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Halton Gill and Foxup

Recommended by

Our view

"Enjoy a walk through classic scenery deep in the Dales."

Walk directions

Just before the triangular cattle grid warning sign north of the cattle grid itself, turn left downhill to meet a faint green track, and then bear left to pass roughly midway between two isolated lengths of stone wall. Continue down, in a small gully, until the track passes through a broken band of rocks.

Turn left just before the rocks, and walk along the slope keeping them just to your right. They form some small areas of limestone ‘pavement’, never very extensive. This brings you back to the road. Either walking on the tarmac or on the grass, follow it downhill to the valley floor, where it swings right to Halton Gill Bridge.

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Location

Nearest postcode:

Additional information

Terrain - Riverside paths, moorland tracks and some easy but pathless walking

Landscape - Quintessential mix of green valley, limestone clints and rough moorland

Dog friendliness - Be prepared to encounter livestock at all points on this walk

Parking - Wide verges (not in passing places) near the cattle grid on the road from Halton

Toilets en route - None on route

Walks in North Yorkshire Dog-friendly walks in North Yorkshire

About the walk

There are no summits on this walk, no great crags, no spectacular caves or potholes. Nor are there any great castles or ancient churches. And therein lies its charm. This is a leisurely exploration of a typical remote Dales landscape, from the ragged clints on the hillside early on, to the banks of... the rocky (and sometimes dry) River Skirfare, to the rough grazing of the higher slopes. ‘Skirfare’ is an unmistakably Norse name, probably meaning ‘bright water’. Much of Charles Kigsley’s Victorian classic, The Water Babies (1863), was written while staying lower down the dale in Arncliffe, so the Skirfare probably played its part in his inspiration. At the start of the walk an easy, grassy descent soon brings you to a small area of limestone ‘pavement’. Like so much of the Dales landscape, the ‘pavements’ exist because limestone is soluble. The slightest cracks or weaknesses in the rock are enlarged by dissolution, and this process is considerably faster when the water has percolated through acidic soil first. The characteristic fissures are known as grikes, and the blocks which are left between them are called clints. The ‘pavements’ on this walk include some areas where the grikes are still relatively narrow, creating a classic flat ‘pavement’. In other areas the grikes are wider and the clints have become more distinct, and you can also see areas where the clints and grikes are still covered by soil. You may notice a distinct lack of water, when walking by the Skirfare. It can be lively enough after wet weather, but in dry spells the river disappears almost completely, with any remaining water flowing underground. This is due to the permeable nature of the limestone rock. At Foxup Bridge, Cosh Beck and Foxup Beck meet to form the Skirfare, though these streams can also be dry. After Foxup, the walk climbs away from the valley floor. As the gradient eases it’s a good time to pause and look back over the last pocket of farmland, directly beyond Foxup on the slope above Cosh Beck. This is a typical patchwork of small fields separated by drystone walls and dotted with frequent barns. There are thousands of barns like these in the Yorkshire Dales – nowhere else are they so dense. Rather than one large barn located at the main farm, Dales farms usually have several smaller barns scattered around. Most are built into a slope with entrances on two levels. The upper level was used to store hay from the adjacent fields while the lower level housed cattle in the colder months. Warmth from the livestock helped to dry the hay, which in turn provided both insulation and feed.

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About the area

North Yorkshire, with its two National Parks and two designated Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, is England’s largest county and one of the most rural. This is prime walking country, from the heather-clad heights of the North York Moors to the limestone country that is so typical of the Yorkshire Dales – a place of contrasts and discoveries, of history and legend.

Route details

Difficulty:

Hard

Gradient:

Moderate

Distance:

3 miles (4.8kms)

Ascent:

380ft (116m)

If you like this walk, you can try more routes in the area.

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Halton Gill and Foxup

Recommended by

Our view

"Enjoy a walk through classic scenery deep in the Dales."

Walk details

Difficulty:

Hard

Gradient:

Moderate

Distance:

3 miles (4.8kms)

Ascent:

380ft (116m)

Walk directions

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Immediately before the bridge, turn left through a little gate (sign to Foxup) and walk near the river to a gate. Continue to another gate and along the field edge, near the river. Cross two side-streams (plank bridges are available if needed, but they often aren’t), then go through another gate to the river bank.

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Turn left to a smaller gate, then follow the river to another gate. There are some attractive cascades hereabouts. Continue along the river bank until you reach a small gate and a stile beside the river (the bed is often dry here). Follow the short, narrow path to a gate into a lane by Foxup Bridge.

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Turn left on the lane; the tarmac soon gives way to gravel. Opposite Foxup farmhouse, with its little stone bridge, turn left at a bridleway sign and follow a track up a small enclosure to a gate. From this the track bears right, uphill, to a gate in a crossing wall.

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After the gate, follow the track parallel to a wall until the wall bends away.

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Keep straight ahead on a level course across the moor. The track is never very clear but it is always visible. Go through another gate in a wall that runs down the fellside and continue along the faint track, which keeps more or less level across the moor until it reaches the road. Turn right to complete the circuit.

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Location

Starting point

Nearest postcode:

Additional information

Terrain - Riverside paths, moorland tracks and some easy but pathless walking

Landscape - Quintessential mix of green valley, limestone clints and rough moorland

Dog friendliness - Be prepared to encounter livestock at all points on this walk

Parking - Wide verges (not in passing places) near the cattle grid on the road from Halton

Toilets en route - None on route

Walks in North Yorkshire Dog-friendly walks in North Yorkshire

About the walk

Been on this walk?

Send us photos or a comment about this route. Or recommend a route of your own.

Find out more

Walking in Safety

Read our tips to look after yourself and the environment when following this walk.

Learn more

Get an AA guide

Explore our range of ‘50 Walks in’ guides - they’re the ideal companion for a ramble.

Learn more

Been on this walk?

Send us photos or a comment about this route. Or recommend a route of your own.

Find out more

Walking in Safety

Read our tips to look after yourself and the environment when following this walk.

Learn more

Get an AA guide

Explore our range of ‘50 Walks in’ guides - they’re the ideal companion for a ramble.

Learn more

About the area

North Yorkshire

Halton Gill and Foxup

Been on this walk?

Walking in Safety

Get an AA guide

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Halton Gill and Foxup

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