Words & Photos Ian Battersby

December 06 2010

The information panel above gives this route starting from Pateley Bridge, but on my latest visit I set off from Brimham Rocks.

That way I was able to see this marvellous landscape at daybreak and again at the finish, when I planned to boulder over the giant gritstone formations then simply sit alone, taking it all in.

The rocks are raised up on a heather altar like some sacrificial offering to the elements – and they have had more than their pound of flesh. But here it’s a story of creation, not destruction, for wind and rain have shaped the rock into magnificent sculptures that demand your appreciation.

This podium forms the final high ground before the Pennines slump into the Vale of York, where today luminescent pinks, mauves and purples endeavoured to reach out across the sky. Opposing them were angry cloud formations, blue-grey and riding a gathering wind. My walk took off in earnest in a pre-dawn race against nature’s assembling forces. The sun painted an orange sheen beneath the menacing clouds, masking their true colours, but the moment was brief, and Brimham was brewing for battle.

Autumn was here: the heather was past its best, and the omnipresent birch trees had lost half their leaves to the wind. Even the grasses were lightweight feathery fronds, devoid of seeds, but green bracken waved brightly above yellowing bilberry, ignoring the seasons’ steady march.

My chosen path seemd little used, and occasionally I had to battle with briars and tussle with tussocks, but too soon I was past the National Trust boundary, where easygoing grass pushed out the harsh heather and with it went the grouse. A kestrel clearly fancied his chances of spotting a meal, hanging on the bullying breeze. I picked up the pace along easy tracks and paths.

I passed quickly through Dacre and made fast progress through rougher pasture country, home to a snipe, flushed out by my passage. At Guise Cliff gritstone outcrops teetered and toppled over the edge, while stunted birches stood stripped of their leaves and rowans dripped with heavy blood-red berries.

I peered out over the turning wood to absorb the view up and down dale. Further north cloud now brushed the tops of higher hills. My descent into a bustling Pateley was swift as a deer.

All that remained was a measured plod on the opposite side of the dale to Brimham, but near the end lesser trodden paths sloped off into the scrub, offering a final navigational challenge as rain began to lash – nice timing. It wasn’t long though before the final climb to the rocks brought recognition, and I complete the usual tour of the now glistening gritstone.

Distance: 13 miles/21km Ascent: 2300ft/700m Time: 7-8 hours Start/finish: Pateley Bridge (GR: SE 157655) Maps: Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer sheet 298 (Nidderdale); OS 1:50,000 Landranger sheet 99 (Northallerton and Ripon) Information: Brimham House on site for Brimham Rocks; Pateley Bridge Tourist Information Centre (01423 711147) Travel: Trains, buses, coaches to Harrogate, regular buses on to Pateley Bridge

Technical Spec
From bridge NE up the high street to bend in road (250m). Continue around bend then turn left at sign for Panorama Walk. Follow Nidderdale Way SE then E past Cliff Top to White Houses. Continue E through fields to cross beck. ESE to farm at 250m contour. Follow intermittent path generally N through woods, passing a bog. At path junction follow unmarked path E, climbing to Brimham. E across moor to lane. At junction with track paths SE passing Shepherd’s Lodge. S to Brimham Hall. Paths generally WSW to Summerbridge. Road WSW to Dacre. Nidderdale Way W to Heyshaw then NW along Guise Cliff to Yorke’s Folly, turning N for Pateley Bridge.