Orthwaite Pop-up Campsite

No availability at present on Pitchup.com 9.3 72 reviews
View of the campsite with Skiddaw in the background.
View of the campsite with skiddaw in the background.
View across over water
View of the campsite on a sunny day with skiddaw in the background
Views towards over water
View of the campsite with skiddaw in the background
Grass pitches
Grass pitches
Happy campers!
1/93
View across over water
View of the campsite on a sunny day with skiddaw in the background
Views towards over water

  • Pop-up site on a working fell farm in the northern Lake District
  • Bassenthwaite Lake 10 minutes’ drive; Keswick 20 minutes
  • Views of Over Water; close to cycle routes and Wainwright hikes
A peaceful, off-grid spot for wild camping, Orthwaite Pop-up Campsite sits within sight of Over Water, a feeding place for ospreys, in the northern Lake District. Here, you get a front-row seat to views of the northern fells, including Longlands, Lowthwaite, Great Sca Fell, Knott, Great Cockup, Little Cockup, Meal Fell and Binsey. Indeed, the site’s location is so convenient that you will soon be bagging Wainwrights (as the local peaks are affectionately known) or pedalling down stunning cycle routes. More Wainwrights await at the ‘back o’ Skiddaw’ (20 minutes), as the locals call it. This area has cycling routes such as the Skiddaw Loop, the Lakeland Monster Miles Adventure Cross and the Lakes 100. Added bonus: somehow, big crowds have yet to discover it… Well-behaved dogs are welcome, but they must be kept on a lead at all times, since the site is on a working sheep farm with Herdwick and Swaledale flocks. The barn (which once featured on a ‘Top Gear’ episode) has covered picnic tables for rainy spells. Raised firepits and small, raised barbecues are welcome; logs are for sale on site. There are no showers or electricity here, but simple facilities extend to unisex portable toilets, a water source (not for drinking water) and rubbish bins. Please note that there is no public access to the lake, which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest owned by the National Trust.

Campground type

RV & Motorhome sites 3
Tent sites 50
Opens
Please note
  • This campground/park has no on-site shower facilities.
  • Under 18s must be accompanied by their parents or legal guardians.
  • The campground/park does not accept breeds/crossbreeds listed in the Dangerous Dog Act (i.e. Pit Bull Terrier, Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino, and Fila Brasileiro).
  • Discount cards and gift vouchers cannot be applied to bookings made via Pitchup.com.
  • Swimming in the lake is not allowed.
  • Please note that the toilet facilities are unisex.

Languages spoken

English

No availability here for your search criteria

Reviews

9.3

Overall rating from 72 Pitchup.com customers

  • 73%
    10
  • 5%
    9
  • 12%
    8
  • 1%
    7
  • 4%
    6
  • 0%
    5
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    1
Location
 9
Value for money
 9
Accommodation
 9
Facilities / Activities
 8
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 9
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 4
Lake and/or mountainPeaceful

94% would recommend this campground to a friend

89% would stay here again

What customers say

Quiet, no-frills spot with amazing views & lake outlook. Friendly owners hire fire pits & wood. Generally clean loos, lots of space. Great for hikes. Narrow access roads & no showers/drinking water noted (but advertised). Lake access for activities would've been a bonus for some.

Summary AI-generated from Pitchup.com customer reviews

Reviews page 1 of 8
Arrival date (latest first)

All round great place

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 1
Anonymous

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Unreal campsite. Incredible views and stunning surrounding location. 20 mins drive from keswick. Great land owners too.

Disliked Neighbours we had were noisy until 1:30am struggled to sleep

Recommend to friends Visit again

Stunning views, lovely hidden gem. Plenty…

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 6
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 No rating
Wifi
 No rating
Sarah N.

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Stunning views, lovely hidden gem. Plenty of toilets. Good back to basics camping.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Amazing place, highly recommend…

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 10
Michal M.

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Amazing place, highly recommend

Recommend to friends Visit again

Will be back!

