Best parking to hike Little Dodd (St John's Common)
Where we have the data, each parking spot also shows the nearest public toilets and facilities (cafés, pubs, shops).
Legburthwaite (United Utilities, small) — 2.1 km from summit (straight line)
St John's in the Vale — Sticks Pass side, High Rigg, Raven Crag. Fees: pay and display; coins and cards (Lake District National Park car-parks directory, checked Aug 2026). Pay and display (visitlakedistrict.com) (United Utilities, checked Aug 2026).
Directions ↗ (opens in new tab)Something changed here?If it is full: Roadside parking for Great How (free) (0.6 km) a few spaces only; Raven Crag car park (1.5 km, 98 m up); Roadside parking for Raven Crag (free) (1.7 km, 105 m up) a few spaces only
Castle Rock (layby) — 2.3 km from summit (straight line)
Walking base for Brown Crag, White Side, Raise and Stybarrow Dodd — the 'Brown Crag and Raise' route starts 213 m away. Also serves 'Three Dodds and Calfhow Pike'. Free (OSM-tagged). Ground surface (OSM-tagged).
Directions ↗ (opens in new tab)Something changed here?High Bridge End Caravan and Camping Site (free) — 2.3 km from summit (straight line)
Walking base for Brown Crag, White Side, Raise and Stybarrow Dodd — the 'Brown Crag and Raise' route starts 212 m away. Also serves 'Three Dodds and Calfhow Pike'. Free (OSM-tagged). Ground surface (OSM-tagged).
Directions ↗ (opens in new tab)Something changed here?Great How (layby) — 2.4 km from summit (straight line)
Community walk pages start here for 'The Dodds and Clough Head, via Sticks Pass and St John's in the Vale' (community walk listings). Free (OSM-tagged). Unpaved surface (OSM-tagged).
Directions ↗ (opens in new tab)Something changed here?Positions are approximate — zoom the map to confirm. Lakeland car parks fill before 9am on fine weekends.
Tip: pan and zoom the interactive map at the top of this page to spot other potential parking near your route.
Vehicles are left entirely at their owner’s risk. We list places people park; we cannot vouch for any of them. Judge it on the day: take valuables with you, leave nothing on show, and if a spot feels wrong when you get there, park somewhere else.
Getting to Little Dodd (St John's Common) by bus
The 509 stops at Dockray, outside The Royal Hotel. From there it is 1.6 km and 130 m of ascent to the start of Hart Side, Stybarrow Dodd, Raise, Watson's Dodd and more — a walk in before the walk. The last bus is 19:09 towards Troutbeck (UB1) and 18:02 towards Grasmere (559) and 16:12 towards Keswick (509), every day. Checked against the operator’s timetable, 7 September 2026. Times here are a guide, not a promise — leave yourself more than the minute.
Stagecoach 509
Penrith ↔ Keswick around Ullswater — calls at Pooley Bridge, Watermillock, Glenridding, Patterdale, Hartsop, Dockray, Matterdale, Mungrisdale and Threlkeld
Catch it from: Penrith · Keswick
The Ullswater side of the Penrith–Keswick corridor, and a second option where we previously showed only the 508. Reaches Helvellyn and Catstye Cam from Glenridding, Place Fell and Angletarn Pikes from Patterdale, the Hartsop fells, and Gowbarrow from Dockray. Frequency and season are not listed here because we have not verified a timetable — check Stagecoach before you rely on it. Note the Troutbeck on this route is the one on the A66 near Penrith, not the Troutbeck near Windermere.
Rural routes change seasonally — confirm on stagecoachbus.com (opens in new tab) or Traveline before relying on a last bus.