Navigating Skiddaw in cloud
StraightforwardA broad, gently-sloping top with little to steer by — easy to lose your bearings and hard to relocate in mist. Navigation here is relatively straightforward even in cloud — but carry map and compass and know how to use them; a low score never means “safe”.
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 Skiddaw compares with all 214 — the Clag Index: navigating in cloud. A relative, deliberately cautious guide; the site can’t navigate for you.
Routes over Skiddaw
23.02 km · ~1434 m ascent · loop · ~7–9.5 h
⬇️ Download GPX
⚠️ Warnings: The middle third (Hare Crag to Little Calva and beyond) is trackless deep heather — some of the roughest going in the Northern Fells. Budget far more time than the distance suggests.
Full route guide ↗
✎️ Planned route — drawn but not personally walked or checked yet.
A planned line is a suggestion, not a guarantee — conditions change. Navigate independently and carry a map & compass. How to use this guide.
12.41 km · ~1081 m ascent · loop · ~4–5.5 h · Loop · Hard
✎️ Start from the pay-and-display forestry car park at Dodd Wood (Mirehouse), on the A591 by the east shore of Bassenthwaite Lake — the path heads up through the trees, over a brook, and north past Sand Beds.
⬇️ Download GPX
Best season: A popular route walkable in most seasons. Save Longside Edge for a day without a gale, and expect the loose scree onto Skiddaw to be the one real effort. In winter the scree and the high, open ridge need proper care and kit.
⚠️ Warnings: Longside Edge is an airy ridge — fine in calm weather and nothing like Striding Edge, but it can feel daunting in a high wind. The pull onto Skiddaw is loose scree, with a navigation trap: don't bear left too soon or you'll pass under the summit and miss it — aim straight up the scree. The descent from Carl Side to Dodd needs care with the GPS: turn right down towards the road — the 'direct' line straight up to the left is almost impassable — then immediately left to pick up the clear path to Dodd. Off Dodd, a clearing to the left looks like a short-cut but isn't: it leads through branches and moss to a sharp drop. Head back to the road and follow the track home.
Full route guide ↗
A planned line is a suggestion, not a guarantee — conditions change. Navigate independently and carry a map & compass. How to use this guide.
Places to stay near this fell
From the Gale Road car park (Underscar), Keswick start
about 2.1 km from the start, in a straight line
The only whole-house, multi-family option anywhere in this radius: ten bedrooms sleeping twenty, with two travel cots and two z beds already in the house, so two or three families walking Skiddaw together book one address rather than three. Parking for ten or more cars matters here specifically - Gale Road fills early and a convoy needs somewhere to leave the second and third car overnight. Bedroom 7 is on the ground floor with an en-suite wet room, so a grandparent who is not walking still gets a proper room.
Five acres of garden, and the house took Cumbria Tourism's Self Catering Holiday Property of the Year in 2018.
- Family rooms “Key facts Sleeps 20 guests 10 bedrooms 7 king sized ensuite bedrooms 1 king sized bedroom 2 twin ensuite bedrooms 1 ground floor bedroom with ensuite suitable for guests with mobility issues. 9 bath/shower rooms 2 travel cots and 2 z beds”
- Parking “We have private parking for ten or more cars.”
- Children “Children are welcome and we have two travel cots and two z beds should you need them.”
about 2.2 km from the start, in a straight line
Of everything in this radius it is the closest fit to what a Gale Road party actually needs: a drying room, dogs allowed in every room of the house rather than two designated ones, and Room 7 - the family room - looks out at Skiddaw itself, which is the fell you have just come down. The hosts are qualified Mountain Leaders, so the Lonscale Fell question a family wants to ask at breakfast gets a real answer rather than a leaflet.
The hosts hold Mountain Leader qualifications and offer to plan the day's route for you, Skiddaw included.
- Drying room “Winchester House offers double and twin en-suite rooms with free Wifi, and if you get wet (it is the Lake District after all), a drying room.”
- Dogs “We are fully dog friendly, with your furry friends allowed in all areas of the B&B. Ensure they come to breakfast for their dog sausage!”
