Great Knott Wood and Finsthwaite Tower walk

Walk 7 passes through Great Knott Wood, a 42-hectare Woodland Trust wood on Windermere's south-west shore, and climbs to Finsthwaite Tower on Summer House Knot. Save the Rusland Horizons PDF to your phone before you set off, as signal may be unreliable. You will find it at the bottom of this page.

Start from the front door and join the woodland paths. If you would rather start with something shorter, our High Dam walk guide is the easier circuit.

The paths through the wood are steep in places, generally stony, and can be muddy in winter, so boots with a good grip are worth having. There is a network of paths linking to the surrounding footpaths, but the wood has deer fences and at least one dead end, so stay on the obvious routes, especially inside the fences.

The Lake District National Park Authority waymarks two routes through the wood: one up to the tower, and one running alongside the road. The well-surfaced West Windermere Trail also passes through between Lakeside and Finsthwaite, which is the easiest way in if anyone in the group does not fancy the climb.

The tower on Summer House Knot was built around 1799 by James King of Finsthwaite House, partly as an ornament for the landscape and partly as a monument to British naval victories over the French, Spanish and Dutch fleets. It was once called Pennington Lodge Tower, and a plaque on it records the Royal Navy's successes.

The tower has had a hard couple of centuries, and it has been repaired in recent years, so check what you can get close to before you go. The viewpoint looks over the lake, and the clearing at the top of the wood now opens up views across Windermere too.

Great Knott is ancient woodland with a long industrial past. Charcoal burning and leather tanning went on here from the 12th century, tied to Furness Abbey, and you can still find the remains of kilns, a bark peeler's hut and Victorian water tanks. The timber also fed Stott Park Bobbin Mill next door to the cottage.

In 1958 about three-quarters of the wood was planted with conifers, mainly Norway spruce, which were never harvested and crowded out the native trees. The Woodland Trust bought the wood in 2004 and has been thinning the conifers, using Belgian Ardennes horses to haul out the timber so that native plants can come back. Oak, ash, alder, birch, beech and some very old yews survive among the spruce.

Roe deer and red deer live in the wood, and you may hear great spotted woodpeckers. In spring the floor has bluebells, wild garlic and wood anemones. Storm Arwen brought down many mature trees near the top of the wood, and the gap is being replanted with native trees.

If you are not walking from the cottage, there is a pay-and-display car park in Lakeside village, about 0.4 miles (0.6 km) from the wood, and parking at Finsthwaite church by donation. There are toilets on the Lakeside station platform.

It is moderate woodland and field walking, fine for active children if you allow about two hours with stops. Dogs are welcome in Woodland Trust woods, but keep them on leads near livestock and the deer fences. Guests often follow the walk with a swim at the Swan health club, leaving the dogs at the cottage.

High Dam is the shorter circuit and the one most dog owners pick. Great Knott Wood is the longer walk, with the extra height and the views from Finsthwaite Tower. Fit walkers sometimes do both on separate mornings rather than one very long day.

Back at the cottage, Lakeside pier, the Bobbin Mill and things to do cover the wet-day options.