Walks in Conistone
From easy city strolls to challenging trails, discover the best of Conistone on foot.
Walk: Limestone Walking in Wharfedale
The limestone scenery in Upper Wharfedale is beautiful. The walking is straightforward and on this walk there are many of the best features including pavements and the famous Conistone Pie. The Route what3words for start point: ///galloping.swept.songbook Start / Finish Point: Conistone, Skipton, BD23 5HS Distance: 7 Miles GPX Route Map limestonewalkaboveconistoneDownload Walk Description Start the walk from the small village of Conistone and climb through the dry valley of the Conistone Dib. There is a splendid limestone pavement above the Dib. Continue uphill through some limestone scars and past an example of an old lime kiln where the limestone was crushed. The views across Wharfedale and in to Littondale are lovely. Drop back down to towards the valley and join the Dales Way. Follow this south past the Conistone Pie before returning to Conistone.
Walk: Grassington, Grass Wood, Conistone Dib and Lea Green
A walk around Grassington, Ghastrill’s Strid, Grass Wood, Conistone Dib and Lea Green in the Yorkshire Dales. The Route Start Point: Grassington, Wharfedale Finish Point: Grassington, Wharfedale Distance: 8.5 Miles GPX Route Map grassington-conistone-and-lea-greenDownload Walk Description Grassington is an attractive small town set amongst the rolling hills of Upper Wharfedale, a popular tourist destination due to its picturesque cobbled square, stone cottages and winding alleyways. From Grassington, our route follows the River Wharfe to the impressive limestone rapids of Ghastrill’s Strid (admire from a safe distance), before reaching Grass Wood. This ancient swathe of woodland once formed part of the much larger forest of Wharfedale and has many indigenous tree species and almost 400 species of flowers and plants, thus meriting Nature Reserve status. It is a truly magical place to explore in spring. Beyond Grass Wood our path traverses the dry limestone gorge of The Dib, a glacial meltwater channel, before reaching Conistone, an attractive Craven village that boasts many fine old farmhouses, a large maypole and the oldest church in the southern Dales that dates back to pre-Conquest times. St Mary's Church still has some pre-Norman arches as well as wealth of other interesting features including a poor box. In the graveyard is a sad memorial to a group of young men who were killed in a tragic pot-holing accident at Mossdale Cavern in 1967. From Conistone, a footpath leads up through the spectacular dry limestone valley of Conistone Dib, one of the ‘natural wonders’ of the Yorkshire Dales. This deep steep-sided gorge was scoured out by glacial meltwaters towards the end of the last Ice Age when the permafrost prevented the water from seeping down through the limestone bed-rock. In places, Conistone Dib closes in to little more than a narrow passage beneath towering limestone crags. This whole area boasts some wonderful limestone scenery with pavements, dry valleys, crags and outcrops all around. From Conistone Dib, the return leg of this walk crosses Lea Green and the remains of one of the largest Iron Age settlements in England. This was occupied from 200BC until 400AD, surviving throughout the Roman occupation because of its secluded situation high on the hills. Rectangular fields, hut circles and traces of roads can be clearly seen, although to the untrained eye it appears to be a very rough scattering of fields covered with lots of grassy bumps! As with many other archaeological sites, the true picture only really comes to life when viewed from the air.
Walk: Grassington
This easy walk takes you around the quaint village of Grassington and along the River Wharfe. The Route what3words for start point: ///elections.slyly.cricket Start / Finish Point: Grassington National Park Centre, Hebden Rd, Grassington, Skipton BD23 5LB Distance: 1 Miles GPX Route Map drawaroute-6Download Walk Description An easy access walk by the River Wharfe close to the lovely village of Grassington. A gate at the lower end of the car park gives access to a walled lane. The route here is well-surfaced with some gradients reaching a 1:7. Follow the river to the right along an unsurfaced route. From here, turn right onto the main road into Grassington where the first 50m are a 1:6 gradient. Take a moment to look at Linton Falls.
