Sunday 20th October 2019 - Burnsall, Yorkshire Dales

This month our walks are based on Burnsall, a small village on the river Wharfe to the south of Grassington.   The coach will leave school as usual at 8.00am prompt and travel direct to Burnsall. Coach parking in Burnsall is very limited so it is essential that everybody has their boots on before arriving in Burnsall in order to disembark quickly. All walks start and finish in Burnsall. Boots are essential on all walks. There are two cafes and one pub in Burnsall for refreshments after the walk. Due to the limited parking in Burnsall it may not be possible to return to the coach until 5pm, this will be clarified on the day. The coach will depart at 5.00pm and should be back in Formby about 7.00pm.

The cost of travel will be £16.00 for members, £18.00 for non-members, £7.00 for Leaders, £7.00 for children and students in full time education. Please make your cheque payable to Range Walking Club and ensure it is signed as it is inconvenient for the Treasurer to chase up such omissions.

Please book by email and pay online or send in your return to the Treasurer Monica Sealey before 10th October; places will be booked on the coach by the treasurer on a first come first served basis.

Cancellations: if you need to cancel or make a late booking, please contact the Treasurer on 01704 809287 or by email monicatuk@yahoo.co.uk who will endeavour to substitute your booking from the waiting list.  If you cancel after 10th October and it is not possible to fill your place on the coach, regrettably, we will not be able to give you a refund as coaches will have been booked on initial returns.

‘A Walk Distance: 11 miles Ascent: 1,800 ft Leaders: Jon Vine Charlotte Spencer	We start by crossing the river Wharfe over the Grade II Listed C17 Bridge. We head downstream following the river for approx. 2.5 miles which is a nice walk through fields and woodland. After the riverside walk, we head steadily up passing through woodland via a permissive path. We eventually exit the wood onto heather moorland full of grouse and pheasant aiming for Simons Seat. Simons Seat is the highest point of the walk, a prominent outcrop of millstone grit, visible for many miles around. The walk off Simons Seat is on reasonable slabs and then smaller rocks, which can be slippy and good ankle protection is advised. After skirting the grounds of Parcevall Hall we aim for the path through Trollers Gill gorge, navigating large rocks and boulders, watch out for Trolls. Skyreholme Beck, after heavy rain, flows through this impressive gorge otherwise it flows underground. Should the Beck be in full flow or wet there is an alternate path. Depending on the progress through the gorge there is the option of a shorter alternate route back to Burnsall.
‘B’ Walk Distance: 9.5 miles Ascent: 1000 ft Leaders: David Willis Trevor Ludlow	Leaving Burnsall over the bridge we have a short road walk before starting to climb gently on the green Kail lane up to moorland at Appletreewick pastures. More or less following the contours we reach Dibbles Bridge where we have the main ascent of 300ft, but over one kilometre. A track then takes us across moorland and then down to pass by Hell Hole (a swallow hole) after which we hope to descend into Trollers Gill gorge from the north (as with the A walk this is very weather dependant). The alternate path, less exciting, takes us to the gorge exit which we can explore further if needs be. This option is available for those who prefer a more secure footing route. We continue past Parcevall Hall and Skyreholme to the riverside Dales Way footpath which leads us back to Burnsall through pleasant woodland and fields.
‘C’ Walk Distance: 8 miles Ascent: 700 ft Leaders: Anne Belcher Liz Bellman	From Burnsall we follow the river Wharfe on good paths, muddy in places until we turn to head north east towards Middle Skyreholme and Parcevall Hall. The hall is a grade II listed Manor House with landscaped gardens. Following a mixture of lanes and meadow paths we enter moorland and head towards Trollers Gill gorge. We can explore the southern entrance to the gorge to determine if walkers feel comfortable with the terrain and conditions, otherwise we will take the alternate path through a grassy valley, to the highest point of the day. From this high point there are panoramic views, on a good day, of Simons Seat to the south, High Crag to the East and Grimwith Fell to the northwest. Once across moorland we meet a road until our route takes us west through Appletreewick pastures on a good gravel path back towards the river and then to Burnsall. There are numerous swing gates, 7 stiles and 5 gates.