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844 m · Wainwright — Eastern Fells · Birketts to bag nearby, parking, buses, my hikes and live summit weather.

Wainwright — Eastern FellsAlso a Birkett

Stybarrow Dodd

Stybarrow Dodd at 843m (2,766ft) is the middlemost of the Helvellyn Dodds, a broad plateau summit above Sticks Pass giving good views in all directions but most notably east across Ullswater to the distant Pennines.

844 m
Height
~3.5–4.5 h
Typical time
+9
Bonus Birketts
See routes & download GPX → Parking & buses →
844 mWainwright — Eastern Fells✓ summit is also a Birkett+9 bonus Birketts within 3 km Straightforward in cloud

Is it worth going? — Today’s conditions & 7-day summit forecast

Modelled guidance for the 844 m summit. Always check the Met Office mountain forecast and MWIS before you set off.

On the summit today (Fri 11 Sep): 10° to 7°C, gusts to 30 mph, 1.3 mm of rain forecast.

Fri 11 Sep
🌦️
10° / 7°
💨 30 mph
🌧 1.3 mm (100%)
Sat 12 Sep
🌧️
12° / 7°
💨 50 mph
🌧 17.7 mm (100%)
Sun 13 Sep
🌦️
11° / 6°
💨 26 mph
🌧 0.2 mm (62%)
Mon 14 Sep
🌧️
13° / 7°
💨 32 mph
🌧 7.0 mm (100%)
Tue 15 Sep
🌦️
12° / 6°
💨 35 mph
🌧 4.4 mm (89%)
Wed 16 Sep
🌦️
9° / 7°
💨 32 mph
🌧 1.0 mm (78%)
Thu 17 Sep
🌦️
9° / 7°
💨 37 mph
🌧 4.2 mm (92%)

Forecast snapshot from 11 Sep 2026, 08:30 UTC — refreshed nightly and updated live in your browser. Temperatures and gusts adjusted to the 844 m summit altitude via Open-Meteo. Summit conditions are always harsher than the valley — check the professional mountain forecasts before you go.

Stybarrow Dodd at a glance

Stybarrow Dodd

Stybarrow Dodd, a Lake District fell
Photo: Silence-is-infinite, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Stybarrow Dodd at 843m (2,766ft) is the middlemost of the Helvellyn Dodds, a broad plateau summit above Sticks Pass giving good views in all directions but most notably east across Ullswater to the distant Pennines. Wainwright noted it as part of the excellent northern ridge walk that links Helvellyn to Clough Head and provides some of the finest sustained high-level walking in the Eastern Fells. The summit is easily reached from the Sticks Pass path. Combined naturally with Watson's Dodd and Great Dodd for the full northern Dodds traverse, one of the quieter ridge walks in this part of the Lake District.

Field notes

The main feature of this summit is that that there's pretty much no feature. As you can see from the map below my track the day I bagged this one I came over from Hart Side and made my way over to Stybarrow Dodd, my GPS was all over the place and I wasn't sure if I bagged it or not. As the weather wasn't great and I was determined to get to Raise as it's a fell that stood out on its own I just put my head down, bagged that and returned. I walked around aimlessly for a while at what was the flat, dull "summit" of Stybarrow Dodd. In the clag I couldn't see much eventually, as you can see I found the Wainwright summit, didn't hang around - as there was definitely no view and the ground was sodden, so I continued on to Watson's Dodd - and a touch more sodden ground as I went.

Routes up Stybarrow Dodd

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

Classifications & hill data

Wainwright
Eastern
Birkett
Fellranger
Synge
Nuttall
844 m
Height
2,769 ft
In feet
NY 3430 1891
Grid ref

My hikes over Stybarrow Dodd (Strava)

1 logged hike pass over this summit:

Interactive route maps and photos load here for visitors with JavaScript. Data from Strava.

