6 Short Dog Walks in the Lake District

Sometimes we just don’t have a lot of time on our hands, especially if we’re travelling up to the Lake District after work or need to leave early and want to squeeze in a walk before heading home.

So, we’ve put together a few great short walks which require little effort but still offer a great flavour of the Lake District.

Orrest's Head

Considering it's a pretty easy walk, the views from the top are incredible! We took a route through a woodland and managed to catch a lovely sunset from the viewpoint before an easy stroll back down the main path to Windermere.

Stock Ghyll Force

The stunning Stock Ghyll Force is located just a few minutes’ walk from the centre of the small town of Ambleside, making it one of the most accessible waterfalls in the Lake District. The picturesque double drop waterfall is located in pretty woodland and is a brilliant option if you’re short on time, or want to squeeze in an extra dog walk at the beginning or end of a day out - it takes just 10-15 minutes to reach the start of the falls from the centre of Ambleside.

Buttermere

While there are many routes up to the surrounding fells at Buttermere, the walk that skirts around the edge of the lake is really beautiful and straightforward route.

Save this one for a calm day and Buttermere is like a mirror!

Tarn Hows

Surrounded by thick woodland with views towards the Helvellyn range and the Langdale Pikes, Tarn Hows is understandably a popular spot for a nice easy walk.

There is a 1.5 mile path round the tarn that is level and well maintained or the route above offers some lovely vantage points from above the lake. We'd recommend this one in low season or early/late in the day as it can get extremely busy!

Raven Crag

This is the most challenging walk on this list, but I promise the short sharp climb is worth the pain for the views at the top!

It's less than 2km to the summit but it's steep uphill pretty much all the way, with 225 metres of elevation gain. Sit and enjoy the spectacular views over Thirlmere and towards the Helvellyn range from the top before retracing your steps.

Scale Force

We had to finish the list with another waterfall, and we really enjoyed our visit to Scale Force when we just had a couple of hours one morning on a recent visit.

Starting from Buttermere, the route heads along Crummock Water and offers some gorgeous views of the lake and surrounding mountain scenery as you wind along the edge of the water and out to the waterfall.

A warning: this one can get very boggy in the winter months!

Hopefully you’ll find this post helpful, we’re always on the lookout for short dog walks so we’ll add to this list if we find more shorter walks in the future!

Thanks for reading,

Cara, Andy, Poppy & Maple x