance and bearing, from the terrain model in perfect clarity, not photographed. Drag to pan; reveal the far four-nations horizon.

drag to pan · arrow keys
Computed 360-degree skyline from Hartsop Dodd30 labelled tops shown (6 distant behind the far-horizon toggle). Theoretical visibility in perfect clarity; computed from terrain, not photographed.eye levelNNEESESSWWNWHelvellyn · 8 kmHigh Crag · 7 kmRaise · 9 kmFairfield · 5 kmBlencathra · 18 kmGreat Dodd · 11 kmStybarrow Dodd · 10 kmHart Crag · 4 kmHigh Raise · 4 kmThe Old Man of Coniston · 20 kmSwirl How · 18 kmRampsgill Head · 3 kmDove Crag · 4 kmThornthwaite Crag · 3 kmCaudale Moor · 2 kmBowscale Fell · 20 kmLoadpot Hill · 8 kmWether Hill · 7 kmPlace Fell · 5 kmCatstye Cam · 8 kmRed Screes · 3 kmLittle Mell Fell · 12 kmGray Crag · 2 kmRest Dodd · 3 kmMiddle Dodd · 3 kmBrock Crags · 2 kmSwarth Fell · 9 kmHigh Hartsop Dodd · 2 kmRound How · 9 kmDunmallet · 14 kmDollywaggon Pike · 7 kmSt Sunday Crag · 4 kmHart Side · 10 kmScales Fell · 18 kmCarrock Fell · 23 kmCofa Pike · 5 kmKitty Crag · 17 kmGreat Meldrum · 10 kmHigh Fell · 15 kmArenig Fawr · 184 km · a handful of days a yearWhite Coomb · 106 km · a rare clear daySighty Crag · 72 km · a rare clear dayRoan Fell · 81 km · a rare clear dayBlackwood Hill · 85 km · a rare clear dayEllson Fell · 87 km · a rare clear day
The skyline as a list, by direction
  • North: Place Fell (5 km), Tarn Crags Top (20 km), Carrock Fell (23 km)
  • North-east: High Raise (4 km), Wether Hill (7 km), Loadpot Hill (8 km)
  • East: Rampsgill Head (3 km)
  • South-east: Thornthwaite Crag (3 km)
  • South: Caudale Moor (2 km)
  • South-west: Little Hart Crag (3 km), High Pike (5 km), Wetherlam (16 km), Great Carrs (18 km), Swirl How (18 km), Great How (18 km), Grey Friar (19 km), Brim Fell (19 km), The Old Man of Coniston (20 km)
  • West: Dove Crag (4 km), Hart Crag (4 km), St Sunday Crag (4 km), Fairfield (5 km), Cofa Pike (5 km), Dollywaggon Pike (7 km), High Crag (7 km)
  • North-west: Catstye Cam (8 km), Helvellyn (8 km), Helvellyn Lower Man (8 km), Raise (9 km), Green Side (9 km), Birkett Fell (9 km), Hart Side (10 km), Stybarrow Dodd (10 km), Great Dodd (11 km), Scales Fell (18 km), Blencathra (18 km), Gategill Fell Top (18 km), Atkinson Pike (19 km), Bannerdale Crags (19 km), Bowscale Fell (20 km)

On the clearest days the far horizon adds: Arenig Fawr (184 km, Wales), White Coomb (106 km, Scotland), Ettrick Pen (98 km, Scotland), Carnedd y Filiast (176 km, Wales), Arenig Fach (180 km, Wales), Sighty Crag (72 km, England), Mwdwl-eithin (165 km, Wales), Roan Fell (81 km, Scotland).

Computed from Copernicus GLO-30 terrain; distant tops from the Database of British and Irish Hills v18.4 (CC BY 4.0). See how we compute the view · and the summit intervisibility report below.

Sunrise and sunset on Hartsop Dodd

Hartsop Dodd waits for the sun. Its longest wait of the modelled year falls on 1 December, when the sun is up for 31 minutes before it clears this skyline — first light 08:41 against an almanac sunrise of 08:10. You are standing in shadow while the valley below is already lit. The sun comes up to the south-east from here (134.7°), and the skyline on that bearing stands at 2.93°.

0°30°40°50°60°70°04:52
Midsummer. The filled shape is the skyline as seen from the summit; the line is the sun’s path. Where they meet is first light — everything left of that point is the wait.
Times for 2026, in Lakeland clock time (GMT in winter, BST in summer) — and model outputs rather than observations.
First lightAlmanac sunriseDifference
Midsummer04:52 BST ±5.0 min04:36+16 min
Equinox06:37 GMT ±5.0 min06:15+22 min
Midwinter08:57 GMT ±5.0 min08:32+25 min

A low, open northern horizon — the ground falls away northwards (mean 0.04°).

