Kirkby Lonsdale

Wednesday, 25th May 2011

13.1 km (8.1 miles) - 3 hrs

OL2 - Yorkshire Dales (Southern and Western Area)

I've neglected this blog for a couple of weeks as I've been too busy to keep it up to date.  That doesn't mean I (and Gill) haven't been out walking though.
Firstly, on Sunday 22nd May we did the Leeds WellWalk in aid of Diabetes UK.  This turned out to be (a) a little disappointing in the numbers who turned up for it, only about twenty or thirty people and (b) two circuits of the same walk.  This is always a little disappointing as one never really wants to go over the same ground twice unless it can't be helped.  In this case it couldn't and Gill (in particular) set off at a cracking pace which meant we completed the two circuits and covered approximately 9.54K in 1hr 30mins - not bad for a couple of old 'uns.

On Wednesday, 25th I had a rugby meeting at Kirkby Lonsdale RUFC, so took the opportunity to pack in 13 k on the hills above the town. The route came from my old friend Walkingworld.com which, after some deliberation I have subscribed to for another year.  I think this walk justified the subscription !
Setting off from the car park next to "Devil's Bridge" the route took me out to High Casterton before cutting back and striking up the fell to Fellfoot Road.  This track, high above the valley take an almost straight and un-deviating route across the side of the fell before it drops back down towards Casterton.

A feature of the walk are a number of sheepfolds alongside Fellfoot Road. Each of these sheepfolds was rebuilt and a scuplture by sculptor Andy Goldsworthy placed inside each one. Sadly, I'm no conniseur of sculpture, so wouldn't want to comment on the merits or otherwise of the pieces. However, they added interest to the walk.

After the end of Fellfoot Road the walk descends to Casterton and what (on a Wednesday afternoon) seemed to be games day at the local school. The final stretch circles the school before heading off past the golf club and back to Devil's Bridge. To finish the walk off I then took the riverbank along to the Radical Steps - 86 (or 87 - depends on your view and I didn't count them) steps almost vertically up the riverbank. This leads to Ruskin's View, named after the critic of the same name and painted by Turner.  Ruskin is reputed to have call the view "the finest in England, and therefore the world". Finally a stroll through Kirkby Lonsdale brought me back to the bridge once more.
An excellent walk - well worth the travelling (well I had to do it anyway) and the chance to visit some scenery I wouldn't normally have encountered !

Above is Ruskin's View (can't say I disagree with the first part of his statement).  Other photos of the day are available from the link