free to be able to rate and comment on reports (as well as access 1:25000 mapping).
This turned out to be an excellent day's walk, albeit with a slightly brutal start straight up the hillside through the woods. The path is marked on the 1:25000 OS map and is very easy to find on the ground. The woods were a delight, no people, lots of birdsong.
Once above the treeline the views were extensive across the valley and onwards along the ridge.
![web 01 Hartsop Valley from Hartsop Above Howe.jpg]()
- View across the Hartsop Valley from the Hartsop above How ridge
The obvious onward route from Hartsop Above How (an indistinct high point along the ridge - you could hardly call it a "summit") lis up to the summit of Hart Crag (large cairn) and onwards round to Dove Crag and Red Screes, descending down over Middle Dodd, however, given that the weather was good, and that I'd previously overlooked High Hartsop Dodd, I made the excursion out to its viewpoint at the end of the ridge via the much more worthwhile Little Hart Crag. High Hartsop Dodd is marked by a small cairn from which there good views down towards Ullswater. It's not a "summit" in my estimation, and scarcely worth the (significant effort required to return to the ridge,) but as a means of ascent/decent from either Hart Crag or Red Screes it would make for a good, shorter round.
Red Screes, by contrast, feels like a real Lakeland summit.
![web 02 Red Screes.jpg]()
- Red Screes summit cairn
Descent from Red Screes over Middle Dodd feels like a very logical continuation, and its cairn gives a fine retrospective of the route.
![web 03 Middle Dodd and Red Screes.jpg]()
- Retrospective from Middle Dodd to Red Screes
Once off the ridge, the Hartsop Valley and the walk alongside Brothers Water provides a very pleasant finish to the day.
![web 04 Hartsop Valley.jpg]()
- The Hartsop Valley
It's a good walk, but the amount of ascent and descent make it quite a strenuous day.
Length: 10.8<11.6 miles 17.4<19.5 km Ascent: +1275m c. 4,000' Naismith: 5h 45m
