Adventures in wet boots

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Today I went to Malham, hoping to find it quiet, which it was. 

I set off the back way towards the cove, heading through the village and up a narrow lane beside the youth hostel, which rose through a small wooded area and became an ancient walled track between mediaeval fields, which led across the hillside and down to the dramatic cliffs of Malham Cove, a natural limestone amphitheatre on the Mid-Craven fault, forming a bowl several hundred feet across and about 250 feet high. After lingering here and enjoying the place I set off up a steep stone staircase contouring around the side of the cliff to the top of the cove. There are peregrine falcons nesting on the cliff, but I didn’t see them.

Above the cliff is an expanse of limestone pavement sheltering rare plants and beasties, as well as being pretty surreal to cross. I hopped and scrambled over it before turning north into Watlowes dry valley, a dry hanging valley which in days gone by held a river which would have cascaded over the cliffs. Now its a bizarre canyon filled with glacial boulders, carrying the Pennine Way towards Malham Tarn and onward. I followed the trail up the gorge and looped around a small scar before heading down to cross a back road and over onto the moor, heading towards Nappa Cross at the top of the bridleway.

Nappa Cross itself, a restored mediaeval waymark, was notable only by its absence, only a rubbly cairn being there. I turned right along the flank of Kirkby Fell, heading along the track to Langcliffe, heading for my dinnertime destination, the hump of Rye Loaf Hill (547m/1799 feet). After backtracking a little on missing the gate, I crossed the soggy saddle and headed up through tussocky grass to the summit, where I scoffed my butties in the drizzle. There was a small wind shelter cairn and firepit beside the trig, suggesting it used to be a beacon hill. Seeing the view, I can see why that would be the case - the panorama from the three peaks of Ribblesdale, Pendle Hill and the Bowland fells, Wharfedale to the east and Malhamdale and the Aire valley to the south was breathtaking. Definitely worth the pull up to the top.

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Dropping down the fell and heading along a trod close to a stone wall I headed back to the bridleway and back to Nappa Cross, before heading downhill back towards Malham. I followed a green path among shake holes and bare boned crags, down the side of Pikedaw Hill before crossing the fields back to Malham village, and home. Just under eight miles of awesome!

Tags: Hikes

To catch up, after weeks of warm sunny weather I decided to climb Pendle Hill (557m/1833 feet) in east Lancashire again in the hope of seeing some of it this time (if you recall my previous visit was swamped by hill fog). Unfortunately thanks to an overnight thunderstorm, as I drove across the Pennines I hit swirling mist at around 1100 feet, suggesting conditions were likely to be soupy again.

Following the same route as last time I set off along the water company track from Barley village towards the Pendle Way at Ogden Clough, up past some half empty reservoirs. By the time I reached the turning point to head up Boar Clough and across the moor up on to the plateau of Pendle itself the mist was already rolling in thickly. Dagnabbit

The wet bracken meant waterproof pants were needed shortly, which wasn’t nice in the humidity. Again I was struck by the eerieness of the place, particularly when the clag descends it isn’t hard to imagine witches flying past and trolls lurking behind the cairns. It was much greener in summer which was nice and the going was less sticky, but the trudge to the top of the hill was pretty boring repeated in the fog to be honest. After a mile and a half or so of steady climbing I emerged on the stony summit plateau and headed in a vaguely trig point like direction, until it loomed brightly out of the gloom.

After crossing the plateau and heading down towards the cobbled and stepped ‘tourist path’ I paused for a snack before bypassing the main trail for a more organic path slightly lower down, zigzagging down the fell to reach Pendle House at the bottom. A pleasant amble through fields and country lanes led back to Barley, and my dinner, in the company of a very insistent duck who practically parked himself between my feet begging for bits of sandwich.

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I had half an hour to spare on the drive back, so I stopped for a wander on Penistone Hill to get some summer pictures.

Tags: Hikes

Set off this morning from Clough Foot near Widdop for a very solitary trip up Boulsworth Hill from the south east, returning via the gritstone edges above Widdop reservoir. I set off up a tussocky path across the moor, taking an easier route along the line of a ruined wall up to a shooting track which headed off to the north west to a shooting hut at Greave Clough. I followed the land rover track up the clough across a number of fords, before it ended abruptly at a bank of peat.