Last light — when the sun leaves Hartsop Dodd

Hartsop Dodd loses the sun early. Its earliest evening of the modelled year falls at the March equinox, when last light is 21 minutes before almanac sunset — 18:05 against 18:26. The sun goes down to the west from here (267.2°), and the skyline on that bearing stands at 2.63°.

The evening of the same three days. A negative difference means a ridge takes the sun before the valley loses it.
Last lightAlmanac sunsetDifference
Midsummer21:42 BST ±5.0 min21:52-10 min
Equinox18:05 GMT ±5.0 min18:26-21 min
Midwinter15:45 GMT ±5.0 min15:48-3 min

These are daylight figures, not a descent plan: the light goes on fading for a good while after the sun leaves, and going down in it is a decision about your own ground and party, not about this table.

What you can see from Hartsop Dodd

On a clear day — computed sightlines, curvature- and refraction-corrected.
50Wainwrights in view+3 marginal
—Sea in viewnone from here
All 50 Wainwrights in clear view (nearest first)

Gray Crag, Brock Crags (Wainwright), High Hartsop Dodd, Thornthwaite Crag, The Knott (High Street), Middle Dodd, Rest Dodd, Hartsop Above How (Gill Crag - Hartsop Above How), Little Hart Crag (Little Hart Crag - West Top), Angletarn Pikes (Angletarn Pikes North Top), High Street, Rampsgill Head, Red Screes, Arnison Crag, Dove Crag, High Raise (High Street), Birks, The Nab, Hart Crag, St Sunday Crag, High Pike (Scandale), Place Fell, Fairfield, Low Pike, Beda Fell (Beda Head), Birkhouse Moor, Glenridding Dodd, Dollywaggon Pike, Wether Hill, Steel Knotts (Pikeawassa - Steel Knotts), Catstye Cam, Helvellyn, Sheffield Pike, Loadpot Hill, Hallin Fell, Raise, Hart Side, Stybarrow Dodd, Great Dodd, Little Mell Fell, Wetherlam, Great Carrs, Swirl How, Blencathra - Hallsfell Top, Souther Fell, Bannerdale Crags, Brim Fell, The Old Man of Coniston (Coniston Old Man), Bowscale Fell, Carrock Fell

How the view from Hartsop Dodd compares with all 214 — the View Report: every Wainwright ranked by what you can see from the top.

How the skyline, light and sightlines are computed

Computed, not photographed. First light is the first minute the sun’s upper limb clears this summit’s own skyline and last light the last minute it is still clear of it, both solved against the 360° horizon profile behind The View from Hartsop Dodd. Almanac sunrise and sunset are the flat-horizon convention. Every time carries a ± band from the 30 m elevation model — it smooths arêtes and cornices, so nothing here claims better than five minutes.

Sightlines from the Copernicus GLO-30 elevation model, which is a surface model: each 30 m cell holds the top of whatever stands there, trees and buildings included, rather than bare ground. Corrected for the Earth’s curvature and average atmospheric refraction. “Distant” sightlines and any over 100 km depend on exceptionally clear air. Modelled from Copernicus GLO-30 open elevation data — a guide to the view, not a guarantee of any single one.

Places to stay near this fell

We have not stayed at any of them. We take no bookings or affiliate fees. Distances are straight lines from each route start, never walking times. Properties found via OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions about Hartsop Dodd

Is Hartsop Dodd steep?

The front of it is, and that is the way most people go up. The nose above Hartsop village rises directly and keeps rising, with a good path but very little relief in it. From behind, off Stony Cove Pike, it is a gentle stroll — the same fell in two entirely different moods.

Our round over it with Stony Cove Pike, Thornthwaite Crag and Gray Crag is 10.0 km with 858 m of ascent, graded severe for steepness. Our round goes up the nose, about 455 m of climbing in 1.3 km, and comes down the grass nose of Gray Crag, about 507 m over 2.9 km: that is the gentler way to lose the height, though the Gray Crag descent is also very steep and slippery when wet.

Questions from Google’s “People also ask”. · Last updated 2026-08-30 · Suggest a question or correction

Other fells near Hartsop Dodd

Places nearby: Brothers Water · Angle Tarn (Patterdale)