Parking & buses for Stybarrow Dodd

Best parking to hike Stybarrow Dodd

Where we have the data, each parking spot also shows the nearest public toilets and facilities (cafés, pubs, shops).

Roadside parking for Great How (free) — 2.5 km from summit (straight line)
0.5 km from Great How. Added from the 5 Aug 2026 OSM candidate review.
Directions (opens in new tab)Something changed here?
Great How (layby) — 2.5 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?
Legburthwaite (United Utilities, small) — 2.6 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
🚺 Legburthwaite Car Park (opens in new tab) (~8 m straight line) — Free
High Bridge End Caravan and Camping Site (free) — 2.8 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?
Castle Rock (layby) — 2.8 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?

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 Stybarrow Dodd by bus

The 555 stops at Stanah Dam road end (near), 270 m from the start of Three Dodds and Calfhow Pike. Last bus: Monday to Friday 21:35 towards Ambleside (555) and 20:35 towards Windermere (555) and 18:12 towards Kendal (555); Saturday 21:35 towards Ambleside (555) and 20:35 towards Windermere (555) and 18:12 towards Kendal (555); Sunday 19:42 towards Windermere (555) and 18:12 towards Kendal (555). Checked against the operator’s timetable, 7 September 2026. Times here are a guide, not a promise — leave yourself more than the minute.

Stagecoach 555
Kendal – Staveley – Windermere – Ambleside – Rydal – Grasmere – Thirlmere (Wythburn & Swirls) – Keswick
Catch it from: Windermere · Ambleside
Year-round, roughly hourly. The backbone bus of the A591 — ideal for Helvellyn (Wythburn/Swirls), Fairfield, the Central fells and anything around Grasmere/Rydal. From Penrith, take the X4/X5 to Keswick and change.

Rural routes change seasonally — confirm on stagecoachbus.com (opens in new tab) or Traveline before relying on a last bus.

Hazards on Stybarrow Dodd

Hazard & Incident Information for Stybarrow Dodd

Hazard: Moderate

The first of the Dodds north of Sticks Pass, a smooth rounded grassy dome that sets the pattern for the whole group: sweeping, easy grass with almost no landmarks. The walking is gentle, so the hazard is navigational — in cloud or snow this featureless ground is a classic place to lose your bearings — with only the small outcrop of Deepdale Crag and the steep eastern slopes to Deepdale breaking the grass. Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team covers this ground.

  • Featureless grassy plateau (navigation): Almost all grass with few features, the Dodds are a notorious place to go wrong in mist or whiteout — easy to drift off a vague bearing into the wrong valley. Take and trust a compass bearing before leaving the summit; don't navigate by the feel of the slope.
  • Steep eastern slopes / Deepdale Crag: The eastern side drops steeply into Deepdale, with the small outcrop of Deepdale Crag. Keep to the broad higher ground in cloud and don't drift toward the steeper eastern edge.
  • Exposure & winter on the open dome: High, open and shelterless, the dome holds snow and is fully exposed to wind. In winter the lack of features makes navigation harder still and the slopes can be icy — carry full winter kit and the skills to navigate blind.
Who should attempt this fell: Stybarrow Dodd is gentle underfoot but a real navigation test — the smooth, featureless grass defeats people in cloud who'd manage far rougher ground. Be confident with map, compass and bearings, set your line before moving between the Dodds, and keep clear of the steeper eastern edge. In winter the exposure and blank slopes raise the stakes; carry full kit.

Most common causes: Navigation errors on the featureless grassy plateau in cloud or whiteout · Drifting toward the steep eastern slopes into Deepdale · Exposure and disorientation in winter on the open dome · Underestimating an 'easy' fell that is hard to navigate in poor visibility

Local Mountain Rescue: Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team (opens in new tab) · Reviewed 14 Jun 2026

Safety: Hazard guidance compiled from published Mountain Rescue reports and well-documented accident history - editorial background, not a live feed of callouts. Always check current conditions, carry proper navigation equipment, and seek qualified instruction before heading onto the fells. In an emergency, call 999, ask for Police, then Mountain Rescue.

