The great lump

WE could have dawdled around Kettlewell's charming nooks and crannies but had a hill to climb, no less a lump than Great Whernside.

The first stage was northwards by a warming track above Cam Gill, a route illuminated by primroses and sweet cicely and buzzing with feasting bumblebees. That took us to 1,100 feet.

The second stage had us swinging east over smooth slopes of pasture, the flowers replaced by skylarks and acrobatic lapwings. That brought us to Hag Dike at 1,525 feet. Here is a Scout hostel boasting solar and wind power and the highest dedicated chapel in England, plus a smashing view channelling all the way down Dowber Gill to Kettlewell. A compass and OS map could well be needed from now on.

The next stage involved a short steep scramble up through a scree slope to 1,700 feet then a boggy route over a crescent-shaped plateau of gullied peat, a big terrace strewn with square fissured blocks of grit stone and tufted by some rushes that look like bright green hedgehogs.

Not that there are hedges, nor trees, nor by now drystone walls, nothing but the minimalist beauty of the far from minimal land mass.

The last stage of the ascent is steep again, to the rocks that gather round the flat summit, to the trig point at 2,308 ft.

We refuelled and drank in the spectacular views that are best to the west, towards Pen-y-Ghent. We probably had the whole of Great Whernside to ourselves.

Then, mindful that it takes longer to get down than up, we set off along the level top, along the National Park boundary, heading north with rocks and crags to our left. There's a sighting from Nidd Head, down to Nidderdale's top reservoirs of Angram and Scar House, plus Little Whernside in its stand-alone style and a flash of Coverdale.

The descent starts gently, meets a civilising stone wall and then plummets in slithery fashion past shake holes to a back road. It used to be that walkers unknowingly did an absurd detour here, of pleasure only if one wanted to touch on Richmondshire.

Nowadays, thanks to the Parks authority signs, a 'green lane' took us along the impressive earthworks of Tor Dyke to a path that rounds the head of the side valley we started the walk in.

But when the path straightened out and aimed us south towards Kettlewell there were still a couple of miles to do. Not that we complained, the track picked up limestone walls each side and the view down Wharfedale ribbed with field walls is lovely. One tiny moan, a caravan passed on the way up is visible miles away now.

The roofs of Kettlewell only appear when you're almost on them.

We supped our tea and looked across at the local garage. Kettlewell was 'Knapeley' in the Calendar Girls film. The garage has a statue on a column of five welded-up oil drums, not though a likeness of Ms Mirren but a hangover from last year's Scarecrow Festival.

Fact File:

Distance: Eight miles.

Time: Five hours.

General location: Dales National Park.

Start: Kettlewell.

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

Date walked: Thursday May 6, 2004.

Road route: B6160 five miles north from Grassington.

Car parking: National Park car park £3, one operated by garage £1.50.

Lavatories: Splendid new ones by car park with boot-washer.

Refreshments: Inns and teashops.

Tourist & public transport information: Grassington National Parks Centre 01756 752774.

Map: Based on OS Explorer OL30 Yorkshire Dales northern and central areas.

Terrain: Large hill.

Points of interest: Scarecrow Festival, a hundred of them, August 9-17.

Difficulty: 1,500 foot climb.

Dogs: Suitable.

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. East through Kettlewell, keep beck to your left, pass War Memorial to left then Maypole to right. Don't cross arched road bridge with a '10T' weight limit sign at end of village but take track immediately to its right, 200 yards, bridge on left over beck to walled track uphill.

2. Immediately before cattlegrid, right to track (signed, gates/stiles).

3. Gate into yard at Hag Dike hostel, path to right of main building then left to gate and path steep uphill (parallel to wall on left for 200 yards) and through scree. Path across peaty/grassy area marked by yellow-topped posts, steep to trig point .

4. Left and north and maintain height (crags, cairn, stone shelter to left, ignore yellow-topped posts on nearby path angling downhill).

5. Path descends through crags (ignore yellow post c100 yards to left), grass path slightly downhill to wall corner.

6. Left at wall corner for 200 yards, stile on right and path downhill (eroded descent is avoided by looping 100 yards further on. Wall on left angles away then rejoins path, stile/fieldgate in wall corner, about 200 yards to road.

7. Left to road, 20 yards, grassy track to right of cattle-grid (vehicle no entry sign), gate/stile to path that loops around head of valley (wall on left), metal gate, 300 yards.

8. At Y-junction (three-way fingerpost) fork left to stone path (signed Kettlewell), becomes grassy track then walled stone track, right to road into village.

Click here to view a map of the walk

Updated: 09:05 Saturday, May 15, 2004