The Great Outdoors – July 2019

Cribyn & N escarpment

from Pen y Fan

96 The Great Outdoors July 2019

and the skies were clear as we
followed the line of the viaduct
to skirt around the base of the
hill. I’d never been lucky with
the weather here before so
maybe this was a good sign.
Leaving the railway line
to start the ascent, I felt a
tad lazy, but not envious, as
I chatted to some 3-Peakers
already on their second hill
of the day. Looking back over
Ribblehead, the distant peaks
of Ingleborough and Pen-y-
Ghent gave a sense of scale to
the 3 Peaks route.
A constant, steady ascent
soon saw us looking down
on Greensett Moss tarn, and
from there it was only a short
haul up to the ridge path that
leads to the summit. From here
were fantastic views across
Winterscale Pasture to Cam
Fell, and slightly to the left the
fells around Great Knoutberry
Hill were proudly on display.

We were never going to have

the summit to ourselves, but it

wasn’t overly crowded, and we

took time out to make the most

of our lofty elevation. Across

to the west beyond Kingsdale,

the angular peak of Great

Coum marked the northern

tip of the ridge containing

Gragareth and Green Hill. I

don’t think I’d ever appreciated

the magnificence of Whernside

quite as much as today, maybe

because of the rush in the

past to get to the next peak, or

maybe simply because the mist

prevented me seeing anything.

So, even though I’d been here

umpteen times before, there

was an element of being on a

new summit as I surveyed the

dales below.

Reluctantly leaving our

viewpoint behind, we headed

steadily downhill to High

Pike before dropping more

steeply down the slope into

the Winterscales valley. Even

down here, Ingleborough was

hard to ignore as the sudden

appearance of a swirling cloud

seemed to cast a slightly sinister

shadow over it. The shade didn’t

reach as far as us though, so we

enjoyed unseasonal warmth as

we skirted the southern slopes

of Whernside on our way to

Winterscales Farm. The sun

shines on the righteous and

all that...

Cutting under the railway

track led us back onto the track

beside the viaduct and we were

soon back at the start. In future

I won’t be so reluctant to do

previously completed classic

routes, even if they are popular.

I suppose they’re classic and

popular for good reason. No

doubt the fine weather had

helped, but we’d had a great

day’s walking on a superb hill.

Mustn’t leave it another 10 years

before the next visit.

Further information

Maps: OS 1:25,000

Explorer sheet OL2

(Yorkshire Dales, Southern &

Western areas); Harvey

1:25,000 Superwalker,

Yorkshire Dales South West

Transport: Regular train

service to Ribblehead

station on the Leeds - Settle

• Carlisle line

i

Information: Settle TIC

(01729 825192)

settle.org.uk

[Captions clockwise from top]

Whernside beyond Ribblehead

viaduct; The route ahead –

Whernside from Grain Ings;

Ingleborough from Ivescar