Keighley Moor

Sunday, 17th October
9.64 Kms (6.2 miles) - 2hrs 37 Mins
Map : OL 21 - South Pennines.

This is a walk we have been planning for some time (probably back in June when I first discovered it).  The weather has, unforutnately, conspired against us every time.  However, this morning we woke up to clear skies and decided that we needed to finally get out there.  We were not disappointed - a fantastic walk with great long distance views.

I orignally found the walk through a Google search on the Bradford MBC website.  The blurb that went with the walk suggested that it was only suitable for "fit, regular walkers" -whether Gill and I fit into this description may be open to debate, but we managed it in 2 1/2 hours including a break for lunch at Little Wolf Stones.

The walk began at Morkin Bridge, way up above Keighley itself. The first section is on the access road to Keighley Moor Reservoir and, whilst the road is tarmacced it does climb quite steeply up to the reservoir.

After crossing the reservoir dam the route follows tracks across the moor until you leave the way and head directly towards Little Wolf Stones.

After lunch the walk does take on a "wilderness" feel as we walked "off route" following a compass bearing and some pretty rough countryside (knee deep heather) to reach first Maw Stones and the Hitching Stone. Here we returned to more "normal" walking, although still through knee high heather until we reached the track that leads off the moor to the wonderfully named Far Slippery Farm. 

A fantastic walk - although it was only six miles, the going was tough and the legs certainly felt it by the end.

No pictures at the moment - I left the cable for the camera at work !  Hopefully, I'll post some pictures in the next couple of days.

East Keswick, Harewood and the Wharfe

Saturday, 9th October

16.6 Km (10.6 Miles)

A dull and overcast day but, at 10.6 miles, our longest walk to date!  This walk came from the Walkingworld website - it's proving worth the small amount of money I paid to become a member!

The walk started from East Keswick, a quiet, residential village not far from Wetherby and off the beaten track.  The first section of the walk took us out of the village turning off onto Gaeton House Lane. A few twists and turns and we were on the Leeds Country Way, this is a long distance path (60 miles) that completely circles the city. Our section took us across Rigton Moor eventually emerging onto a country lane that led to the (extremely busy) A61 directly opposite the gates which allow entrance to Harewood Park. "Highlight" of this section was as we joined the Country Way the route took us through a field, in the middle of which was a dead cow !  We called at the next farm to report this only to be told by a slightly irate farmer's wife "It's been there since Monday and belongs to 'im next door" !!

This second section is actually a repeat of a walk we did back in February 2010.  It drops down into woods and through the Harewood Park Estate, emerging back on the A61 in Harewood itself.  Another stretch along and across the road led to Fitts Lane that drops some 70 metres downhill to the banks of the Wharfe.

The final stretch took us along the banks of the river before taking you through Carthick Wood and a fairly stiff climb back to the A659 (known locally as Harewood Drag) and back into the village.

Sadly the weather spoilt some of the long distance views and certainly didn't allow me to take any decent photographs.  However, it was exercise and proof that we can walk that distance.  Hopefully, next weekend will bring some brighter weather !

Greenhow

Saturday, 25th September

13.9 km (8.9 miles) - Time 2.51 hours

Map :OS Explorer 26 - Nidderdale

With the start of the U18 Inter-County matches and my duties as a selector imminent Gill and I decided to have a Saturday off rugby and get some walking in instead. 

We parked just off the B6265 Grassington to Pateley Bridge Road at Toft Gate (GR SE128644) and our route took us downhill to Coldstonesfold Farm before climbing back up to the road and dropped us into Greenhow (GR  SE113642).

From Greenhow you enter an area that is scarred with the remains of old Lead Mines. The spoil heaps dominate the gill as do the remains of old smelting mills before we escaped onto the Nidderdale Way and tracked Ashfold Side Beck all the way down to Corn Close (GR SE148665).  The walk down the beck side was accompanied by large numbers of Grouse and Pheasant who seem to have escaped the shooters who dominate these parts during August at least.  The bottom of the valley took us through an extensive caravan park, shrouded in trees which hugs the beck side until we emerged at Corn Close and its impressive water wheel.