Walk: Remotest Spot in England
High up on Riggs Moor is a small cairn reckoned to be the most remote spot in England, using the OS definition of straight line distance from a road (2.4 miles in this case), though this is maybe not a true reflection of how remote it is, given the ease of the bridlepath for getting there on foot. The walk across open moorland starts at Conistone in Wharfedale in the Yorkshire Dales. For refreshments nearby try Grassington. The Route what3words for start point: ///nuptials.dumpling.reference Start Point: Conistone bridge Finish Point: Conistone Distance: 11 Miles GPX Route Map remotestspotinenglandDownload Walk Description From Conistone climb through the beautiful limestone scenery of the 'Dib' to arrive at a large track. From here head across the moors for 3 miles to the Mossdale Scar. Take the bridlepath that heads up hill in to the moors till arriving at Sandy Gate. Follow the fence north as it heads towards Great Whernside and before long meet the small cairn. Return via the same route.
Walk: Kettlewell and Conistone
This walk explores the fantastic variety of landscapes that Wharfedale has to offer, as well as visiting two lovely villages. The Route what3words for start point: ///wriggled.smile.squeezed Start Point: Kettlewell Finish Point: Kettlewell Distance: 10 Miles GPX Route Map kettlewellconistone-v2Download Walk Description Kettlewell is one of the finest villages in the Yorkshire Dales, set in the magnificent glaciated U-shaped valley of Upper Wharfedale, cradled by moorland heights and rolling fells. With its history stretching back to the Saxons (this was 'Ketel's spring'), Kettlewell prospered in the 18th & 19th Centuries with the development of lead mining on the surrounding hills as well as regular markets and fairs, not to mention the many traders and travellers who came this way on the numerous packhorse routes that still criss-cross the hills. Today, the village is well known for its annual Scarecrow Festival and was used as the location for ‘Knapely’ in the 2003 film Calendar Girls. From Kettlewell, this route follows the old 'peat road' (peat was once cut a dried on the moorland and used as fuel in people’s homes) up to the wonderful viewpoint of Capplestone Gate with its many old lead mine workings; note the change in rock from limestone to gritstone. The OS Trig Point lies just off the path, and is the perfect spot for a break to admire the view. We then drop down Conistone Turf Road, another old peat road, to reach Conistone Dib, a magnificent limestone gorge, only a few feet wide in places, that was scoured out 12,000 years ago by glacial meltwaters. This gorge leads to the attractive village of Conistone and St Mary's Church, the oldest church in Craven that dates back to pre-Conquest times. The return leg of this walk follows the Dales Way back to Kettlewell, a wonderful high-level route with far-reaching views. Of particular note is Conistone Pie, a prominent outcrop of limestone that affords wonderful views towards the confluence of the rivers Skirfare (Littondale) and Wharfe (Wharfedale), known as Amerdale Dub. Indeed, the old name for Littondale was Amerdale. A close look at the map will reveal numerous ancient settlements in this area, many dating back to the Iron Age; their rough stone walls clearly visible and well worth seeking out. Watch Baroness Sayeeda Warsi walk this route on the BBC iPlayer
Walk: The Inn Way - Kettlewell to Grassington
This walk takes in Kettlewell, Capplestone Gate, Bare House, Yarnbury, Hebden, Thorpe and Linton Falls - highlights of the Yorkshire Dales. The Route What3Words for start point: ///discussed.villager.flotation Start Point: Kettlewell, Yorkshire Dales Finish Point: Grassington, Yorkshire Dales Distance: 13 Miles GPX Route Map the-inn-way-day-6Download Walk Description This route follows a fascinating linear route through Wharfedale from Kettlewell to Grassington, from where you can catch a bus back to Kettlewell. It is day 6 on 'The Inn Way to the Yorkshire Dales’ - which totals 76 miles. There is so much to see and experience along this walk, from the breezy heights of Capplestone Gate that affords wonderful views across the Wharfedale uplands to the limestone pavements around Lea Green and the lead mines of Yarnbury. There are also some cracking pubs and cafes along the way too, notably at Hebden, Linton and Grassington. Pretty villages, waterfalls, riversides and rolling hills make this a special day’s walk in Wharfedale.