The Ingleton Waterfall Trail

I always think that living so close to the Yorkshire Dales, we tend to fall into the trap of ‘we’ll go there another weekend’ and running off all over the North to explore, when really some of the most beautiful spots in the country are right on our doorstep. There are dozens of walks in the Dales on my ‘will get to one day’ list, and with a week off (at home) over Christmas, I resolved to get at least one or two of them ticked off over the festive period.

The absolutely naff weather between Christmas and New Year put a bit of a spanner in the works in terms of getting out exploring – I suppose we still could’ve gone, but we wouldn’t really have been able to see anything through the torrential downpour of rain. The sun finally came out on the New Year’s Day bank holiday, so we packed the dogs into the car and set off into the Dales to walk around the Ingleton Waterfalls Trail.

Most people heading down to Ribblesdale want to tackle one or all of the Yorkshire Three Peaks – and it felt like the remainder head to Ingleton to do the waterfall trail! The car park is enormous by national park standards and could easily fit our local Tesco superstore car park in twice. When we arrived at about half past nine the car park was mostly empty, but by the time we got back it was totally full – so I dread to think what it’s like in peak summer time!

There is a ticket office at the start of the trail where you pay for your entry and can pick up a map if you like – the trail is pretty obvious, but the map is helpful as it lets you know where the loos and refreshments are. You can also purchase a children’s activity trail for a small additional cost. The ticket office is staffed every day of the year apart from Christmas day – opening hours can be found on the website.

We managed to nip around the trail in about two and a half hours, although the map advises it can take up to four and a half hours depending on your speed. The paths are mostly flat, but there are steeper sections with steps and a few places where it’s uneven under foot. I especially liked the bridges which criss cross the gorge – they’re made with holes in so that you can see the water rushing under your feet below.

The trail takes you through a wooded gorge and past a number of beautiful waterfalls, and includes a stretch where you climb above the trees to gain fantastic views of the surrounding countryside. This includes a cracking view towards Ingleborough, my favourite of the three peaks. Shortly before the half way mark there is a hot food van – I was gutted that it was cash only, as who can walk past the smell of cooking hot dogs without getting hungry! You’re also likely to come across a Yorkshire Dales ice cream van parked up at some point along the route, and there are more refreshments at Beezley Farm.

I have to say, this walk was a little on the busy side for us. The area around the three peaks has been increasingly swamped over the last few years, with more and more people getting out to enjoy all the benefits of the great outdoors. I don’t begrudge anyone the joy of getting outside, but personally I prefer to admire waterfalls on my own or with a few other people around, rather than as part of a group of twenty to thirty people!

All in all this is a relatively easy circular walk of about four and a half miles. Being honest, there are better waterfall walks you can do in the Dales, where you don’t have to pay £8 each to do the walk: have a look at Mill Gill or Cauldron Falls, or alternatively Hardraw Force where you still have to pay, but it’s not as expensive.

Dog friendly rating – 3.5/5. While there are signs up asking for dogs to be on leads outside of the woodland areas, the owners simply ask for dogs to be under close control in the gorge. Despite this, we chose to keep our dogs on their leads all the way around: it was simply too busy to have them charging around getting under people’s feet. As a plus, there were no stiles, and there were actually bins (!) where we could get rid of poo bags, instead of having to carry them around the whole walk. This is a great walk for dogs who love water with ample opportunities to take a dip in the river.

If you’ve enjoyed reading this blog, subscribe below so that you never miss a post: