Great Shunner Fell

Did you know that the whole ‘Yorkshire Three Peaks’ route is a bit of a fib? The round doesn’t actually take in the three highest peaks in Yorkshire, instead ticking off the two highest fells, with the ninth highest thrown in to make it a round of three. The third highest peak in Yorkshire is actually Great Shunner Fell, miles to the north in Wensleydale and therefore logistically not well located for a round of three fells to be completed on foot. It’s a much quieter spot than the bustling flanks of Ingleborough and Whernside these days, popular without being overcrowded. The majority of people you’ll see on this hill will be relatively local, unless they’re ticking off the Dales 30 or walking the Pennine Way, which passes over the summit on its way from Hawes to Keld.

We’d spent most of last week dot watching the runners on the winter Spine race and felt inspired to get out and tackle some of our local Pennine Way. There are a few circular routes which take in Great Shunner Fell, but they’re all fairly long outings and with it being as cold as it is at the moment, we decided to stick to a linear route from Hardraw. Parking is limited with space for about six or seven cars at the roadside on the edge of the village, right where the Pennine Way leaves the road. If you park here make sure to leave some money in the honesty box.

It’s around a five mile trek each way, following the Pennine Way from start to finish, heading uphill all the way at a fairly gentle gradient with no steep sections – perfect if you’re getting back into hill walking after having a bit of a break over Christmas. Navigation is generally straight forward – you really are just following the Pennine Way, which is way marked with finger posts and a well trodden track, although it may be trickier if there’s snow on the ground covering up the path.

It was one of those beautiful clear winter days where you get a chance to remember what a truly blue sky looks like, while at the same time being extremely cold! We arrived early and while the paths were icy in places, we were rewarded by having the summit entirely to ourselves and being able to enjoy the walk up with no wind at all. The views of Wensleydale on the way up were fantastic, with a good dusting of snow on the hills and as we climbed, the fell side became a bit of a winter wonderland with snow and ice in every direction.

We didn’t actually see anyone at all until we were heading back down to the car at about twelve o’clock, when we did start to see a few walkers making their way up the hill. It certainly wasn’t anything like you’d see elsewhere in the Dales (I dread to think what Ingleborough was like!). The wind started to pick up a little and the sun started to disappear behind some clouds as we made our way down, so we picked up the pace a bit and promptly fell over within ten seconds of each other – the light dusting of snow on the path sneakily disguised the fact that the track was just pure ice! It wasn’t too bad in other places, with some handy limestone slabs which weren’t as slippy and also save traipsing through bog, which can be an issue here when the ground isn’t totally frozen over.

Dog friendly rating: 3/5. This is a fairly long walk, but there are no stiles or sections of road walking. You will need to keep your dog under close control (preferably on a lead) around livestock – we saw sheep a mile or so after setting off, and when you near the top of the fell you cross a section of grouse moor (so Merry’s lead stayed on all day!). There was no water for our dogs, but it looked like there were a few streams that had frozen over – but it’s best to take some water for your dogs just in case. Merry loves this walk because there’s usually a dead rabbit or two lying around to try and snaffle – so keep your eyes peeled if that’s the kind of thing your dog will try and gobble down!

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