Dodd Wood

This is a forest in the Lake District in northwest England. For more photos, click here. There are a group of peaks call the Dodds north of Helvellyn.

This particular Dodd is a small fell (ancient word for mountain, especially one with grazing land on the top) in Cumbria. It forms part of the Skiddaw range in the northern part of the national park. Dodd lies on Forestry Commission land known as Dodd Wood; for many years it was extensively planted with conifers right up to the summit which obstructed the view. However, the Commission started a program of tree clearance from the top of the fell in 2001 and the summit of the fell is now clear; it is hoped that it will revert to heather moorland in years to come.

In recent years Dodd and Dodd Wood have become a magnet for visitors as the area around the southern end of Bassenthwaite Lake is home to the only pair of nesting Ospreys in northern England.

In the 1860s, Dodd was home to a Scottish hermit called George Smith, who became known as the Skiddaw Hermit. He lived on a ledge on the fell in a wigwam type tent made from a framework of branches and built against a low stone wall. He stayed there in all weathers because he liked the outdoor life. He earned money by painting portraits of farmers and their wives, although his favorite subjects were said to be local pub landlords who paid his fees in whiskey.

He also did character assessments at local fairs by feeling the shape of people’s heads. A short book was written about him in 1996 called the Skiddaw Hermit by Mary E. Burkett.