National nature reserve
Dog walks in Wild Ennerdale
Wild Ennerdale is a national nature reserve of 4407 hectares in Cumberland, 15.2 km from the middle of Whitehaven. 1619 walks in the app lie mostly in it. 33% are under 3 km and 14% are loops.
See every dog walk near Whitehaven, or across Cumbria.
Three walks in Wild Ennerdale
From the 1619 walks that lie mostly in Wild Ennerdale, those that start nearest its middle: a 10.8 km loop, a 1.5 km there and back and a 6.1 km one-way walk.
Where these go is in the app
Create an account- Ennerdale and Kinniside loop10.8 km · 185 min · A loop
- Near Wild Ennerdale (shorter)1.5 km · 26 min · There and back
- Near Wild Ennerdale (longer)6.1 km · 104 min · One way
The land and what it asks of a dog
- Special Area of ConservationLake District High FellsNatural England designations
- Site of Special Scientific InterestPillar and Ennerdale Fells SSSI
- Site of Special Scientific InterestBowness Knott SSSI
- Site of Special Scientific InterestEnnerdale SSSI
- Site of Special Scientific InterestRiver Ehen (Ennerdale Water to Keekle Confluence) SSSI
- Special Area of ConservationRiver Ehen
- Dogs on a short lead from 1 March to 31 July, and near livestock at any timeThe 3332 hectares that are open access landCountryside and Rights of Way Act 2000
- Open by permission, not by right469 hectares of the woodlandWoods For All (Forestry Commission)
- And 1 more zone from the same order.
Cumberland council has a dog control order we cannot yet place on the map, so it may apply here. Signs on the ground may say more.
What the walks in Wild Ennerdale are like
Every share is of the 1619 walks that lie mostly in Wild Ennerdale, with Whitehaven as a whole marked on each bar.
How far they go
5 to 8 km: 21% of the walks in Wild Ennerdale, against 17% near Whitehaven.
Where the walks fall by length. The five bars add up to the whole, give or take the rounding.
| Walks that | Share of walks measured | Whitehaven |
|---|---|---|
| Under 3 km | 33% | 36% |
| 3 to 5 km | 20% | 18% |
| 5 to 8 km | 21% | 17% |
| 8 to 12 km | 13% | 13% |
| Over 12 km | 11% | 14% |
What shape they are
One way, ending somewhere else: 34% of the walks in Wild Ennerdale, against 31% near Whitehaven.
A loop brings you back without repeating a step. There and back retraces the way out.
| Walks that | Share of walks measured | Whitehaven |
|---|---|---|
| A loop | 14% | 16% |
| There and back the same way | 50% | 52% |
| One way, ending somewhere else | 34% | 31% |
What is beside the path
Through a park or green space for a third or more: 99% of the walks in Wild Ennerdale, against 1% near Whitehaven.
Shares of walks where the ground beside the path is a given kind for the stated part of the way.
| Walks that | Share of walks measured | Whitehaven |
|---|---|---|
| Under trees for a third or more of the way | 53% | 33% |
| Beside water for a tenth or more | 81% | 63% |
| On open access land for a third or more | 95% | 6% |
| Through a park or green space for a third or more | 99% | 1% |
| Off road for four fifths or more | 92% | 7% |
| On roads or lanes for half or more | 1% | 78% |
| Through built-up streets for half or more | <1% | 1% |
What might stop you
Never beside a busy road: 100% of the walks in Wild Ennerdale, against 60% near Whitehaven.
Shares of walks with none of each thing on the way. A road counts when it runs within about fifteen metres of the path.
| Walks that | Share of walks measured | Whitehaven |
|---|---|---|
| Never beside a fast road | 98% | 85% |
| Never beside a busy road | 100% | 60% |
| No busy road to cross | 100% | 60% |
| No stile, gate or cattle grid | 51% | 78% |
| No steps | 100% | 83% |
What is on the way
Start where you can park, at a car park or on a minor road: 11% of the walks in Wild Ennerdale, against 85% near Whitehaven.
Shares of walks that start by, or pass, each of these.
| Walks that | Share of walks measured | Whitehaven |
|---|---|---|
| Start where you can park, at a car park or on a minor road | 11% | 85% |
| Pass a pub | 1% | 34% |
| Pass a dog-waste bin | <1% | 22% |
| Pass a public toilet | 3% | 13% |
| Pass a drinking-water tap | <1% | <1% |
| Pass a busy beauty spot | 72% | 21% |
Measured on 20 October 2026 from the map. How these figures are made
Walks in Wild Ennerdale, for your dog
If you live in Cumbria, it is your home county, and every walk in it is free, for good. Tell the app what your dog finds hard and it shows you walks that suit, with anything that might stop you shown first.
Anywhere in Great Britain, even with no signal.
Further is the Trekosa subscription. 53% of the walks here run under trees for a third of the way or more. It brings the Further map, 1:25,000, with contours, field walls and every right of way, while you have signal. Press Offline on a walk in Wild Ennerdale before you set off and its map stays on your phone until you remove it, for when the signal drops among the trees. Part of Wild Ennerdale is open access land, where a path on the ground can be faint: drift off your line and the phone buzzes. It also opens walks beyond your home county, if Cumbria is not yours.
The first 250 households have it for good. After that, £4.99 a month or £34.99 a year.
Questions people ask
- Do dogs need a lead in Wild Ennerdale?
- On the open access land, the law asks for a short lead from 1 March to 31 July, and near livestock at any time. Cumberland has a dog order we cannot yet place, so it may apply here, read on 1 October 2026.
- How many dog walks are there in Wild Ennerdale?
- 1619 walks in the Trekosa app lie mostly in Wild Ennerdale.
Getting there
4 car parks and 1 public toilet within Wild Ennerdale or at its edge, from OpenStreetMap.