Yorkshire Dales
YORKSHIRE’S HIGHEST PEAK
1 SD704870 From the car park entrance, cross the road and walk up the lane to the left of Dent Memorial Hall. At the far end of the green, keep straight on. When the lane ends, continue uphill on a narrow, stony path. This broadens as it enters the wooded ravine of Flinter Gill. Emerging from the trees, continue to a T-junction with a clear track.
2 SD698859 Turn left here. This excellent track, known as Occupation Road, curves around the northern and eastern flanks of Great Coum. Having crossed the top of Flinter Gill and gone through a gate, you look straight up Dentdale towards Great Knoutberry Hill.
3 SD710846 At a track junction, turn right. As you gain height, the steep, dark western slopes of Whernside dominate the landscape. The track becomes wetter and rougher underfoot as it rounds the head of Gastack Beck. A recently surfaced section comes as a great relief.
4 SD723822 Dropping to a minor road at High Moss, turn right. After about 400m, cross the stile next to the metal gate on the left. Ford the beck, then follow the rough track up the slope. At the top of this short rise, keep left, continuing the ascent beside the fence and then a wall. After a steep section near some shake holes and rock outcroppings, a wall corner is reached.
5 SD731816
Keep straight ahead for a few more metres before forking right to skirt the grassy top of a boulder-covered slope. The distinctive peak straight ahead is Ingleborough. About 130m beyond the wall corner, head eastsouth-east along a trail through peat hags and then up a steep, stony slope. This leads directly to Whernside’s trig pillar.
6 SD738814 Passing into north Yorkshire now, squeeze through the wall stile to reach the main ridge path. It’s a busy thoroughfare, but you’ll barely notice all the Three-Peakers as your eyes adjust from the rather austere scene on Whernside’s western slopes to take in the sudden appearance of the beautiful Dales landscape to the east. Turn left along the high ridge.
7 SD740823 Having followed the popular path for about 800m, cross a stile in a low fence up to the left. Abandoning the crowds and passing back into Cumbria, follow the grassy path out across the moorland towards the Whernside Tarns. The route weaves about in a bid to outwit the bogs, but the general direction is slightly east of north. It heads to the right of the tarns and then veers north-east as it gently descends. On dropping to the corner of a wall/fence, the path is less obvious. Continue downhill with the wall and fence to the left.
8 SD746845 On reaching a grassy track, turn left. As you descend, the Lake District’s high fells stand out on the horizon. Turn right along a minor road then go left at a T-junction.
9 SD720860 Almost immediately after crossing Deepdale Beck, take the path on the right, part of the Dales Way. After a kissing gate, follow the fenced path right and then left along the field edge. At first, you have Deepdale Beck on your right and then the River Dee.
10 SD710871 After 1.8km of waterside walking, the path swings away from the river. Turn sharp right immediately after the bridge over Keld Beck and follow the beckside path to Church Bridge. Turn left along the road and follow it through Dent, passing The George & Dragon pub along the way. The car park where the walk started is on your right, about 50m after the cobbles end.