I'm a guy that very seldom fast-travels, and it's becoming a bit irking that I can't find a decent path to and from Icewater Jetty without really going out of my way. Sure, I could hire a ferryman to the Jetty, but 500 septims is a ripoff in my opinion, so that's an option I won't use, plus there's no ferry back!

Does anyone know of an easily-accessible path to the Jetty that's close-by?

You know what fish do?

That's not very bloody helpful, mate.

One does not swim over mountains.

On my first play-thru, I ran with Serana from Dim Hollow to Dragon Bridge and took the road the goes near the Thalmor Embassy and headed for the coast. We ran along the shoreline after that.

With my other no fast traveling characters, I just let the ferry guy ripped me off and leave a horse at the ice water jetty for the trip back to Solitude.

I haven't tried to find a way over the mountains. Hilly terrain are a pain for your follower.

Guess that's the best way to do it, because I've not been able to find a path through the mountains. I can take the cliffs down to near Fort Northwatch and jump down, but there's no way back up. It's a pain in the butt to double back to the main road. :\ I usually use my VL form to fly (stamina regen enchants rock!), or summon up Arvak and gallop back up the coast. I was hoping for a faster way, because this is a time waster. I may just break my no-fast-travel rule and go from Icewater to someplace near Solitude.

Well, the Vamps wanted an out-of-the-way place, they got it, heh! Fort Dawnguard is a bit more handy, location-wise.

Thanks for the answer, Skulking!

Further update: after some daytime exploration (made possible thanks to new enchanted gear with health, stamina, and magicka regeneration), I finally found a path.

It's a small, very hard-to-see trail that starts immediately to the SW of the shipwreck Orphan's Tear, and after some switchbacks, it leads past the broken tower with the Frost Troll onto the western-most cobbled road (the one going to the Thalmor Embassy and passing by Fort Hraggstad). You can connect to the main road from there. It's not far out of the way as I was going.

Alternatively, you can just clear out Fort Hraggstad and use that for a fast-travel point, or one of the other caves along the West Cobbled Road. (I don't know what else to call it! )

Edit: I've decided to adopt the tactic of VL flying from the Castle to Orphan's Tear, then hiking up the trail. Wish there was some way we could mark it with dark stones or something, it's hard to see, especially at night. I suppose I could leave cooking pots at various points, but no telling if they'll stay or if they'll bloat the save file. Serena's already done enough damage with her ash piles.

I have some good horse's for sale.

Who needs horses when you have Arvak?

Someone who doesn't use conjuration. I personally hate using Arvak. I like the look of my Imperial on a regular horse.

500 Septims is like nothing.

Pffft...a haircut costs 1000...and you have to put up with a narky altmer in a dingy dive.

So true. I always go for a different color too just to make it seems like I'm getting my money's worth.

If you did the rescue mission for the Graymane's son in Whiterun, the Jetty is north and just west of the keep they were holding him in.
It is still a long walk, by road, to there.

Uh, thanks, but already knew that.

Wiped out the exterior garrison one of the times I went through there. So... easy. Pity it doesn't respawn, my VL character was getting hungry at times, ha.

I finally decided, before I deleted the character, to make Ft. Hraggstad my fast-travel point (breaking one of my rules, but, eh... I got tired of going back and forth down that blasted path!) to and from the Castle.

There's a trail that leads to Icewater Jetty that goes across the mountain range. Kinda hard to describe the directions but I'll give it a shot.
From the Dragonsbridge direction take the road that heads toward Solitude, turn left at the turn off somewhere near the Meridia Shrine, run along that road until it hits the main high road and turn left again then keep watch for a trail that turns off on your right. In my game there's a permanent dead deer near the turn off (I don't kill animals, so this is handy if I need leather - its contents respawns), there are further bloodstains along this trail as it leads to a small ruin where there is one Frost Troll in my game. If you follow this trail it goes over the mountain, zig-zagging down the other side and peters out right near Northwatch Keep, and you can practically see Icewater Jetty from there. If you are unfamiliar with where the Jetty is just follow the shoreline West from where the trail dwindles away.

Btw, in my game after Missing in Action, two of the guys from the group that went in to save Thorald (Vidrald and Geirlund) now live permanently in the Keep and smith and practice in the grounds.

Edit: Oh, I see in post #6 it looks like you already found the path.

That really is the only path to the place. Makes sense, I guess - the inhabitants of the Castle would want an isolated area, but it honestly surprises me that none of them have taken Northwatch Keep for themselves as a guard post of sorts to protect the Jetty.

It's what I would have done. Eh, can't count on Bethesda to program tactical thinking into situations, I guess.

As a Vampire Lord you can just float over the water, and it's not that far. I noticed that even though you can see as far as the castle from the shore where the jetty is, there is some mist and whatnot going on that conceals the castle. So I think they can remain somewhat undiscovered by just leaving the jetty as some neglected fishing tie-off thing that people wouldn't think twice about. If they had a strong presence on the mainland they may face more problems than it's worth.

Actually, I wish Vingalmo would send me to vampirise the two Gray-Mane supporters now living in Northwatch Keep, instead of sending me to the same 3 people over and over.