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 9
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 No rating
Megan C.

Unpowered grass campervan site

Liked Great site, good views, loads of room and quickly checked on by the hosts!

We were a little late so missed out on a fire pit but looked like the option was there if arriving a little earlier to snag one.

The fact you can come and go whenever is perfect

Disliked Tight roads to get to the site - not a fault of the site though, worth it when you’re there

Recommend to friends Visit again

Great location, lovely and peaceful. Easy…

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 10
Katherine W.

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Great location, lovely and peaceful. Easy links to Keswick, bassenthwaite and Cockermouth. Great base for the northern lakes!

Recommend to friends Visit again

Great views Spotless toilets Friendly owner Firepit rental…

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 No rating
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 No rating
Anonymous

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Great views
Spotless toilets
Friendly owner
Firepit rental

Recommend to friends Visit again

It had nice views of the…

Overall

4 out of 10
Location
 3
Value for money
 2
Accommodation
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 1
Customer service
 No rating
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 3
Wifi
 No rating
Clive B.

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked It had nice views of the lake but you weren't allowed in it. Only stayed for one night as we couodn't get the site we wanted on our first night and we're glad it was only for one night but it wasn't awful by any means but was quite pricey for what it was.

Disliked There were only portaloo toilets and no showers or running water but they state all that on their profile. Access was down some very narrow roads but our stay there was fine.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Friendly owners, plenty of space, lovely…

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 1
Pete M.

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Friendly owners, plenty of space, lovely vibes

Recommend to friends Visit again

Loved staying here - been before…

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 9
Accommodation
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 7
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 9
Wifi
 1
Ellie S.

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Loved staying here - been before with my partner but brought my best friend, her fiance and the pupper and we had the best weekend!
The owners are so lovely and so helpful, always stopping off for a chat even if we didn't need anything.
Will deffo be back, and will be recommending to others!

Recommend to friends Visit again

We loved Orthwaite, the owners were…

Overall

7 out of 10
Location
 8
Value for money
 9
Accommodation
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 7
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 9
Cleanliness
 8
Wifi
 2
Louise W.

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked We loved Orthwaite, the owners were lovely, very generous & helpful. They came round every night to check we were happy with everything & had logs for sale for our campfire.
The site is large & very laid back & the views are spectacular!
Location is great, 20 mins from Keswick.
A dedicated washing up area/draining board would be great but we got by.
Be prepared for no signal, could be an advantage or disadvantage.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Features

Portable toilet

Pop-up campground

Dogs allowed

Campfires allowed

Leisure on site

Bar or club house Cycle hire Evening entertainment Fishing Fitness centre Games room Indoor swimming pool Kids' club On-site restaurant/cafe Outdoor swimming pool Play area TV room Take away Tennis Watersports

Amenities on site

Bath available Car parking by site/unit Composting toilet Dog park Drying room Food shop Free wifi Ice pack freezing Internet access Laundry Parent & baby washroom Pick-up from public transport Portable toilet Pub toilets Public telephone Shower available Toilet block Washing-up area Wifi

Groups welcome

Family friendly Motorcycle friendly Single-sex groups welcome Student groups welcome

Rules

Barbecue provided Barbecues allowed Campfires allowed Commercial vehicles allowed Dogs allowed Dogs allowed all year

Camping 2.0

Jumbo tent sites

Themes

Lake and/or mountain Peaceful Remote location Spectacular scenery Walkers' paradise Wild camping

Utilities

Charging facilities Dump point Electric car charging point(s) Gas cylinders available No drinkable water point No hot water No running water Recycling available Renewable energy

Nearby amenities

Bar nearby Dog walk nearby

Type

Farm Medium (26-50 sites) Pop-up campground

Nearby leisure

Canoeing/kayaking nearby Climbing nearby Cycle hire nearby Cycling nearby Golf nearby Indoor pool nearby Leisure/theme park nearby Mountain biking nearby Restaurant nearby