The final stretch of the walk took us back along the other side of the beck to Mosscar Bottom (GR SE138661) before a long uphill stretch back to Coldstonesfold Farm and a final climb back to the car park.

The weather stayed glorious throughout the walk, although there was a stiff wind, particularly at the start and finish which was some 330 metres above sea level.  The end of the walk with its almost relentless uphill trudge was strenuous but we were only about 15 miles from home so the journey (which actually went via the rugby club) allowed us time to recover.  
Another wonderful day in the country which left us thanking the fact that we have such spectacular scenery and walks just a stone's throw from out front door

Some pictures available from this link - although some of the photos are a bit "washed out" due to the brightness of the September sun!

Grisedale

Monday, 30th August
11.8 Km (7.5 miles) - Time : 3:45
Map - OL19 - Howgill Fells

Round Ing - Grisedale, North Yorkshire

 

 

A couple of weeks since we've been walking due to holidays abroad but a glorious sunny Bank Holiday Monday was too good to miss and this was a walk back into my family history.  Round Ing - a lonely and secluded farm at the top of Grisedale is where my maternal grandmother was born.  Indeed when she and my grandfather moved to the village of Langcliffe they called their house Grisedale a name, I believe, it is still known by.

The walk started just below Garsdale Station  (SD 788918). This is a good 1 1/2 drive from home but just getting out of the car felt special and, with bright blue sky, we knew we were in for a good day's walking. 

The path from the bottom of the steep incline up to the station is easily found and within minutes we were in the seclusion of Grisedale itself.  Grisedale shot to some prominence thanks to a television documentary "The Dale That Died".  It was once home to some fourteen families but during the fifties and sixties they all moved away and gave up farming in these remote surroundings.  Apparently, the Dale has now seen something of a recovery and many of the old farms now have residents but, as we found, Round Ing, right at the end of the Dale is beyond any kind of repair and is simply a fallen down ruin with no vehicular access at all.

The first part of the route was a simple stroll up the dale.  Whilst the footpaths are indistinct, the waymarks are, in the main, well maintained and show the way up the dale - some of it accompanied by the beck that runs down the dale until we reached Round Ing (SD 764941).

After lunch in bright sunshine our route took us down the side of the valley and then up and over Grisedale Common. This was the high point of the route at some 450m. We then dropped off the top of the common towards Lunds, where we saw a deserted chapel, with gravestones from the late 19th century and headed down the valley past the delightful Ure Force Rigg before taking a (enforced!) break at the Moorcock Inn.

The last section proved a bonus as a new (not marked on the map, anyway!) bridleway allowed us to walk alongside the Settle-Carlisle railway and underneath Dandrymire Viaduct bringing us out just below the station and a couple of metres from the car.

Fantastic weather always adds to a walk and throughout we had bright sunshine with hardly a cloud in the sky.  The fact that we took in some of my family history was a bonus.  How my Great-Grandparents survived and brought up children in such remote surroundings (and in the early part of the twentieth century when cars/land rovers weren't around) amazes me. Sad that the farm is now now in such disrepair that it will never be a habitation again but it is good to see that the Dale is not Dead but remains a tranquil and remote spot.

Link to some photos. 

Marske Beck

Sunday, 8th August

13K (8.3 Miles) - Time : 2.57 hrs

Map : Ordnance Survey OL30 (Northern and Central Dales)

Oh, the joys of high summer - high temperatures, high level walking and high spirits.  This was another Jack Keighley walk, although it was extended from the 5 1/4 miles in the guide book and, although it was a long drive to get there it was well worth it.

After some 50 miles of motoring the walks starts just outside the hamlet of Marske (GR 102004) between Leyburn and Richmond. A hop over the bridge and a stile offers itself alongside the beck which take you through a wooded area to emerge, eventually, onto a path that takes you through Clints Wood.  This is seemingly, run of the mill countryside until you emerge from the wood into the glory of the Dales with a steep sided valley and views of the limestone Clints Scar above. 

