Orthwaite Pop-up Campsite

View prices & book 9.4 53 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!
1/79
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 sites 3
Tent sites 50
Open now
Opens July 25
Please note
  • This park has no on-site shower facilities.
  • Under 18s must be accompanied by their parents or legal guardians.
  • The park does not accept breeds/crossbreeds listed in the Breed-specific legislation (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

Open from Fri, Jul 25 to

Reviews

9.4

Overall rating from 53 Pitchup.com customers

  • 73%
    10
  • 3%
    9
  • 16%
    8
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    7
  • 3%
    6
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    5
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    3
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    1
Location
 10
Value for money
 9
Accommodation
 9
Facilities / Activities
 8
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 9
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 4
Lake and/or mountainPeacefulWild camping

94% would recommend this campground to a friend

87% would stay here again

What customers say

Peaceful, back-to-basics site with great views. Friendly owners, fire pits/logs for rent. Clean facilities, ample space. Ideal for hiking. Access roads narrow, no showers/drinking water (advertised). Lake access limited.

Summary AI-generated from Pitchup.com customer reviews

Reviews page 1 of 6
Arrival date (latest first)

Lovely little campsite, clean and well maintained. Will definitely book again. Very remote…

Overall

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

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Lovely little campsite, clean and well maintained. Will definitely book again.
Very remote campsite just a 20 minute drive outside of Keswick

Recommend to friends Visit again

No showers but that’s well advertised. Very good site

Overall

9 out of 10
Location
 7
Value for money
 9
Accommodation
 9
Facilities / Activities
 4
Customer service
 9
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 9
Wifi
 No rating
Tyla K.

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Location and services were great. Well stocked portaloos and friendly host with good knowledge of the local area.

Disliked Nothing! Felt like wild camping without the anxiety of getting a fine. I do think it’s a shame you cannot access the lake for kayaking and paddle boarding

It is hard to drive off the grass after a night of rain but though

Recommend to friends Visit again

Beautiful campsite a bit out the way with absolutely no signal and…

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 8
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 8
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 1
Lauren G.

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Beautiful campsite a bit out the way with absolutely no signal and no service (which was perfect!)
Great customer service, appreciated the owner offering fire pits/firewood to everyone as he checked the bookings and a special bonus not having a departure time, come and go whenever you like - something not many campsites do and should!
Fairly popular, everyone was respectful and quiet enough for us to sleep at night.
Toilets were clean and full with toilet paper and loved the little barn at the top with picnic tables to have the option of indoor seating if needed.
Will definitely be coming back!

Recommend to friends Visit again

Beautiful peaceful site with loads of room and friendly landowner…

Overall

9 out of 10
Location
 8
Value for money
 8
Accommodation
 9
Facilities / Activities
 8
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 No rating
Anonymous

Primitive grass campervan campsite

Liked Beautiful peaceful site with loads of room and friendly landowner

Recommend to friends Visit again

Good location for hiking and wild swimming, peaceful and spacious with some…

Overall

6 out of 10
Location
 6
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 6
Facilities / Activities
 1
Customer service
 8
Child friendliness
 5
Cleanliness
 7
Wifi
 1
Victoria E.

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Good location for hiking and wild swimming, peaceful and spacious with some nice views. A basic camp site with toilets and water which is what it’s advertised as ☺️

Disliked Was a bit of a difficult bend to turn into the pop up camping field.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Excellent site with incredible views perfect for a peaceful getaway.

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 7
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 9
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 1
Marcel R.

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Extremely peaceful location with access to the most beautiful scenery regardless of which direction you look in. We were the only tent on the campsite for a good portion of our trip and we really enjoyed camping next to the lake.

Disliked Roads are very narrow in the area surrounding the campsite

Recommend to friends Visit again

Definitely somewhere to visit again, shame its just a popup.

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 1
alex p.

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Beautiful location, peaceful. Unlimited pitch size for a large tent and awning. Plenty of toilets scattered around the field that were cleaned and stocked often. Owner of the farm stopped and talked to us for a few minutes. Really nice guy.

Disliked Nothing

Recommend to friends Visit again

Lovely place…

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 10
Mark H.

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Lovely place

Disliked None

Recommend to friends Visit again

Very nice campsite, lovely views. Would stay again.

Overall

8 out of 10
Location
 8
Value for money
 8
Accommodation
 8
Facilities / Activities
 7
Customer service
 7
Child friendliness
 6
Cleanliness
 8
Wifi
 1
Anonymous

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Clean porta loos, and plenty of space to choose a pitch, lovely views.
There was quite a lot of people there when we arrived but it wasn’t too noisy.

Recommend to friends Visit again

The beautiful scenery, easy to locate, nice and quiet…

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 10
Romanas P.

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked The beautiful scenery, easy to locate, nice and quiet

Recommend to friends Visit again

Features

Portable toilet

Pop-up campground

Dogs allowed

Campfires allowed

Leisure on park

Bar or club house Cycle hire Evening entertainment Fishing Fitness centre Indoor swimming pool Kids' club On-site restaurant/cafe Outdoor swimming pool Playground Recreation room/arcade TV room Takeout Tennis Watersports

Amenities on park

Bath available Car parking by site/unit Composting toilet Dog park Drying room Free wifi Grocery store Ice pack freezing Internet access Laundromat Parent & baby washroom Payphone Pick-up from public transport Portable toilet Pub toilets Restrooms Shower available Washing-up area Wifi

Groups welcome

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

Rules

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

Camping 2.0

Jumbo tent sites

Themes

Hikers’ paradise Lake and/or mountain Peaceful Remote location Spectacular scenery Wild camping

Utilities

Charging facilities Dump station Electric car charging point(s) No drinkable water point No hot water No running water Propane/gas cylinders available 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

Bus
7.1 mi Bus Station
8.9 mi Gallowbarrow
8.9 mi Fairfield Junior School
Rail
8 mi Aspatria Rail Station
8.7 mi Wigton Rail Station
11.9 mi Dalston (Cumbria) Rail Station
Ferry
7.5 mi Nichol End (Derwentwater) Ferry Landing
7.6 mi Keswick Ferry Landing
8.5 mi 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 11.9 mi Sea N/AGoodGoodGood
Southerness 21.2 mi Sea N/AGoodGoodExcellent
St Bees 23.4 mi Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Seascale 25.1 mi Sea N/AGoodGoodGood
Sandyhills 25.6 mi Sea N/AN/APoorPoor

Data source: European Environment Agency

Must see

Mirehouse Historic House and Gardens 4.4 mi

Whinlatter Forest & Visitor Centre 7 mi

Castlerigg Stone Circle 7.4 mi

Ullswater Steamers 14 mi

Dalemain Historic House & Gardens 14.5 mi

National Trust

Wordsworth House and Garden 8.9 mi

Buttermere and Ennerdale 19.1 mi

Grasmere and Great Langdale 19.2 mi

Wasdale, Eskdale and Duddon 20.8 mi

Townend 22.5 mi

Cycle routes

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

Other

High Pike, Fellside 3.4 mi

Ullock Pike - Longside Edge - Skiddaw 3.6 mi

Dodd Wood under Ullock Pike 4.4 mi

Bassenthwaite Osprey Walk 4.4 mi

Latrigg, Blease and Lonscale 6.2 mi

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.

Nearest campgrounds

Unfortunately, we have no nearby bookable campgrounds.

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?
    RV, travel trailer and tent sites
    Arrive:  Anytime –  Anytime
    Depart by:  Anytime
    Read more
  • How much does it cost to stay at Orthwaite Pop-up Campsite? From $33.76 (for 1 night, 2 adults) - prices may change depending on your dates and party.