We are so lucky to have the Yorkshire Dales National Park on our doorstep. It feels like recently we’ve been neglecting our local fells whenever the weather is nice, heading for the Lakes or Durham Dales, purely because the nearby hills ‘will always be there another day’. Last weekend, therefore, we decided to head over to Askrigg for a nice quiet Sunday stroll up to Oxnop Common, a little frequented area with far reaching views over the surrounding countryside.
Sam had found a seven mile circular route online, but we decided to shorten this to a roughly five mile out and back walk from the start up to the top of Oxnop Common (see start location on the My Pennines website). Unfortunately thisWhile the weather was a lot nicer than expected, it was cold, and we (I) didn’t particularly fancy the risk of wet feet when crossing boggy sections of ground between Oxnop beacon and the tarn.
Parking at the start is free, in a small parking area just after the cattle grid on the road from Askrigg to Muker, at the foot of the bridleway. We set off along the path, which is well surfaced and clear, climbing gradually towards the trig. As we ascended, the path turned into a grassy green track, before finally turning into a rough moorland trail for the final stretch. Navigation is easy peasy – you’re pretty much just following the path the whole way.
The views over Wensleydale as you steadily make your way up the hill are lovely: Addlebrough and Semerwater are easy to spot in the near distance, with Dodd and Hawes further afield. Keep your eyes peeled as you get further up to see the looming silhouette of Ingleborough peeping out from behind the other hills.
At the top of the hill, pass the summit cairn and go through the gate in the fence to continue on a short way to a second beacon. Although this isn’t the summit of the hill, the views here are arguably better, taking in the Kisdon Gorge and fringes of Swaledale (my favourite).
We both really enjoyed this walk – despite the freezing cold, the wind wasn’t too bad and the wide open views were fantastic. I especially loved the patchwork of heather once we got up towards the top, even when it’s not in bloom, it’s so quintessentially Yorkshire. The walk was short enough that we managed to get up and down without needing to stop for a snack, but if you wanted to, there are a few shooting butts knocking about where you could duck out of the wind while you stop.
Dog friendly rating – 3/5. As this is a grouse moor, and also home to lots of other ground nesting birds such as lapwings, dogs should be kept on a lead or under close control at all times. There’s also a plentiful helping of decaying rabbit carcasses dotted about, so if you have a scavenger like Merry, you’ll need to keep a sharp eye out! However, this is a great choice if you want to avoid stiles, as the bridleway traverses only one fence line, which has a gate. It’s also a good pick if you have a reactive dog like Coal and want to avoid busy places: we were there on a sunny Sunday morning and had the place entirely to ourselves. Waterwise, there were a few puddles when we visited, but if you come here in summer you will probably need to bring some water for your dog.
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