- Family rooms “Room 7 - Skiddaw - Family/Double/Twin Our spacious family room with amazing views over Skiddaw and the northern fells. One double and one single bed with private en-suite shower room.”
about 2.3 km from the start, in a straight line
The one address in the radius that takes a toddler and three dogs in the same booking: a travel cot and high chair are in the house, and dogs are priced at £25 each up to three, which no B&B here comes close to. Because it is self-catering there is no breakfast sitting to make, and beds run from a ground-floor twin to an attic sofa bed, so a mixed-age party sorts itself out by floor. Check-in is 5:00pm - late for a party coming straight off Skiddaw, and worth knowing before you plan the descent.
Bed linen is provided but towels are not, and the bedrooms run up four floors ending in a twin and a sofa bed in the attic.
- Dogs “Dogs Well behaved dogs are allowed. Dogs will be charged at £25 each for up to three dogs.”
- Family rooms “A travel cot and high chair are available.”
- Parking “There is parking for one car next to The Studio at the bottom of the garden, accessed from Victoria Street and on street parking, down any of the side streets off Penrith Rd which is opposite the house;”
about 2.4 km from the start, in a straight line
The clearest child answer in the whole radius: all ages, a cot and a highchair actually on the premises, a family room with a double and two singles plus floor space for the cot, and a stated reduced rate for extra children. Almost every other B&B here either says nothing about children or turns them away. The trade is that dogs are out and the default is two nights - and both are stated on their page, not discovered at the door.
Worth knowing: “4 En Suite Rooms Central Location Free Wi-Fi Bike Storage Street Parking Children Welcome No Pets No Smoking”
The cot is a £5 line item you add at the time of booking, and extra children in the family room are charged by age.
- Family rooms “Room 2 - Family with double, 2 single beds and space for cot, first floor.”
- Parking “4 En Suite Rooms Central Location Free Wi-Fi Bike Storage Street Parking Children Welcome No Pets No Smoking”
- Children “View Rooms Children All ages are welcome. We have a cot and high chair available for infants.”
about 2.5 km from the start, in a straight line
This is the drying answer in the radius. Not a radiator and not a boot rack: a lockable room with a front-load washing machine, a tumble dryer, racking for boots and hangers for wet coats, and a key per apartment - which matters on day three when everything a family owns is soaked. Every apartment also gets its own reserved space in the car park, and the Garden apartment has level access from that space, so a wrecked knee does not have to do stairs.
The drying room has racking for boots and hangers for damp clothes, and doubles as lockable bike storage; the front door opens straight onto pedestrianised Lake Road.
- Drying room “All apartments have keys to the Laundry/Drying Room, which is equipped with a front-load washing machine and tumble dryer, as well as facilities to dry boots and outdoor clothing.”
- Family rooms “Castlerigg can sleep an extra person in a comfortable z-bed.”
- Parking “Private Car Park Three reserved car park spaces provide one space per apartment. Additional space available for visitors.”
- Step-free “Our ground-floor Garden apartment has level access from the car park and is suitable for use by visitors who have limited mobility, but is not equipped for wheelchairs.”
about 2.5 km from the start, in a straight line
Parking in central Keswick is the thing that decides whether a walking party stays in town at all, and this is the one property here that makes a claim of that size - one of the largest private car parks, unrestricted, with CCTV and lighting, so the second car and the roof box are fine overnight. It also pairs a family room sleeping four with drying facilities and a ground-floor room sleeping three, which is a rare combination in this radius.
A Georgian guesthouse whose car park is its selling point - unrestricted, CCTV'd and lit - and which held its Visit England Breakfast Award for 2024.
- Drying room “We also offer secure cycle storage and have drying facilities.”
- Family rooms “Our large family room is a great option for those travelling with younger ones, sleeping up to four guests it offers great space and value.”
- Parking “Did you know Acorn House offers one of the largest private car parks allowing all our guests unrestricted on site parking with CCTV and security lighting.”
Other places nearby
about 3.1 km from the start, in a straight line
Both routes off this start are ~23 km loops of 6.7-7 hours whose own warnings say the middle is trackless deep heather and pathless rough grazing. That makes wet boots the certainty, and Bassenfell is the ONLY property in the whole 4.83 km radius whose page names a drying room. It also parks 21 cars, has a ground-floor en-suite bedroom, and runs its own walking weeks - the September Walking Week 2026 blocks 14-19 September on its own availability calendar.
