A circular walk from Bank Newton, with open views, a Trig point and varied terrain.
Distance/Time: 7.5-8 miles – approximately 3 hours, depending on pace (Add an extra mile if including a stop at the Coniston Hotel in Coniston Cold)
Start: Newton Grange Farm Holiday Cottages, Bank Newton
Ordnance Survey Map: Explorer OL2 Yorkshire Dales Southern & Western Areas
During the walk:
Refreshments in Gargrave – Coffee Monday (10am-12 noon on Mondays) at St Andrew’s Church – tea, coffee, cakes and toasted teacakes. Call by The Masons Arms for coffee and cake, or for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Breakfasts are open to non-residents Thursdays – Sundays 8am until 11am. The Old Swan is also open for refreshments every day including breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Refreshments in Coniston Cold – The Coniston Hotel occupies a beautiful lakeside setting, with a variety of dining options to suit all tastes – with Macleod’s Bar and Hotel, The View Restaurant and Blossom Kitchen all offering food. To browse menus and book your table, please visit their website.
This is a circular walking route of approximately 8 miles, taking in the best views from the Pennine Way as you descend in to the village of Gargrave, drover’s roads, a local Trig summit looking in to the Dales, and striding across grassy drumlin fields.
To Gargrave along the Pennine Way
From our holiday cottages, walk back to our visitor car park passing the old Chapel House on your left. There is a cattle grid and farm track in front of you, across the field. Take the side gate in to the field – or cross the cattle grid with care.
Please note – this is not a public right of way but holidaymakers staying on the farm are permitted to cross the field to join the Pennine Way. If not staying with us, please follow the bridleway through the farm along Trenet Lane to Trenet Bridge, and pick up the Pennine Way back to Gargrave from there. This extends the walk by approximately 3/4 mile.
Once in the field, follow the track down the left hand side of the field until it reaches the farm buildings and a gate in front of you. Open the wooden gate and cross over the stream. From here you join the Pennine Way national trail, turning left towards Gargrave, just after the wooden post and rail fence peters out on your left.
The Pennine Way crosses the grassy fields part way along, soon crossing another field boundary and joining the next field through a metal gate opening up in to the next field. Continue forward until reaching the boundary fence and the wooden ‘kissing gate’ in to the next field, after which you cross a stream.
From there the route of the Pennine Way starts to ascend up and over the field, sometimes the ground can be boggy at times, so take care and follow as close to the footpath route as you’re able. This is a large field, and the next signpost is found ahead of you after climbing the hill, as the fence line bends at right angles. There is a field trough next to the wooden stile in the post and rail fence.
Continue walking through the next couple of fields of pasture, enjoying areas of wildflowers in spring and summer time.
Another boundary crossing and you follow a field, with the path running to the right hand side of the field boundary, which is to your left. This takes you to a kissing gate in the field ahead of you. Cross through this, and walk straight on. The path is ascending here as the wooden footpath signpost comes in to view at the top of the hill.
On a clear day, there is a wonderful view from here. You can see the village of Gargrave ahead of you, the church tower of prominence. Nestled behind the village is the summit of Sharp Haw and there are far-reaching views up to the Yorkshire Dales. I never tire of this view.
Continue walking towards the village, and downhill, until you come to a stile in the corner of the field. Cross over this and join the farm track, turning right and following it downhill towards the village.
Eventually the track crosses the railway line, and soon after this look for the footpath sign on your right – just up the banking as you pass through a little gate in to the field below. This is still the Pennine Way footpath. In front of you then is more pasture line, and a downhill route to the next field corner. You are soon then, just a field away from walking out in to the village of Gargrave. The last part of the path follows paving stones at the side of a wall, and the Old School House is to the let here. The footpath soon reaches a stone stile built in to the wall. Climb up and over this and follow out to the right, through the parking area and driveway to join the pavement at the side of the road. You have reached Gargrave.
Through Gargrave
Turn left, and cross the road to the pavement on the opposite side. Follow the pavement along, passing St Andrew’s Church on your right. On Monday mornings, there is a coffee morning held in the church from 10am until 12 noon – a welcome pitstop for refreshments if you happen to be walking on a Monday!
