A Sunny Stroll to Malham Cove

Distance: 4km; Ascent: 110m; Sunny; with Lynsey, Isabel, Kim, Rachel, Jim, Edward, Rebekah, Oli, Anna and Gwilym.

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It was gloriously sunny when we woke up this morning, although it was quite cold as there had been an overnight frost.  After breakfast and packing up we drove round to Malham; the roads were quite icy in places but we took it slow and made it to the National Park car park without incident.  As it was already late morning we headed to the nearby pub of The Buck Inn for a light lunch.

The path towards Malham Cove

After lunch we set off walking at 1pm, with four of the group carrying a baby in a variety of carriers, including me carrying Isabel on my back.  I was pleasantly surprised to discover that the path had been extended slightly since our last visit back in 2008 resulting in less road walking, which can only be good!

Limestone pavement on the top of Malham Cove

We wandered up the good path at a relatively slow pace, as Isabel walked some of the way, to reach the base of the cove.  With her back on my back we ascended up to the top of the cove to admire the limestone pavement and the extensive views.

A side-on view of Malham Cove

We returned the same way to the base of the cove, from where we could pick out a couple of climbers near the bottom.  Once back down by the river, we retraced our steps back to the car park where we arrived soon after 3pm; it had been a good afternoon's stroll in the winter sunshine.

The bottom of Malham Cove

Written up in April 2012 from memories and photos

Two Strolls Around Halton Gill

Total Distance: 6km; Negligible ascent; with Kim, Rachel, Jim, Edward and Rebekah (first walk), Lynsey and Isabel (second walk); Sunny, hail and snow!

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We were away for the weekend in the Yorkshire Dales, staying in a bunkhouse in Halton Gill for Colin's birthday.  After a wet and windy morning, the weather improved and Kim, Rachel, Jim, Edward, Rebekah and I headed out after lunch for a short 4km stroll along the far eastern slopes of Plover Hill.  Lynsey and Isabel had stayed behind at the bunkhouse for an afternoon time so I had volunteered to carry Edward for the walk.

Halton Gill

We wandered up the valley to the end of the minor road at Foxup from where we turned left onto a bridleway and began to ascend the hillside with good views of the surrounding hills.  Soon the grey clouds moved in from the west and we were pelted with hailstones for 10-15 minutes before the sun came out!

Halton Gill and Horse Head Moor

After crossing some small limestone outcrops we reached the Silverdale Road, which we followed back towards the village with excellent views of Horse Head Moor in the sunshine behind Halton Gill.  At the road bridge on the edge of the village there were pleasant views downstream towards Littondale and upstream towards Foxup.  After admiring the views and commenting on how much the weather had changed in such a short space of time, we returned to the bunkhouse just before 3pm.

View down the River Skirfare towards Littondale

View up the River Skirfare

Later that afternoon once Isabel had stirred from her nap, Lynsey & I went out for a brief stroll down the valley from Halton Gill, with Isabel in the rucksack carrier.  It was dry when we set off but soon there was a mini-blizzard!  However this only lasted a few minutes, and after around a kilometre we turned road and headed back to the bunkhouse for dinner.  It had been a good afternoon, with a nice couple of shortish strolls and we pretty much had four seasons worth of weather in the space of a few hours!

Written up in April 2012 from memories and photos