The rest of the route up the clough on to the back side of Boulsworth was pretty grim - pathless, soggy and mostly picking a path through unstable rocks, soggy rushes, steep peat banks and very long heather. After what seemed like an hour I emerged knackered on to the moor top, heading towards the Weather Stones.

The going was soft and peaty, with short windblasted grass making for easier walking up the rest of the slope, a hop over a wire fence and I was clambering up through the outcrops before heading across the summit plateau to the trig point, soaking up some panoramic views over to Pendle Hill and the Bowland fells, Ingleborough and Pen-y-ghent, and the sweep of moorland to the south and east. I dropped down the steep bank at the far end of the ridge, heading down towards Hey Slacks Clough.

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Passing the Dove Stones to my left, I followed a decent trod down to the clough before a boggy tussocky pathless plod uphill towards Grey Stone Hill. On reaching the ridge the view opened up over Widdop reservoir and the crags.

I opted to drop steadily down the escarpment below the outcrops, through thick spongy dry moss and dead bracken stubble. On reaching Widdop Road at the foot of the bank I followed the road along the side of the reservoir then Graining Water, back to Clough Foot.

Tags: Hikes

Out again today for a shortish five mile wander, starting out from the NT car park at Midgehole near Hebden Bridge. I’ve done this walk before so decided to do it in reverse and get the ascent over with first, heading up the forestry road towards Crimsworth Dean. The morning started out foggy but the mist was pretty thin by the time I got to the top of the track. Past the woods the road deteriorated into a sloppy bridleway, plenty of sheep for company though.

After enjoying the views down into Crimsworth Dean and across the valley to High Brown Knoll I turned up the side of the ruined farm building at Nook, heading up a steep former packhorse track between crumbling walls and derelict outbuildings, on to the edge of Wadsworth Moor. The path flattened out as it skirted Shackleton Knoll at around 1200 feet, before crossing through a gate to follow a wall downhill to Walshaw. I remembered this bridleway from my last trip here and its still a horrible mudbath, though at least the path has been reinforced with hardcore at some of the sloppiest bits. Eventually I reached Walshaw and cantered cheerfully down the field to the gate leading into Rowshaw Clough, thinking the hard bit was done. 

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After the night’s heavy rain the becks were roaring, so the descent down Rowshaw Clough was awesome. Unfortunately it was a slippery one, and I ended up sliding down part of the path sprawled full length in the mud, which was too gloopy for the poles to do anything other than slide down the hill with me.  After wiping the worst of the mud off I set off downstream through Hardcastle Crags. If there’s a good time to do a ravine walk its definitely after loads of rain I reckon, provided the water isn’t over the path!   

After passing through the enclosed section between the crag walls along a boardwalk, I followed the rocky path to the mill pond, which was teeming with frogs. The onward path is squeezed between Hebden Water and the pond, before dropping down to a weir then to Gibson Mill, a former cotton mill now an NT visitor centre. More picturesque riverside and woodland clambering followed, before climbing the hill back to the car park and home for a shower. 

Stretched my legs over Haworth Moor this afternoon, I squeezed in about four and a half miles before it was time to collect the muppets. Took a few pictures, finally -

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Tags: Hikes

This morning was mild and sunnyish, so I went for a six mile hike starting from Clough Foot, along the ravine to Blake Dean and into the woods of Hardcastle Crags before climbing steeply alongside Rowshaw Clough and up to Walshaw, over a partially burned Wadsworth Moor via a shooting track to Walshaw Dean reservoirs, returning to the start along the reservoir access road. I’ll let the pictures speak mostly for themselves, but some highlights were encountering a marshy bit full of mating frogs in the woods (they didn’t photograph well sadly); wonderful moorland views from High Rakes, the highest point of the Wadsworth Moor track (420 metres/1380 feet); a bracing Pennine gale (which wouldn’t be a Pennine wind without some spit in it  ) and some enthusiastic sheep having their dinner. Will definitely be planning more yomps in this area. 

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Tags: Hikes