Walking in Wensleydale
Following our series of walks in the Yorkshire Dales, I thought I would pick a personal favourite of mine, a walk that takes in Aysgarth Falls and Castle Bolton situated between Hawes and Leyburn in Wensleydale. It is an easy and most enjoyable walk of about six and half miles and provides some excellent views of the Dale in both the west and east direction.
The walk begins from the pretty village of Thoralby. You walk through the village and up the hill for about a quarter of a mile, and then look for a footpath and a gap in the wall to your right. This footpath takes you across the fields to a farmhouse just outside Aysgarth. From the farmhouse take a left to join the main road (A674) just oustide Aysgarth.
Once on the road turn right towards the Hotel. Aysgarth Falls is signposted almost immediately to the left on Church Bank. Follow the road down the hill towards the Falls and the mill. Aysgarth Falls can be quite spectacular, especially if there has been a lot of recent rain. Cross over the bridge and follow the road for about another quarter of a mile before you come to a path on your right. This path takes you initially alongside the River Ure before you head in a north easterly direction across farmland to Castle Bolton. It is about three miles to Castle Bolton, but it is not difficult to get lost because your destination is usually always in view.
The footpath should eventually join the Brunton Bank road, and you then take another footpath on the left handside of the road towards Castle Bolton which takes you towards the abondoned Wensleydale Railway Line which you cross near a railway cottage. The path goes right round the back of the cottage's garden and out through the drive to join the road up to Castle Bolton (Scrogs Lane). The incline is quite steep and by now you should be ready for a break. Castle Bolton has a tearoom inside and this is the perfect spot for a rest and a well earned cup of tea.
This entry was posted on Wednesday August 20th, 2008 at 6:56 AM and is filed under Places to Walk. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response.
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