Easy does it

Grassington was quiet before the daily rush. We bought sandwiches and drove on over the River Wharfe the mile to Threshfield, not such an interesting village but a good place to start.

And the first half mile wasn't exiting; a quarry, past that; a campsite, past that; walkers optimistic about the weather, passed by them; the old houses of Skirethorns, stone roofed and nicely solar panelled, past those; Wood Nook caravan site (not a site of special scenic interest, but not bad) through that, and then over a dry-stream bed and we were up into the woods, squirrel and hazelnut SSSI, caves and scars to one side, and remnants of ancient settlements.

So, well within an hour of starting we were on the tops, at Height House (a ruin), Higher Heights Holes and High Moss. A place to sandwich stop on soft grasses spangled with yellow-flowered cinquefoils and gaze over Wharfedale to Conistone Moor.

Then it was the springy turf path again, but not for long. It had been our intent to push on further west, but a bright narrow band of fresh gravel heading south over Threshfield moor attracted us. This used to be a notoriously boggy route.

On the moor, we crossed becks bridged by railway sleepers and bulging with pondweed and we met a couple of cyclists. "That was easy," said one. A local woman wasn't finding it so smooth, spun along the gravel by the random motion of her black Scotties Rory and Fergus. You'll see the cross on the moor above Rylstone; Helen Mirren came to mind. A peacock butterfly fluttered by enjoying pre-diapausal (hibernation) sunshine.

The view southwest is to Pendle Hill in Lancashire. On the ground, things changed: the rock from limestone to grit, the lovely grasses to purple heather.

We had turned to head back across the moor and reached a zone scattered with bungalow-sized hillocks. These have been drilled by rabbits but by the track is one that has been gouged and half-removed for track repair. Stand in it and smell the sulphur, feel the soft jumbled, dirty rusty shale. These humps are coalmine spoil heaps and there is record of coal mining here since 1607.

A walled track took us down and provided a fine picture of Grassington neat on the far flank of Wharfedale and as we descended there were garden escapes, notably German thistles, and fluffy white Silkie hens, onions drying in an old barn, and we concluded - a nice easy route round a good dales moor.

Fact file

Distance: Five miles.

Time: Three hours.

General location: The southwestern Yorkshire Dales.

Start: Skirethorns Lane (signed), Threshfield.

Right of way: The complete route is along public rights of way.

Date walked: August 30, 2003.

Road route: Threshfield is a mile west of Grassington.

Car parking: Roadside, free.

Lavatories: Grassington.

Refreshments: The Old Hall Inn, Threshfield. Inns and teashops in Grassington.

Tourist and public transport information: Grassington National Park Centre Tel: 01756 752774.

Map: Based on OS Explorer OL2 Yorkshire Dales Southern and Western areas.

Terrain: Mostly moor.

Points of interest: 'Grassington towards the Millennium' by Ian Goldthorpe, published by The Dales Book Centre.

Difficulty: Moderate or easy in good visibility.

Dogs: Suitable.

Weather forecast: Evening Press and recorded forecast 0891 500 418.

Please observe the Country Code and park sensibly. While every effort is made to provide accurate information, walkers set out at their own risk.

Directions

When in doubt look at the map. Check your position at each point. Keep straight on unless otherwise directed.

1. West along Skirethorns Lane (pavement at first), right at junction (signed), left to Wood Nook drive (signed Bordley).

2. Pass house, track on left of caravan site. Stile out to path initially by stream, follow main path as it swings uphill to clump of trees (posts).

3. Squeezer, pass ruin, fieldgate and fork right one o'clock to path, 150 yards, path by wall to right. Gate and straight on uphill (wall to left), 100 yards, fieldgate, path by fence, 200 yards.

4. Gate on left (signed), uphill on path which quickly swings away from wall, becomes gravel as path levels. Fieldgate, gravel continues, gates to walled track, fieldgate and track/gravel path.

5. At fieldgate on right, turn left on gravel path (signs). Joins track near grouse butts.

6. At excavated spoil heap on a right-hand bend, left to track 25 yards, path on right across grass, 300 yards, fieldgate to walled track. Right at junction to track back to Skirethorns Lane.

Click here to view a map of the walk

Updated: 08:56 Saturday, September 06, 2003