Onward and following the pavement, now, along Church Street to the road junction with the main A65. This is the heart of Gargrave village and after crossing the bridge and meeting the road junction, please note there are public toilets available on the right hand side, just after the bus stop. There is also a water bottle refilling point outside the public toilets between the Ladies and the Gents entrances.
Back towards the A65 and cross the main road to the opposite side – in front of the old Dalesman Cafe. Please take care when crossing this busy main road.
Now follow the road to the right hand side of the Dalesman (West Street), crossing to the pavement side of the road where you can, and follow this road round until it passes the village hall (on your right) and the village car parks. Cross over the road at the corner at the edge of the village hall car park, and follow along the road in front of you (West Street) and walk up towards the Leeds Liverpool Canal.
Having passed a few houses on either side of the road, you cross the canal and continue straight on – along Mark House Lane. Ignore the turning of the road as it bends to the right (Chew Lane) and instead take the ‘left fork’ (which appears to be more ‘straight on’). Then follow this lane, as it passes the high-sided walls of Gargrave House and opens in to a good track (Mark House Lane).
Following Mark House Lane to the Trig
For the next mile or so, you simply follow the track all the way. The surfaces underfoot are a mixture of tarmac, hardstanding and uneven terrain. Contine all the wall to the top of Mark House Lane and enjoy the views as it starts to open out ahead of you.
Eventually you reach a point on the lane where there is a very clear right-angled bend to the left, and the track starts to go downhill. At this point, there is a metal gate in the fenceline to the right hand side. You can open the gate, closing it behind you, and follow through a couple of fields to reach the Trig Point of Haw Crag. On a fine day you will be able to see where you are going and the Trig ahead of you. This climb is worth it for the wide-ranging views – and of course, the feeling of reaching a trig point.
After taking in the views and catching your breath, descend back the way you came for two fields to pass through the metal gate again to join Mark House Lane.
Down the lane to Bell Busk and Coniston Cold
Then continue on – downhill along the lane – not back the way you came, but following the bend in the road. The track is uneven in parts here, and descends all the way to where it meets the road in Bell Busk.
Upon reaching the road, take a left hand turn, soon crossing a bridge, and follow the road as it bends back on itself towards the left.
This is a country lane, and it is always wise to walk facing the direction of oncoming traffic – ie. on the right hand side of the road.
In springtime, this section of road is a delight with daffodils and spring flowers growing. The River Aire tracks the pathway of the road for some of the way.
Follow the road for approximately a mile. It eventually ascends and the spire of St Peter’s Church in Coniston Cold will come in to view.
Continue straight on along the road until it reaches the A65 in Coniston Cold village.
This is a busy main road and care must be taken when crossing it. There is a crossing with bollards in the middle of the road, so it can be crossed in two parts.
From Coniston Cold to Bank Newton
Once across the road, take the road almost immediately in front of you, passing between houses on either side. The track crosses a cattle grid and leads in to fields. Follow the waymarked public footpath signs, as the path goes straight on through the fields, tracking the left hand field boundary until you reach a wooden gate.
After crossing through the wooden gate, turn immediately to the right and follow, slightly downhill to another wooden gate that stands at the foot of a climb.
Climb up the grass field in front of you, following a diagonal angle towards the left hand side of the field in the corner, passing a tree nearest the highest point of the field.
There is a field gate in the corner ahead of you. Cross through this, and you can now take a further diagonal route downhill to the field corner towards the left hand boundary of the field where it joins Ingber House. Cross through the gate, pass the house and cross the cattle grid, to follow the tarmac access track.
Walk along the tarmac access track all the way back in to Bank Newton. On either side of you there are rolling green fields. This is part of the drumlin field.
There are a further couple of cattle grids to cross before you reach the public highway in Bank Newton. Just beforehand you will pass some farm buildings on your right, and then some stone cottages, a barn, and the listed Newton Hall – an impressive rendered yellow house with a very tall chimney.
When the track joins the highway in Bank Newton, by the red post box in the wall (on the right), cross over the road and follow the lane up towards Newton Grange. The small green signpost shows the way.
Follow the lane for the half a mile back to the cottages, taking care on the initially narrow section of highway as it ascends towards the canal bridge.
Once back in the holiday cottages car park, the circuit is complete.
This is a route that may take towards 3 hours to walk, depending of course on your natural walking pace, the frequency of stops and the weather.
Hope you enjoy it.