Report incorrect information (opens in new tab)

Navigating Stybarrow Dodd in cloud

Straightforward

Walkable ground sits close to a lethal drop — in cloud it’s easy to walk straight onto steep ground. 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 Stybarrow Dodd compares with all 214 — the Clag Index: navigating in cloud. A relative, deliberately cautious guide; the site can’t navigate for you.

Map & nearby Birketts

Free mapping: OpenTopoMap / OpenStreetMap (switch layers top-right). Parking positions are approximate.

Nearest parking: Roadside parking for Great How (free), about 2.5 km from the summit (straight line). Full parking, toilets and bus details are below.

Birketts near Stybarrow Dodd (within 3 km)

These Birkett tops are not Wainwright summits — detour to them on this walk and they are pure profit. Distances are straight-line; allow extra for terrain.

1.0 km EGreen Side (White Stones)794 m · Eastern
1.6 km NNWLittle Dodd (St John's Common)785 m · Eastern
2.0 km SWBrown Crag610 m · Eastern
2.2 km NNERanderside729 m · Eastern
2.3 km WNWCastle Rock339 m · Eastern
2.3 km ENEBirkett Fell725 m · Eastern
2.5 km NNWCalfhow Pike660 m · Eastern
2.9 km WGreat How (Thirlmere)333 m · Central
3.0 km WNWWren Crag311 m · Central

Routes over Stybarrow Dodd

16.45 km · ~694 m ascent · loop · ~4–6 h

⬇️ Download GPX

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.

24.44 km · ~816 m ascent · loop · ~6–8 h

⬇️ Download GPX

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.

11.12 km · ~819 m ascent · loop · ~3.5–5 h

⬇️ Download GPX

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.

