Natural wonders of Yorkshire

7.3.13
Walking with; Nobody

I have been fortunate during my walking to visit some of the most spectacular parts of the world. The Northern Territory in Australia, the National Parks of Utah, the Southern Alps in New Zealand, some of the finest scenery in the world, but every now and then I come across a place on my own doorstep that makes me stop in my tracks and go "Wow". I was fortunate enough to have one of those experiences this week!
I parked in Malham at the YHA where I was staying http://www.yha.org.uk/hostel/malham and followed the lane that leads to Malham Tarn for some fine views of stone walls and ancient field systems. After the short climb, I took a path running across the fields to end up at the entrance to Gordale where I detoured to the waterfall known as Janet's Foss. The name is thought to come from Jennet, a fairy queen who lives in a cave behind the waterfall according to folklore. It's a pretty spot that apparently used to be used for sheepdipping in times gone by. Leaving the foss behind I entered Gordale and had one of those jaw dropping moments as I made my way to the falls which were in full flow and stunning. The Scar is the remains of a collapsed cavern formed during the ice ages and has had sonnets written about it by Wordsworth and pictures painted of it by James Ward and Turner, it is truly spectacular. I had planned to scramble up the waterfall, but it was pretty slippery and wet, so I retraced my steps before heading up the very steep slope to the top of the gorge and making my way above the falls before dropping down to Gordale Beck just above them. I followed the beck for about half a mile before making my way back up the slope to the path towards Malham Tarn which was fringed by some of the limestone "pavements". It was easy walking until I reached the track leading down to the very isolated Middle House Farm. The landscape is very bleak around here and aside from the farm there are very few traces of humanity to be seen. I climbed up the slopes of Great Close Hill and had lunch in the shelter on the summit which provided a little respite from the fierce wind.
Lunch done, I headed down to Malham Tarn, the highest lake in England at 377m above sea level. I'd visited it once before http://howellseycomewalkwithme.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/malham-tarn.html and followed the shore path past the Field Studies centre and over the boardwalks to the road. A short spell of road walking and I was striking off in the direction of Ing Scar Crags and following them down to the second jaw dropper of the day, Malham Cove. Once a waterfall, this fantastic cliff is a worthy inclusion on any list of natural wonders. I watched some climbers on the rock face for a while before continuing on a field path which led me back to the YHA where I swapped the muddy boots for some slightly cleaner trainers and then headed down to "The Lister Arms" http://listerarms.co.uk/ for a pint in front of a very welcoming log fire.

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The Todmorden Centenary Way

28.9.12
Walking with; Nobody

The good folk of Yorkshire must have done something to upset the almighty given the almost Biblical deluge that they'd been on the end of over the last week, none-the-less that was where I headed last week with the express intention of getting a few miles in my legs. I stayed in the Mankinholes YHA, a cosy hostel set in a 16th Century manor house http://www.yha.org.uk/hostel/mankinholes and a mere five minute walk from the excellent Top Brink Inn http://topbrink.com/ where photos of hardy looking Yorkshire farmers and horse brasses adorn the walls. Lumbutts, the neighbouring hamlet, has a magnificent Methodist chapel and John Wesley was once a regular visitor to the area where he preached to the locals.
The Todmorden Centenary Way is a 20 mile footpath created to commemorate the granting of Borough status to the area. With the walk in and out from Mankinholes and the occasional, ahem, detour, I reckon I ended the day with 23 miles under my belt which I think is probably my longest day of walking......there or thereabouts anyway! The walk up to Stoodley Pike set the tone for the rest of the day, muddy and wet underfoot and grey and squally overhead, yuck! I climbed up to Stoodley Pike and admired the view of cloud, cloud and a little more cloud! The monument on the Pike was completed in 1856 to commemorate the end of the Crimean War. It was designed by James Green and replaced a previous monument that was destroyed by lightening. It is certainly a spectacular spot and with the cloud and mist swirling around had a distinctly ghostly feel. I continued along The Pennine Way squelching through the puddles and moving in and out of cloud until I reached the vast expanse of Warland Reservoir where the rain set in.......so far, so good! Walking off the moor into Warland, I crossed the A6033 and past the Steanor Bottom Toll House before heading up the abandoned Calderbrook Road. The road had a kind of post-apocalyptic air to it as nature had taken hold and there were rabbits, squirrels and kestrels not to mention plenty of blackberries and wild roses.
The landscape round here is wild but man's stamp is very clear. Everywhere there is evidence of old mine workings, abandoned buildings, the inexorable column of electricity pylons and in the distance wind turbines slowly turning and dominating the landscape. None-the-less, the moorlands feel wild, exposed, barren and untamed and in 23 miles of walking I only met two other people, not something you could often say in the Lake District! I passed the Allescholes farms and headed up to the ruined farm at Ramsden at the South West end of Carberry Dam. The moors past here grew wilder and more mine workings and ruined buildings gave a real feeling of desolation. The wildlife clearly flourishes here and I saw Kestrels, Meadow Pippits and a flock of the very rare Twite, a real bonus! More moorland walking took me into Cornholme (the only place on the route with a pub as far as I could see) before another ascent led me over the Whirlaw Stones and opened up great views back across the valley to Stoodley Pike.
The last section of the walk took me down through Beech woodland and along the Rochdale canal before climbing through the woodland of Stoodley Glen and back to the villages of Harvelin Park and Stoodley. As I climbed back onto the Pennine Bridleway for the last mile back to Mankinholes the heavens opened for the last time and I arrived back at the hostel bedraggled, footsore but feeling very satisfied at the completion of a job well done.

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Two down, one to go

22.6.12
Walking with; Ruthy

A couple of years ago Ruthy and I visited the Yorkshire Dales staying at the fantastic "Game Cock Inn" in Austwick (http://www.gamecockinn.co.uk/), fuelled by French food and Yorkshire bitter we ascended Ingleborough in the snow and sleet and I decided that she was the girl for me. Later on, with another pint in front of the fire I asked her to marry me! Last weekend was our first Wedding anniversary and we stayed once again in this fantastic pub and decided to try and conquer another of the Yorkshire Three Peaks, Pen-Y-Ghent this time. Whilst Pen-Y-Ghent is the lowest of the three, it is an impressive looking lump of rock when viewed from the tables outside the legendary cafe in Horton in Ribblesdale. The Celtic sounding name appears to be a bit of mystery with some people ascribing it to ancient Cumbric whilst others back a Welsh interpretation meaning "Hill of the Winds", given the conditions on the top I am prepared to favour the latter!
We decided to take the anti-clockwise route gradually climbing from Brackenbottom Farm until we reached Brackenbottom Scar where the full imposing splendour of the hill really became evident.We continued to ascend with spectacular clear views to Ingleborough and Whernside and of lonely windswept farms perched on the moorland below. The scramble to the summit was made a little trickier by the buffeting wind but it seemed to be those coming down who were finding the route more difficult and we were soon walking over the brow to the Trig Point on the summit which was pretty busy with people enjoying the rare day of sunshine.
The descent follows The Pennine Way and drops down quite steeply through moorland with views of Hull Pot (a gaping hole in the earth), flocks of Jackdaws and the rare Purple Saxifrage that is found in abundance on the slopes of this hill. As the path levelled out, we admired the views back to Pen-Y-Ghent and watched a waterfall crashing down in another limestone scar. It wasn't long before we were making our way back into Horton with two Yorkshire Peaks under our belt and making the decision to schedule in another trip to Austwick and give us a crack at the third and final one of the challenge!

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