For those of you that are thinking of going onto the hills I would strongly recommend that you read the advice given by the Mountain Rescue organisation of England and Wales. To read this advice, which will open in a new page please click HERE. If you would like to make a donation to the Mountain Rescue organisation which is purely voluntary please click HERE. Please make the time to read the advice page.

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After days of being sat under cloud frustration was setting in and today we decided to head eastwards to try and find the elusive sun. It didn't however seem to be working and as we drove over the tops from Langcliffe to Malham Tarn visibility was down to around 30 yards and we were on headlights & fog lights. A walk from the tarn was shelved and we drove down to Malham to do this walk. Although we started under a cloudy sky it was quite bright and part way through the sun graced us with its presence.

Our route.

Having parked the car we made our way along Malham Beck...

...which we crossed by the old smithy...

...to take the Pennine Way southwards for a short distance...

...before leaving it to turn left at Mires Barn to take the path to Janet's Foss.

This is a very popular spot and we were surprised that we saw nobody as we headed...

...towards the wooded glade which is National Trust owned.

There was a smell of wild garlic in the air now...

....and shortly after passing this money tree...

...we got our first view of the waterfall.

Janet's Foss.....Janet (or Jennet) is thought to be a folk tale reference to a fairy queen said to inhabit a cave at the rear of the fall. Foss is a Nordic word for waterfall, still used in Scandinavia and is presented in a number of cases in England as 'force'.

A few yards past the waterfall the track leads out onto Gordale Lane where a right turn and a few yards brought us to the entrance to Gordale Scar.

Walking towards the ravine with the limestone cliffs starting to close in.

Even from here, although spectacular it still hides the main feature...

....but as we round the corner the cliffs close in quickly and the lower fall appears.

Getting closer it can be seen that there is a second fall higher up the gorge.

We had the place to ourselves apart from one chap who had been up the lower fall and put a safety line in place ready for a group of youngsters who were walking up from Malham. It's hard to spot the line but it is on the central section, a coil of rope can be made out at the foot of the climb.

After a chat and admiring the raw beauty of the ravine for a while we retraced our steps to the Gordale Lane to follow it down towards Malham.

A look back as we walk towards Malham.

Looking over to The Weets with Weets Top to the left.

Dropping down towards Malham and the sun is starting to get through.

After turning right along Malham Rakes we took a path past the Old School House.

There was a bit of a stop at the farm where Edith made friend with the kittens some of which had disappeared before I was ready with the camera.

The route we are taking to Malham Cove is by far and away much superior to the normal tourist route and certainly a lot quieter. We met one local lady walking her dog as we walked along here.

Dropping down to the cove....

...the path continues down to cross Malham Beck on a footbridge...

....with the Cove right ahead.

There are a few climbers at the Cove. I assume they are not on any routes that are temporarily closed for nesting.

After a break for coffee we started to make our way back to Malham.

Almost back to the road and I couldn't resist this.

Across the valley can be seen the terraced field systems called lynchets. By terracing the hillside it created a greater depth of soil on the terrace on which to grow crops.

Back in Malham now with the bridge over Malham Beck.

And finally.....passing by the The Buck Inn on our way back to the car.

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Next Walk:      15th March 2012 - Lake District - A Buttermere circuit.

Last Walk:       10th March 2012 - Arnside & Silverdale AONB - Castlebarrow and the Pepperpot

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