Location

Orthwaite Pop-up Campsite

Orthwaite Hall

Uldale

Wigton

Cumbria

England

CA7 1HL

Directions

Timezone

Europe/London +0100 (GMT+01:00)

GPS

54.704°N
3.15687°W

Route directions

What3words: ///spires.craziest.sedative

Nearest transport

Coach
11.4 km Bus Station
14.4 km Gallowbarrow
14.4 km Fairfield Junior School
Rail
12.8 km Aspatria Rail Station
13.9 km Wigton Rail Station
19.2 km Dalston (Cumbria) Rail Station
Ferry
12.1 km Nichol End (Derwentwater) Ferry Landing
12.2 km Keswick Ferry Landing
13.7 km Hawes End Derwentwater Ferry Landing

Please note: All distances on this page are calculated "as the crow flies" - please check actual distance depending on your mode of travel using the Get directions button above.

Local attractions

The area around Bassenthwaite Lake National Nature Reserve (10 minutes’ drive) includes Dodd Wood, whose forests are home to red squirrels, and Lake District Wildlife Park, with birds of prey, primates and farmyard animals. At the Lakes Distillery, you can take a tour of the facilities – complete with a whisky tasting, of course. In the lively market town of Keswick (20 minutes), the riverside Derwent Pencil Museum displays a huge pencil (almost eight metres long) and has a colourful shop stocked with quality art supplies. The town is also the gateway to island-dotted Derwentwater, with its splendid lakeside trails and assorted watery attractions. After visiting the ruins of the 14th-century castle in Penrith (40 minutes), linger a while in the surrounding park, where there’s a playground with a miniature adventure course for the kids. On the outskirts of town are a public pool and several golf courses, plus the Thacka Beck Nature Reserve, where you might spot birds and dragonflies.

Water quality at nearby bathing waters

Name Distance Type 2020201920182017
Allonby 19.2 km Sea N/AGoodGoodGood
Southerness 34.2 km Sea N/AGoodGoodExcellent
St Bees 37.6 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Seascale 40.5 km Sea N/AGoodGoodGood
Sandyhills 41.3 km Sea N/AN/APoorPoor

Data source: European Environment Agency

Must see

Mirehouse Historic House and Gardens 7.1 km

Whinlatter Forest & Visitor Centre 11.3 km

Castlerigg Stone Circle 11.9 km

Ullswater Steamers 22.5 km

Dalemain Historic House & Gardens 23.3 km

National Trust

Wordsworth House and Garden 14.3 km

Buttermere and Ennerdale 30.8 km

Grasmere and Great Langdale 30.8 km

Wasdale, Eskdale and Duddon 33.5 km

Townend 36.2 km

Cycle routes

Find local routes on the National Cycle Network - over 12,000 miles of cycling routes.

Other

High Pike, Fellside 5.4 km

Ullock Pike - Longside Edge - Skiddaw 5.8 km

Dodd Wood under Ullock Pike 7.1 km

Bassenthwaite Osprey Walk 7.1 km

Latrigg, Blease and Lonscale 9.9 km

Please note: All distances on this page are calculated "as the crow flies" - please check actual distance depending on your mode of travel using the Get directions button above.

Want to know more about camping in The Lake District and Cumbria?

Frequently asked questions

  • Does Orthwaite Pop-up Campsite have a swimming pool? No View all features
  • Is Orthwaite Pop-up Campsite dog friendly? Yes View all features
  • What attractions are near Orthwaite Pop-up Campsite? The area around Bassenthwaite Lake National Nature Reserve (10 minutes’ drive) includes Dodd Wood, whose forests are home to red squirrels, and Lake District Wildlife Park, with birds of prey, primates and … Read more
  • When can I check in and check out of Orthwaite Pop-up Campsite?
    Camping and caravan
    Arrive:  Anytime –  Anytime
    Depart by:  Anytime
    Read more