A short while further on and you descend to the valley bottom and the chane to visit Orgate Force .  Whilst not the most spectacular of falls compared to some it is, nevertheless, a delight. Although a word of caution after rainfall (which we have had in abundance over the last few days) - the rocks and paths can be slippery as I found out to my expense when trying to find the perfect angle for a photograph.  Had it been published it would have been of the trees with the sky above !! Slightly sore back and grazed knuckles are the result og concentrating too much of what I wanted to see, rather then where I was putting my feet.

After the delights of Orgate the next setion is a slog along a rough track, heading for Telfit Farm.  If this section is a slog, the next is sheer delight as you round the brow of the hill and take a path which hugs the contours above the beck itself.  For a brief section the walk was in perfect tranquility - peace and calm with hardly a cloud in the sky. 

Luchtime was taken just above Helwith (GR 074029). One is always tempted to envy the folks who live in these isolated farmhouses but (as I always remind Gill and myself) what must it be like in the depths of winter?  At this point Keighley's walk turns it back on the beck to climb back over the moor.  I, however, carried on alongside the beck and past Prys House (complete with dead, rotting sheep) and then cut back up past Low Greenas and High Greenas.  This gave out onto fantastic heather covered moorland eventually joining back with the published route.

The last section of the walk is a straightforward descent from the moor down a steep, rocky path and then through pasture until you rejoin the outer route just past Pillmire Bridge and back to the car.

On a personal note, I did this walk on my own as Gill is in Florida to witness Hannah (my eldest daughter) getting married to Alex.  I wish both of them the most deep felt and sincere congratulations. I hope the future brings them both happiness and fulfilment.  Times will not always be easy but I hope the love and affection they have for each other will see them through difficult times and, believe me, they are soon forgotten and it is the good times that are remembered.  They both have my love.  By the way the "proper" wedding is next year !!

As I write this, slightly sore from my fall, I think back on a wonderful day, in glorious scenery with fantastic weather - my heart is soaring !

Usual bunch of photographs here (apart from the falling down shot!) 

Castle Howard and Farndale

Friday 30^th July

Castle Howard

12.3 Km (7.9 miles)

The perils of plotting your own routes !  Sadly, this one went wrong when we were about a third of the way around when I found I had plotted a route down a private path.  Added to that the battery on the GPS went flat (forethought is a wonderful thing), so we had to resort to good old fashioned map reading !

 Our route started in Coneysthorpe, parking outside the Village Reading Rooms (GR: SE711733). As soon as we stepped outside the car we were greeted with wonderful views of Castle Howard but our route took us back towards the main road (incredibly busy for early on a Friday afternoon). Across it and on to a minor route before cutting across fields (and the only real climb of the day – although it can hardly be called that) and up through a delightful wooded pathway into the village of Ganthorpe.

Here we turned down the road and at a sharp bend expected to turn off and through woods to reach the obelisk at Castle Howard. Unfortunately, the route ahead was marked “Private” and, at the same time the GPS gave out, so it was good old map reading skills that took us past Brandrith Farm and through Brandrith Woods at just the right time as we had a downpour ! The detour brought us out just below the Gate House – our intented destination anyway.

From here the route is along road and track with views of Castle Howard, the Pyramid and the Mausoleum before joining the Centenary Way and dropping down to Bog Hall. Here, we were forced to take out second detour of the day as the planned pathway was completely overgrown with chest high nettles, even Gill and I aren’t brave enough for that !

However, the alternative was a well maintained track that dropped to the corner of the Great Lake and then climbed back to Coneysthorpe.

The area around Castle Howard is well maintained farming land and, despite the two setbacks, it was a rewarding, if slightly longer than planned walk.

Photos here

Saturday, 31^st July

Farndale

10.3 Km (6.5 miles) – 2hr 55mins

Thanks to our next door neighbours, Katie and Fraser, who allowed us to rent their cottage in the delightful North Yorkshire village of Gillamoor.  This was an alternative to our original planned route and owes a lot to Frank Wilkinson and his “Walking with Wilkinson” book.  Now, sadly, out of print Wilkinson’s Walks used to appear in the Yorkshire Evening Post and this book is a collection of some of the best.

