hikes.guideLake District

Naddle Low Forest

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426 mBirkett — Far Eastern (not a Wainwright summit)+4 bonus Birketts within 3 km

Naddle Low Forest at 426m (1,398ft) is a Birkett top on the Naddle ridge, 0.6 km south-south-west of the Haweswater dam, with Hugh's Laithes Pike 0.2 km to the north and Burnbanks 1.3 km to the north-north-east.

Summit conditions on Naddle Low Forest

On the summit on Tuesday 27 October: 12° to 7°C, gusts to 51 mph, 12.1 mm of rain forecast over the whole day, midnight to midnight.

Full 7-day summit forecast ↓

The forecast figures are Open-Meteo’s, worked out for the summit’s height. How we check →

Weather data by Open-Meteo.com (opens in new tab)

Routes up Naddle Low Forest

Hand-mapped, with GPX to download — full maps further down.

Birketts South of Burnbanks Planned, not yet walked
7.64 km · ~303 m ascent · ~2–2¾ h · loop · 4 summits
Moderate effort Hard: navigation
Park: Haweswater, by the dam (verge) (free)

Four low tops in the woods and crags above Haweswater — Naddle Low Forest, Hugh's Laithes Pike, Wallow Crag and Naddle High Forest. Just 7.6 km and 303 m, easy for length but rated hard to navigate. About 2–2¾ hours.

Distance and climb are measured from the route’s GPX track, and the time from them by Naismith’s rule; the route page says what each grade rests on. How we check →

How hard is Naddle Low Forest?

The shortest way up we hold is Birketts South of Burnbanks — 7.64 km, 303 m of ascent, ~2–2¾ h. On our scale its hardest axis is navigation — Hard.

All axes: navigation: Hard · steepness: Moderate · length: Easy · terrain: Not assessed · exposure: Not assessed.

These are the route page’s grades, set by the rules on how we grade: length and steepness measured from its GPX track, the others set on the ground, judged from the map or estimated from OpenStreetMap. The route page says which. How we check →

Conditions and 7-day summit forecast

Modelled for the 426 m summit (Open-Meteo). Check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.

Full 7-day forecast
Tue 27 Oct
12° / 7°
51 mph
12.1 mm (100%)
Wed 28 Oct
11° / 7°
36 mph
8.1 mm (100%)
Thu 29 Oct
10° / 8°
21 mph
0.1 mm (15%)
Fri 30 Oct
10° / 7°
23 mph
0.0 mm (15%)
Sat 31 Oct
12° / 0°
10 mph
0.0 mm (18%)
Sun 1 Nov
8° / 0°
7 mph
0.0 mm (12%)
Mon 2 Nov
9° / 2°
14 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 (opens in new tab)

Parking & buses for Naddle Low Forest

Parking

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

Haweswater, by the dam (verge) — at the start of Birketts South of Burnbanks
The routes 'Bampton Fell', 'Birketts South of Burnbanks' and 'Pinnacle Howe and Four Stones Hill' start here. Gravel lane parking at the road side; Lee added the OSM feature himself.
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?
Burnbanks (car park) — 1.3 km from summit (straight line)
In Burnbanks, at the dam end of the Haweswater lane. The routes from the dam end start at the verge by the dam, 0.8 km away in a straight line. Fee not verified — check signage on arrival.
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?
Langhowe Pike North Top (layby) — 2.0 km from summit (straight line)
1.0 km from Langhowe Pike North Top.
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?
If it is full: Scalebarrow Knott (layby) (1.6 km, 28 m up)
2 more places to park near Naddle Low Forest
Scalebarrow Knott (layby) — 2.7 km from summit (straight line)
0.9 km from Scalebarrow Knott.
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?
Brown Howe, north-west (layby) — 3.3 km from summit (straight line)
A lay-by on the Haweswater lane, on the south-east shore. The Mardale Head routes start 2.2 km away in a straight line, 2.5 km along the lane. Free (OSM-tagged). Ground surface (OSM-tagged).
Directions (opens in new tab)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 nearest bus stop we hold is the UB2 at Askham, outside Stores, 9.5 km of walking from the start — no bus route we hold serves it. It is a seasonal service too: 1 November 2026 is its last day of the year (confirmed with the operator, 9 October 2026); it returns on 22 March 2027.

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

Hazards on Naddle Low Forest

Notes from a planned route, not walked: Birketts South of Burnbanks

  • The Naddle ridge carries a 1 km+ stretch with no clear path through rough forest-edge ground — faint trods come and go; keep the map handy.

If you need to get off (the leg from the start): Retreat: Carefully retrace your steps: back down the path, north past Naddle Farm and through the woods to the lane.

Quoted from the route page of a planned route, drawn from the map and not yet walked: its warnings and the note for the leg that reaches Naddle Low Forest.

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.

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 (opens in new tab) (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 Naddle Low Forest

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

1.5 km SPowleys Hill465 m · Far Eastern
1.7 km NWFour Stones Hill415 m · Far Eastern
1.8 km NNWPinnacle Howe383 m · Far Eastern
2.1 km NWBampton Fell (Bampton Common)489 m · Far Eastern

Routes over Naddle Low Forest

7.64 km · ~303 m ascent · loop · ~2–2¾ h
Moderate effort Hard: navigation

Download GPX Planned route · not yet walked

Warnings: The Naddle ridge carries a 1 km+ stretch with no clear path through rough forest-edge ground — faint trods come and go; keep the map handy.

Route guide: Birketts South of Burnbanks →

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 Naddle Low Forest

Water & shelter on the way up

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

About Naddle Low Forest

Our Birketts South of Burnbanks round takes it first: 7.6 km, easy for length and moderate for steepness but rated Hard for navigation, and its route warning describes a stretch of more than 1 km through rough forest-edge ground with no clear path.

Classifications & hill data

Is Naddle Low Forest a Wainwright?

Naddle Low Forest is not a Wainwright. It is on the Birkett list and the Synge list.

Selected lists

426 m
Height
1,398 ft
In feet
NY 5022 1498
Grid ref

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

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 →

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 (opens in new tab).

Other fells near Naddle Low Forest