On the hill: terrain and water on Stybarrow Dodd

Water & shelter on the way up

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

The view from Stybarrow Dodd

The 360° skyline from Stybarrow 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 Stybarrow Dodd36 labelled tops shown (15 distant behind the far-horizon toggle). Theoretical visibility in perfect clarity; computed from terrain, not photographed.eye levelNNEESESSWWNWScafell Pike · 17 kmSkiddaw · 13 kmBowfell · 16 kmGreat Gable · 16 kmPillar · 18 kmRaise · 2 kmFairfield · 7 kmBlencathra · 9 kmWhite Side · 2 kmGreat Dodd · 2 kmGrasmoor · 17 kmSt Sunday Crag · 6 kmCrinkle Crags South Top · 17 kmHigh Street · 12 kmHart Crag · 8 kmHigh Stile · 18 kmHigh Raise · 12 kmKnowe Crags · 9 kmGrisedale Pike · 15 kmGreat Carrs · 19 kmThornthwaite Crag · 12 kmCaudale Moor · 11 kmLong Side · 13 kmCold Pike · 17 kmSeatallan · 23 kmBakestall · 14 kmCross Fell · 38 km · clear daysGreen Side · 1 kmGavel Fell · 23 kmRanderside · 2 kmRed Crag · 11 kmSt Raven's Edge · 12 kmHigh Brow · 4 kmLord's Seat · 16 kmSwarth Fell · 11 kmArthur's Pike · 12 kmEsk Pike · 16 kmGategill Fell Top · 9 kmLingmell · 17 kmRampsgill Head · 12 kmSand Hill · 16 kmRed Pike · 19 kmLow Raise · 12 kmDale Head · 12 kmFroswick · 14 kmHobcarton End · 16 kmHelvellyn Lower Man · 3 kmCatstye Cam · 3 kmWatson's Dodd · 1 kmHart Side · 2 kmBirkhouse Moor · 4 kmSheffield Pike · 3 kmLoadpot Hill · 11 kmLittle Calva · 14 kmLooking Stead · 17 kmMaiden Moor · 11 kmThe Calf · 39 km · clear daysThornythwaite Fell · 12 kmGreat Mell Fell · 8 kmWhinlatter Top · 16 kmBengairn · 67 km · clear daysLittle Mell Fell · 10 kmLow How · 4 kmTarbarrel Moss · 15 kmGowk Hill · 10 kmGreat Crag · 8 kmSighty Crag · 67 km · clear daysHeughscar Hill · 15 kmSale Fell · 18 kmCold Fell · 45 km · clear daysDufton Pike · 36 km · clear daysMerrick · 113 km · a rare clear daySnaefell · 99 km · a rare clear dayCairnsmore of Carsphairn · 109 km · a rare clear dayThe Cheviot · 116 km · a rare clear dayCairnsmore of Fleet · 97 km · a rare clear daySlieve Croob · 193 km · a handful of days a yearGreen Lowther · 103 km · a rare clear dayPendle Hill · 90 km · a rare clear dayEttrick Pen · 90 km · a rare clear dayWisp Hill · 81 km · a rare clear dayRoan Fell · 75 km · a rare clear dayBuckden Pike · 74 km · a rare clear dayPeel Fell · 86 km · a rare clear dayBlackwood Hill · 80 km · a rare clear dayCairnkinna Hill · 100 km · a rare clear day
What you can see from Stybarrow Dodd, by direction
  • North: Great Dodd (2 km), Knowe Crags (9 km), Gategill Fell Top (9 km), Blencathra (9 km), Atkinson Pike (10 km)
  • South-east: St Sunday Crag (6 km), High Raise (12 km), High Street (12 km)
  • South: Raise (2 km), White Side (2 km), Fairfield (7 km), Hart Crag (8 km)
  • South-west: Esk Pike (16 km), Great End (16 km), Great Gable (16 km), Bowfell (16 km), Pike de Bield (16 km), Shelter Crags (16 km), Crinkle Crags (17 km), Ill Crag (17 km), Crinkle Crags (17 km), Crinkle Crags (17 km), Broad Crag (17 km), Crinkle Crags (17 km), Crinkle Crags South Top (17 km), Lingmell (17 km), Scafell Pike (17 km), Red Pike (20 km)
  • West: Crag Hill (15 km), Eel Crag (15 km), Grasmoor (17 km), High Stile (18 km), High Stile (18 km), Pillar (18 km), Scoat Fell (20 km)
  • North-west: Skiddaw South Top (13 km), Skiddaw Middle Top (13 km), Skiddaw (13 km), Skiddaw North Top (13 km), Broad End (14 km)

On the clearest days the far horizon adds: Merrick (113 km, Scotland), Snaefell (99 km, Isle of Man), Cairnsmore of Carsphairn (109 km, Scotland), The Cheviot (116 km, England), Cairnsmore of Fleet (97 km, Scotland), Corserine (109 km, Scotland), Lamachan Hill (108 km, Scotland), Slieve Croob (193 km, Ireland).

Computed from terrain in perfect clarity, not photographed · distances are straight-line.

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

Sunrise and sunset on Stybarrow Dodd

Stybarrow Dodd catches the sun before the valley does. On not one of the sixteen dates modelled does this summit wait for first light — the eastern horizon falls away rather than standing over you, and at midsummer the light reaches it 5 minutes before almanac sunrise.

30°40°50°60°04:31
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
Midsummer04:31 BST ±5.0 min04:36-5 min
Equinox06:12 GMT ±5.0 min06:15-3 min
Midwinter08:30 GMT ±5.0 min08:33-3 min

A low, open northern horizon — the ground falls away northwards (mean -0.39°).

Last light — when the sun leaves Stybarrow Dodd

The evening here runs close to the flat-horizon case. Even on its earliest evening of the modelled year (at midwinter) last light is only 3 minutes before almanac sunset, so the published sunset time is a fair guide on Stybarrow Dodd.

