Scout Scar and Underbarrow

Easy

5.7 miles | 9.1 km |255 m Ascent | 6.9 Naismith miles | Alison Kinder & Colin Stroud
The area of the South Lakes between the Kent and Levens Estuaries provides a rich source of walks and is particularly favoured by The Bentham Footpath Group. This walk shows why: It’s relatively short and generally easy, but still manages to deliver spectacular views, well preserved industrial archaeology, a roman road, an ancient pele tower, sites of special scientific interest and ancient woodlands.

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Pikedaw Hill and Malham

Moderate

7.8 miles | 12.6 km | 525 m Ascent | 10.5 Naismith miles | Sandra Craggs
Malham is one of the “honeypot” villages of the Yorkshire Dales – and the use of the Cove as a backdrop for filming “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” has made it even more popular. There’s more to this area than the Cove though – stunning as it is – and if you pick a weekday out of season, you can still enjoy a quiet walk. This moderately challenging walk starts in Malham, with a steep climb up Pikedaw Hill, offering great views back to Malham and over toward Pendle.
We pass Nappa Cross, then head down the spectacular dry valley at Watlowes to the top of the Cove, where we take the Dales Highway path to Goredale Bridge and return to Malham village via the always delightful Janet’s Foss path. We grade the walk as moderate, but be aware that the first section is relentlessly steep, and potentially quite boggy – and that the dry valley requires particular care.

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Abbeystead and Tarnbrook

Easy

6.3 miles | 10.1 km | 251 m Ascent | 7.5 Naismith miles | Alison Kinder & Colin Stroud
This excellent walk starts next to the “Shepherd’s Church”, before heading across fields, with extensive views of the distant Hawthornthwaite and Tarnbrook fells, on the way to Abbeystead. From there we strike out across country, using parts of the underappreciated Wyre Way long distance path via Emmetts to Tarnbrook where we find the Tarnbrook Wyre. We cross the river and then follow it downstream to Lower Lee before returning via fields to the church. We were lucky enough to have bright and cold weather with lying snow for this walk, but it works equally well in other conditions – although it is worth noting that this part of the world can get a bit muddy after prolonged wet spells.

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Fairy steps from Beetham

Easy

5.7 miles | 9.2 km | 309 m Ascent | 7.2 Naismith miles | Don Cartledge
December 2022 saw The Bentham Footpath Group walking from Heversham with views South toward Beetham and the Arnside and Silverdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).
Just one month later, we start at the Heron Corn Mill in Beetham and then head through woodland and the famous “Fairy steps” to gain the complementary view – West across the estuary toward the Lakeland fells, and North toward Heversham and St. Anthony’s Tower.
We then skirt the estuary via the old railway track bed that we met on the Heversham walk, and then head up the river Bela, past Dallam Tower, and then though the deer park back to Beetham.
This walk is ideal for the shorter winter days – it’s relatively easy and offers a variety of landscapes as well as breath-taking views.

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Appersett Mosaics

Easy

6.4 miles | 10.3 km | 270m Ascent | 7.8 Naismith miles | Kate Rowe
This easy walk offers great views and includes a number of the Millennium Mosaics placed around Hawes in 2000.
The route starts by crossing the Widdale Beck, then the River Ure before climbing up to Hardraw. From there we go to Simonstone and take a path along the fellside into Sedbusk Village. We start back on the Sedbusk lane, but soon divert left to head down to the River Ure at Haylands Bridge.
We then follow the river upstream until we meet the A684 where we walk left along the road for a very brief spell before heading up onto the fells again at Thorns. A path along Spillain Green Sike offers good views of cascading waterfalls before we head back down to a minor road at Appersett Viaduct. From there we follow the road downhill back to the cars. On route we see eight of the twenty two mosaics.

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Langcliffe to Stainforth Circular

Easy

4.7 miles | 7.6 km | 192m Ascent | 5.7 Naismith miles | Peter Lennard
The Bentham Footpath Group has a tradition of making the walk between Christmas and New Year an easier and shorter walk than usual, so that we can combine it with a meal at a local venue. Our aim is to make the walk accessible to all our members and to ensure that we can be at our venue by lunchtime.
Does that mean the route needs to be dull? Absolutely not – as this walk shows. We start from Langcliffe and then take the path up the western side of the river Ribble as far as Stainforth Force and the historic pack horse bridge. From there we cross the river and take the bridleway into Stainforth village and then over fields to the fascinating Hoffmann Kilns at the old Craven Lime Works. Finally, another short section of field crossings brings us back to Langcliffe.

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Great Mitton

Easy

5.2 miles | 10.7 km | 170m Ascent | 6.0 Naismith miles | Alison Kinder & Colin Stroud
This easy riverside walk starts from Edisford Bridge in Clitheroe and follows the Ribble downstream, to Mitton Bridge, where we cross and return.
The route could easily be combined with a day out in Clitheroe – the castle and museum are well worth visiting.
During the summer months, the bridge and the banks of the River Ribble are a magnet for families enjoying picnics; The Bentham Footpath group tackled the walk on a cold and icy winter’s day, so we had the place to ourselves.

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Heversham

Easy

6.5 miles | 10.5 km | 312m Ascent | 8.1 Naismith miles | Sandra Craggs
This short and relatively easy walk brings Bentham footpath Group back to the Kent estuary again – and on a good clear day (not the case on the day of the group walk unfortunately) – great views of Farleton Knott, then the Howgills, the Lakeland fells and finally the Kent estuary and the viaduct at Arnside are revealed.
Add a curious folly tower, an old railway line that is slated to be converted to a pathway, a toposcope, and a 12th century church with beautiful grounds, to make this a walk well worth the effort.
The route is essentially a figure of eight, so there is the opportunity to make it two shorter walks, and as part of this route intersects with other BFG walks, there is scope to use it as a basis for longer combined routes.

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Lord’s Lot

Easy

7.2 miles | 11.5 km | 411m Ascent | 9.2 Naismith miles | Susan Badley
Lord’s Lot is a modest hill in South Lakeland offering tremendous views of the Lakeland peaks to the Northwest and the Howgills to the Northeast. Despite being only a few miles from Windermere this area is refreshingly quiet – the group met no other walkers during our walk despite the near perfect conditions.
This circular walk is classed as easy because it’s below our 12km threshold, but you should be aware that there is some climbing up to Lord’s Lot, and that the paths can be muddy in winter. The views make all this worthwhile though, and if you pick a spring day to do this walk, you can also enjoy the spectacular white blossom that the countless damson orchards in the area produce.

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Dowbiggin

Easy

6.6 miles | 10.6 km | 312m Ascent | 8.1 Naismith miles | George Sheridan
The Howgills, are a firm favourite of Bentham Footpath Group: These distinctive rounded hills with their lovely velvety appearance offer a wide variety of walks with peaks such as The Calf, Calders, and Arant Haw, along with the spectacular waterfall of Cautley Spout.
This easy walk does not do any of these big climbs – instead we focus on gaining a great view of the wider area. It starts from New Bridge just outside Sedbergh and then heads East along the Clough River, before turning North at Dovecote Gill. We pass through Dowbiggin and then cross the Hebblethwaite Hall Gill before heading West at Hebblethwaite Hall. We then press on to the A683 via an Alpaca farm at Ghyllas, and after a very short section of road walk take the Pennine Journey path along the Rawthey back to New Bridge.

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