About High Hartsop Dodd

High Hartsop Dodd is a fell in the English Lake District, an outlier of the Fairfield group in the Eastern Fells and stands above Kirkstone Pass on the road from Ullswater to Ambleside.

There are three Dodds when viewed from Hartsop, the others being (Low) Hartsop Dodd and Middle Dodd. The names refer to their position in the valley rather than their height.

All three present an imposing pyramidal profile when seen from below, totally obscuring their parent fells. Similarly, all three appear entirely derivative when viewed from other angles.

From the rocky summit of Little Hart Crag a narrowing ridge descends north eastward on grass. The ground is quite wet and there are areas of peat and sedge.

After half a mile of steady fall, the ridge throws up the barely perceptible summit of High Hartsop Dodd. Beyond this the character of the fell changes completely and a steep slope plunges straight down to the valley floor.

The fell is bounded on either side by valleys of the Ullswater catchment. To the east is the narrow Caiston Glen, falling from the summit of Scandale Pass. This separates the fell from Middle Dodd and its parent Red Screes.

On the west is Hogget Gill, a sidestream of picturesque Dovedale. Across here is Stangs, a subsidiary top of Dove Crag.

Dovedale and Caiston Glen are both tributaries of Kirkstone Beck, the main feeder of Brothers Water.

The summit of High Hartsop Dodd bears a small cairn at the point where the ridge briefly levels out. The view is not extensive given the high ring of surrounding fells, but many of these are seen in close detail, particularly Dove Crag.

High Hartsop Dodd is rarely climbed for its own sake, being merely a stop on the road to Little Hart Crag and Dove Crag.

From here either Caiston Glen or Dovedale can be circumnavigated along fine high level ridges.

The nose of the fell provides the only practicable route, starting from either Kirkstonefoot or Cow Bridge. This is grassy but ferociously steep.