The ‘Needs to Know’
Distance: 2.9 miles (4.7km)
Time to walk: Roughly 1.5 hours, although you might want to spend some time just sitting & admiring the views
Difficulty: Mainly off road on a mixture of woodland & grass paths. The first part of this walk is up a steep hill
Parking: Around the green in West Burton
Public toilets: The Fox & Hounds at the start & end of this walk
Map of the route:
This was our third walk from our short break in the wonderful Yorkshire Dales. We had been walking near Aysgarth & met a couple who recommended it, together with the stunning waterfall in West Burton
West Burton lies in Bishopdale, a side valley of Wensleydale. The village sits around its large central green. a huge area, much of which is used for recreational purposes. There appears to have been a settlement here since the Iron Age. The main industry in the area was lead mining & stone quarrying
Shall we go & have a look then?
Let’s Walk!
1. Parking is anywhere around the massive green…
You can’t miss the Obelisk, a market cross that resembles a church spire, which was erected in 1820…
Note the stocks at the bottom of the cross. This is a great place to rest at the end of the walk with maybe a pint of Old Peculiar, or a pot of tea from The Fox & Hounds
2. Walk back down the side of the green nearest the Obelisk…
…where at the corner you’ll find a signpost directing you to Morpeth Gate & The Waterfall. Turn right down the lane in that direction…
3. On arriving at the Beck, the route continues over the stone bridge. However first you need to carry on along the same side of the water to have a look at the waterfall…
It’s also known as Cauldron Falls because of the plunge pool & was painted by Turner. What amazed us was the number of Grey Wagtails & Bobbing Dippers that were active in this area. Again the amount of water that’s flowing here will vary from day to day
4. It’s hard to pull yourself away from this beauty spot but, when you’re ready, walk back to & cross the stone bridge…
…& then turn immediately left up the steps & through the small gate at the top. Just be careful of the gates on this walk…they have some fierce springs on them!!
5. The next section of this walk (& it’s quite a long one) is all uphill. Turn right & follow the narrow path upwards…
…where the view back across Wensleydale’s already beginning to develop
6. Pass through the next gate (this one’s vicious too!)…
We’re now in open meadows & it’s highly likely you’ll encounter sheep here, so follow the advice on the signs & keep dogs on leads
You can see the track heading directly towards the centre point of the wood in the picture above. We loved the sheep which looked like they had black & white socks on!
7. You’ll see the gate into the wood ahead of you…
Pause at the gate & take in the view behind you from where you’ve just come. And it’s going to get even better…
8. Bear right & continue heading upwards on the narrow path between the wood & the fence…
At the top look for & pass through the “squeeze” on the right
9. Keep going in the same direction & ahead you can now see some on the climb that awaits you…
At the top of this path is a stile &, given the slope, it’s not the easiest to negotiate into the field
10. Okay, this next bit gets even steeper as you follow the zig zagging small path up the slope to the wall at the top…
It’s worth having a rest halfway up to have a look down the valley to your left…
11. Go through the gate in the wall…
And now turn & look at the amazing view where you’ve come from
12. There’s now one last climb to make, this time straight up the hill past the post towards the next wall in the distance…
Eventually you’ll reach the flat track in front of the wall & turn left
13. We’re now going to follow this flat track for a short while & wow…the views are just stunning. Pass through the gate in the picture below…
…& then just walk with a smile on your face
14. Eventually one wall ends & the track starts to drop, opening up the views even more across Wensleydale towards Bolton Castle…
Eventually the path arrives at a cairn with more amazing vistas. Just be careful though as it sits on a bit of a cliff edge!
15. The path now begins to wind its way steeply down the hill…
On reaching the T-Junction bear left & continue under the cliff
16. This section of the walk is called Morpeth Gate & it’s quite beautiful as it drops gradually down the hill, eventually entering a more wooded area…
Just before the track flattens out, look for a gate on your left with a signpost pointing the way to ‘West Burton via Barrack Wood’…
17. Follow the narrow track along the edge of Barrack Wood…
…passing through a gate & then eventually arriving at the gate you passed through at Point 7
18. Now simply retrace your steps down the hill through the meadow with the sheep & the two ‘vicious’ gates to arrive back at the stone bridge…
Before returning to the village, it’s worth walking down the other side of the beck to the falls as you can get a lot closer next to the overhang
19. Return to the bridge…
…& cross it to return to the Green & that well earned pint of ‘Old Peculiar’ & pot of tea from the pub
What a fabulous short walk with amazing scenery & waterfall. So if you’re in Wensleydale I can highly recommend it so…
Go Walk!