The evening of the same three days. A negative difference means a ridge takes the sun before the valley loses it.
Last lightAlmanac sunsetDifference
Midsummer21:58 BST ±5.0 min21:53+5 min
Equinox18:30 GMT ±5.0 min18:26+4 min
Midwinter15:45 GMT ±5.0 min15:48-3 min

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 Stybarrow 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. 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 Stybarrow Dodd

On a clear day — computed sightlines, curvature- and refraction-corrected.
103Wainwrights in view+27 marginal
114 kmFurthest sightlineMerrick · possible under favourable refraction
Sea in viewnone from here

On the clearest days the view reaches across to Scotland and the Isle of Man.

Far horizons
  • Merrick ScotlandNW · 114 km clear
  • Snaefell Isle of ManWSW · 100 km clear
  • Ingleborough Yorkshire DalesSE · 60 km clear
  • Whernside Yorkshire DalesSE · 54 km clear
  • Great Dun Fell North PenninesENE · 39 km clear
  • Cross Fell North PenninesENE · 37 km clear
All 103 Wainwrights in clear view (nearest first)

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

Sightlines from a bare-earth terrain model (forests and buildings not included), 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

From the Aira Force National Trust car park start

Lowthwaite Bed and Breakfast (opens in new tab) guest house

about 3.9 km from the start, in a straight line

The only property in the cluster that answers the whole arrival sequence for a family: a drying room in the all-rooms facilities list, a cot and a high chair, children of all ages accepted, and an honest note that its ground-floor room is still reached by steps. It is also the only page in the radius that describes this exact walk from its own door - Gowbarrow Fell to Aira Force and back through Matterdale - and Little Mell Fell, the second summit of one of the routes this start serves, is the fell behind the house.

Most of the furniture in the rooms was made by hand in Tanzania, where the owners used to run a business organising Kilimanjaro climbs.

  • Drying room “The following are available for all rooms: Television,DVD player, Hairdryer, Tea/Coffee making facilities, Use of garden and patio, Use of guidebooks and other books, Maps (for planning and laminated for walks), Drying room, and Fridge (in the Dining Room).”
  • Family rooms “We have a cot, high chair(s) and special cutlery for small children.”
  • Parking “Another alternative is to use what3words where our car park is primed.lavished.amounting”
  • Children “Children Welcome We are very happy to welcome children of all ages.”

Low Gale (opens in new tab) self-catering

about 4.4 km from the start, in a straight line

The best answer in the cluster for a party with a dog, a small child and tired knees at once: single storey, sleeps seven, cot available, off-road parking, drying facilities and a coin laundry, with hot food available from the hotel kitchen so nobody has to drive at seven in the evening. The price of all that is a three-night minimum with fixed Friday and Monday changeover, which is why the minimum-stay line matters more here than anywhere else in this list.

The Ullswater Steamer jetty at Howtown is reached from the cottage by footpath, so the lake boat can be walked to rather than driven to.

  • Drying room “Ample storage and drying facilites Very spacious, comfortable lounge Fully fitted dining kitchen”
  • Dogs “Low Gale Ullswater is an elevated single storey, dog friendly holiday cottage located just beside Fusedale Beck and can easily accomodate 7 people.”
  • Family rooms “Cot available Dishwasher *Washing Machine 2 bathrooms 1 double bedroom 2 twin rooms 1 single room”
  • Evening meal “visitors can cook local fayre or alternatively take advantage of the dine at home meals available from the Hotel kitchen.”
  • Parking “Facilities Free Superfast Broadband Dog friendly Off road parking Smoke-free Garden / Patios Cot available Dishwasher *Washing Machine”

Other places nearby

Fornside Farm Cottages (opens in new tab) guest house

about 1.1 km from the start, in a straight line

Ranked first on usefulness, not distance. It answers more of a walking family's questions than anything else in the valley: four separate self-catering units sleeping 4 or 6, an EV charger, dogs in two of the four, a private farm trail, and walks from the door onto the Helvellyn range the three routes climb. It is also 1.12 km from the start, so the tiebreak never had to be used.