It is an outdoor-activity centre run by a charity, and its dining room seats seventy-five people looking straight out over Bassenthwaite Lake.
- Drying room “Drying Room and Laundry Space to dry wet coats and shoes.”
- Family rooms “Accommodation 68 Bed spaces in 19 Bedrooms on 3 floors. Rooms range from twin/double up to 6 people each with en-suite or a private bathroom.”
- Evening meal “Friendly relaxed atmosphere, comfy accommodation, great food, and quality leadership are the hallmarks of our holiday weeks.”
- Parking “Parking Car park space for up to 21 cars.”
- Children “A wonderful venue for residential groups whether adults, children, youth or mixed ages.”
about 1.9 km from the start, in a straight line
The check-in window runs to ten at night, which is the single most useful arrival fact in this cluster: both routes off this start are seven-hour days over trackless heather and finishing late is the norm, not the exception. Free cots and high chairs, and a note that early arrivals can dump the car and wander, cover the other end of the day.
Worth knowing: “One dog is allowed provided all doggy rules are followed. All dog hairs should be removed before the cottage is vacated. Dogs are not allowed in bedrooms or on furniture and must not be left unattended in the cottage. Dogs MUST be on a lead in the communal courtyard”
Guests are invited to let the ducks out of their shed in the morning and keep the eggs, and the cottages were called Loft Holiday Cottages before they were named after the ducks.
- Dogs “One dog is allowed provided all doggy rules are followed. All dog hairs should be removed before the cottage is vacated. Dogs are not allowed in bedrooms or on furniture and must not be left unattended in the cottage. Dogs MUST be on a lead in the communal courtyard”
- Family rooms “Jemima's Cottage sleeps up to 5 in 2 bedrooms and Rebecca's Cottage sleeps up to 2 in 1 bedroom.”
- Parking “Early arrivals can always leave their car and go for a wander or take their car and go and explore the local area.”
- Children “Cots and high chairs are available free of charge but must be requested in advance of arrival.”
From the Dodd Wood / Mirehouse forestry car park start
about 2.1 km from the start, in a straight line
The only property inside two and a half kilometres of this start whose own page names a drying room - "a rear drying room for boots and coats and sportswear", plus a tumble drier and a farmyard hose for muddy dogs and bikes. It sleeps seven across four bedrooms, takes dogs, and unlike the Bassenthwaite cottages further out it does not lock you into a Friday-to-Friday week: "prices based on a minimum of 3 nights" with flexible start dates all year.
A former farmhouse still standing on a working farm - guests can watch lambs, calves and horses through the year, and there are wash-off points in the farmyard for both bikes and dogs.
- Drying room “There is a rear drying room for boots and coats and sportswear and a 3-bicycle stand for secure storage of bikes, plus a tumble drier.”
- Dogs “Well-behaved dogs are very welcome and there are several pleasant walks in the nearby area.”
- Family rooms “First Floor Double bedroom with king size bed and en-suite shower room - spacious electric shower, heated towel rail, washbasin with shaverlight and toilet. Twin-bedded room. Double bedded room. Single room.”
- Children “The house is ideal for couples and families alike, sleeping up to 7 people - plenty of rooms but with a cosy atmosphere.”
about 2.9 km from the start, in a straight line
The rare Lakeland let that publishes its dog arithmetic instead of a vague "dogs welcome" - two dogs at Jasmine, two at Fox Howe, one at Squirrel - so a party with three dogs knows before it books. It also solves the car problem better than anything else at this distance: private off-road parking beside the cottages and the X5 stop literally outside Fox Howe and Squirrel, two minutes from Jasmine. Choose between a two-person and two four-person cottages in the same village.
The osprey nest site above Bassenthwaite can be watched from the cottage grounds between April and August, and the village bus shelter is the landmark you look for to find the entrance.
- Dogs “All three of our holiday cottages are dog friendly with Jasmine Cottage and Fox Howe being able to accommodate two each and Squirrel Cottage one.”
- Parking “Private off road parking beside the cottages”
Worth knowing before you book
These places state on their own site that they do not take children.
