This walk has been designed as a short walking holiday of roughly 26 miles, starting at Ribblehead, following the Roman road to Camm Houses and passing through lovely and interesting villages in Langstrothdale and Upper Wharfedale, crossing into the “forgotten” dale of Littondale, to its end in spectacular Malham. The weather and terrain should not be underestimated, as it does cross the Pennine moors at a high level, which can often be shrouded in low cloud.

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Walk Information

Any reasonably fit person can undertake the walk in three walking days, but as with every walk, it is important not to overestimate ones fitness and stamina, or the country and weather conditions, and also not to overestimate the amount of clothing and equipment required to complete the walk, within the constraints of personal comfort!

Brigantes Baggage Courier Service has helped hundreds of walkers to achieve the completion of many walks , whilst attaining maximum enjoyment of the scenery without having to carry a heavy backpack, knowing that warm and dry clothing awaits them at the end of each day.

For this walk, we can arrange your accommodation on a Bed and Breakfast basis (evening meals will be available locally) at local inns, hotels, or private residences, all of which have been satisfactorily tried and tested by us and our many clients in past years, and for your guidance, the following is a list of the usual stopovers, with the daily distances between each.

Note: The walk can be undertaken with either 2, 3 or 4 overnight stays, the following programme of 4 night stays requiring:

1. An overnight stay at The Station Inn, Ribblehead, where you can leave your car for the duration of the walk.
2. An overnight stay in Malham at the finish of your walk
3. Personal transport from Malham to Ribblehead for collection of your car.

Day 1. Ribblehead - Yockenthwaite - 10 miles

Ribblehead is a bleak moorland area at the very head of Ribblesdale, where the infant River Ribble has its source. The area is most famous for the 24 arched Ribblehead Viaduct, which carries the Settle - Carlisle Railway Line. The first stone was laid by William H.Ashwell on October 12th 1870. The viaduct stands 104 feet high, has 24 arches and spans 440 yards. The construction work was done by huge teams of "navvies" who lived in an extensive shanty town, housing over 2000 railway workers, on Batty Moss, over which the viaduct spans. These towns had colourful names such as Inkerman, Sebastapol and Jericho. Construction accidents were frequent and the burial ground had to be extended to accommodate the extra influx of burials. Ribblehead Station was opened for traffic on the 4th of December 1876. A visitor centre at the station tells the story of the railway and is open every day, except Monday and Tuesday in winter.

From Ribblehead follow the Hawes road and turn off onto Cam High Road, built by the Romans in about AD80 when the Roman legions pushed northwards from their military headquarters at York to subdue the unruly native British Brigantes tribes. From here there are superb views of the three peaks, Pen-y-ghent, Ingleborough and Whernside. Follow the Dales Way "in reverse direction" through Camm Farm, one of the most isolated farms in England, following Camm Beck to Oughtershaw. On entering Langstrothdale follow the bubbling river to Yockenthwaite, a tiny hamlet named after Eoghan, a viking settler who came here in the 9th Century. The hamlet later became a lodge in the Norman hunting forest, and in 1745 consisted of sixteen houses, an inn and a school.

Day 2. Yockenthwaite - Hawkswick - 9 miles

A delightful riverside path leads down to Hubberholme, take time to visit the 12th Century church which boasts a wealth of interesting features in particular a very rare rood loft which was brought here from Coverham Abbey in 1558, one of only two in Yorkshire. It also contains Robert "Mouseman" Thompson oak pews. JB Priestley's ashes are buried near the church, he regularly called at the George Inn for a drink. The George was once used as the vicarage and still holds the annual land-letting ceremony. Walk from Hubberholme to Buckden and continue through Starbotton to Kettlewell. This part of the Wharfedale Valley is rich in woodland, most noticable are some of the more exotic species of tree, including large redwoods. The woods were laid out by Isabella Ramsden and her son, John who lived in Buckden House, now an outdoor education centre. The steep sides and flat bottom of the dale are typical features of a glaciated valley. Starbotton (meaning stony valley) was almost totally destroyed by a severe flood down Camm Gill after a storm in 1686 but was largely rebuilt in the 18th and 19th centuries as the lead mining industry grew in importance. Kettlewell is a small village situated at the foot of Great Whernside and boasts three public houses, two cafes and a youth hostel. This is Calender Girls country - the hit movie having been filmed here during the summer of 2002. Pass through the village, past the petrol station, over the bridge and follow the road out of the village. Take the footpath to the right up the hill on the footpath to Hawkswick, a small village at the foot of Littondale.

Littondale is a tributary valley of Wharfedale named after the village of Litton rather than its river, the Skirfare, which rises on moors below the eastern flank of Pen-y-Ghent and meets the River Wharfe just above Kilnsey in Wharfedale.
Hamlets and villages in Littondale include Foxup, Halton Gill, Litton, Arncliffe and Hawkswick - Arncliffe being the original fictional setting for the original series of TV's Emmerdale Farm (N.B. The old norse name for this valley was "Amerdale", and it is believed that this is from where the fictional location may have derived its name.) Littondale has retained its peace and tranquility and is rich in Bronze Age and Iron Age settlements, and has been a sheltered fertile valley for 5,000 years or more. After the Conquest, the Normans turned it into a hunting chase before the land was granted to the monks of Fountains Abbey in the 13th century, and became extensively used for sheep farming.

Charles Kingsley drew his inspiration for 'The Water Babies' from Arncliffe, the capital of the Dale.
After descending into Hawkswick take the bridge over the river to walk along "Middle Lane" towards Hawkswick Cote and your accommodation for the night.

Day 3 Hawkswick to Malham - 7 miles

The climb up the moor from Arncliffe Cote is not too steep but it is two miles of steady climbing from Low Cote Moor to High Cote Moor. On the left is Hawkswick Clowder (511m) and to your right is Parsons Pulpit (538m). This area features disused mine shafts, ancient settlements and areas of shake holes. The footpath follows Gordale Beck for about 3/4 mile, eventually meeting the road at Street Gate (map ref: 905656). Follow the road to the right for 3/4 mile until you reach the footpath to Water Sinks, where the stream disappears into the ground to emerge again at Airehead Spring, a quarter of a mile below Malham Village. Watlows, the dry valley leads to the famous limestone pavement at the top of 300 ft high Malham Cove. The wall along the length of Watlows dates back to manastic times when it divided the lands of Fountains Abbey in the west from those of Bolton Priory in the east. Follow the footpath down the steps at the side of the Cove and into Malham itself.

Examples: Luxury en-suite accommodation in hotels, with Dinner, Bed & Breakfast, and a mid-day meal. Your baggage transferred door to door daily.

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