The four cottages are converted 17th-century barns adjoining a grade II listed farmhouse, heated by a ground source heat pump part-powered by solar panels — and there is a private farm trail through the woods and fields for guests.

  • Family rooms “Rigg Barn was converted from a detached bank barn and sleeps up to six people.”
  • Parking “You can charge your electric vehicle on our PodPoint car charger, available exclusively for our guests.”
  • Children “We have just returned from a week in Swaledale Garth with our toddler.”

Dale Head Hall Lakeside Hotel (opens in new tab) hotel

about 2.1 km from the start, in a straight line

The only serviced hotel inside two and a half kilometres of the start, and the only property in the cluster offering rooms on the ground floor — which matters to anyone who has just come down Sticks Pass on tired knees, and to a family who would rather not carry a sleeping child upstairs. Several rooms are explicitly convertible to family use with extra single beds.

A 16th-century hall standing alone on the shore of Thirlmere inside a designated red squirrel reserve, with Helvellyn directly behind it; the site publishes its front door as the what3words location CRACKS.DIAMOND.RESPECTED.

  • Family rooms “A warm, traditionally designed family room, with one double and two single beds. Overlooking the back of the hotel.”
  • Evening meal “Why not enjoy a trip out to nearby Keswick for the day before coming back and enjoying a delicious bar meal.”
  • Children “This room can accommodate two extra single beds for a family.”

Worth knowing before you book

These places state on their own site that they do not take children.

What each place says about itself, quoted from their own site. We have not stayed at any of them, and there are no prices, no booking and no affiliate links. Distances are straight lines from each route start, never walking times. Properties found via OpenStreetMap (opens in new tab).

Frequently asked questions about Stybarrow Dodd

Is Stybarrow Dodd hard?

On its own, no — it's one of the gentlest Wainwrights of its height. At 843 m (2,766 ft) it's a big fell on paper, but the standard way up from Legburthwaite via Sticks Pass is a steady pull on a good path with no scrambling, and a typical round is about 3½ hours. The effort really depends on what you chain it with: almost nobody climbs Stybarrow Dodd alone, and the full Dodds ridge is a long day — our walked round over Hart Side, Stybarrow Dodd, Raise and Watson's Dodd is 24 km with 816 m of climbing, roughly 6 hours.

The honest difficulty isn't the climbing, it's navigation in cloud. The summit is a broad, featureless grass plateau — when we bagged it the clag was down, the GPS wandered, and there was genuinely nothing to aim for. In clear weather it's a straightforward walk; in mist, this is a fell where you need to trust your compass more than your eyes. Expect soft, wet ground off the main paths.

Is Stybarrow Dodd a Wainwright?

Yes — it has its own chapter in the Eastern Fells as the middlemost of the Dodds, the high grassy ridge running north from Helvellyn to Clough Head. It's also a Birkett, a Nuttall and a Fellranger top, so it counts for most of the major lists in one visit.

What do you combine Stybarrow Dodd with?

This is really a ridge fell. The natural neighbours are Watson's Dodd and Great Dodd for the northern Dodds traverse — some of the easiest sustained high-level walking in the Eastern Fells — or Raise via Sticks Pass heading south towards Helvellyn. Our two walked routes over it are the Hart Side–Stybarrow Dodd–Raise round and Birketts above Ullswater (16.5 km, 694 m).

Where do you park for Stybarrow Dodd?

For the Sticks Pass approach, Legburthwaite car park (United Utilities) off the A591 is the usual start — it's small, so arrive early on a fine day. From the east, the Dodds are usually taken from the Dockray side.

Questions drawn from real Google “People also ask” searches; answers written and fact-checked by us. · Reviewed 2026-08-07 · Suggest a question or correction (opens in new tab)

Other fells near Stybarrow Dodd