Farndale is traditionally walked in spring when the valley is full of thousands of natural daffodils. By late July the daffodils have, obviously, gone but this route hit all the right buttons.

We parked at Low Mill (GR: SE 672952) next to the Village Hall and set off along the well maintained route up the valley of the River Dove heading firstly for High Mill and then Church Houses.  The path hugs the river and, in spring, is the main “thoroughfare” through daffodil country.

From Church Houses  (GR SE669975) we then climbed out of the hamlet on Daleside Road until we reached Hall Farm (GR SE665979).  Here, a marked path takes you through the farmyard itself and climbs up to Head House Farm.  Again the route is straightforward as you drop through a valley and then head for North Gill House (GR SE673980) The path eventually give out and we followed the road across to High Bragg House (GR : SE676970).

Here we turned off and headed straight up onto Blakey Moor. This is a fairly strenuous climb of some 140 metres of height in just over a kilometre.  The latter part is through heather and bracken which makes the going underfoot fairly tough. It has to be said that this is not a well trodden route either, so you do need to be able to navigate using either a compass or GPS. Eventually, the route reaches the road on top of Blakey Ridge, some magnificent long range views and a short stroll along the road takes you to a signpost pointing the way back down the moor.

This proved almost as tough as the ascent with first heather and bracken, followed by chest high ferns! We also witnessed that most wonderful of Dales sights – the rain rushing down the valley like a curtain being drawn across a window.  Time to get the waterproofs out !

The last section is straightforward as the path off the moor turns firstly into a track and then road which runs straight back into Low Mill.

A short, fairly strenuous,  but fantastic route which had everything, but was especially memorable for those long distance views.  Getting up there may be the hard part, the rewards are well worth it.

Then it was back to the cottage to celebrate our 29^th Wedding Anniversay.

Selection of photos here

Grimwith Reservoir and Trollers Gill

Saturday, 24th July

12.5 km  (8 Miles)

I got this walk from an old Paul Hannon book, "Rambles in Wharfedale". I can vouch for it's age since, according to the record in the back of the book, I did this walk in October 1994 !! Since I can't find any mention of it on the internet I presume it is now out of print.

The walk starts from a large layby just below Stump Cross Caverns. (GR SE 084635). Walking back up the hill towards the caves a very obvious sign on the left hand side points the way towards Grimwith Reservoir and it is not long before you pass over the shoulder of Nursery Knot and see the reservoir way ahead across the fell. Surprisingly, or perhaps not considering the amount of rain we have had recently, the ground was quite wet and needed a certain amount of care when navigating the path down to the banks of the reservoir.

Grimwith Reservoir was certainly busy on this particular Saturday with both sailors and windsurfers enjoying the blustery conditions. After skirting the reservoir (apparently the largest in Yorkshire), the route takes a wonderful green path with views across Wharfedale before crossing the Grassington to Pateley Bridge Road and resuming on yet another green track.

A little further on I deviated from the route in the book to cut back on myself and then dropped down into Trollers Gill.  Described as a "sinister little ravine" there are numerous myths and legends about trolls and spectral hounds that are said to inhabit this delightful gill. Walking (or scrambling) down it on a bright summer's day it seemed very un-sinsiter

The bottom of the gill leads past Parceval Hall - the gardens are open to the public and the Hall itself is owned by a religious order and used as a place of retreat.  Eventually you drop onto Skyreholme Bank and the start of a long drag uphill back to the start of the walk.

After last week's fairly level walk this was a bit more strenuous (especially the last pull from Skyreholme). However, the weather was fair with a breeze and some glimpses of sunshine. The scenery around this part of Wharfedale is absolutely spectacular with long range views right up the valley, whilst the area around Skyreholme is dominated by the brooding presence of Simon's Seat.

Some photographs available from this link