Giggleswick

Train to Horton-in-Ribblesdale then walk to Settle

Moderate

8.6 miles | 13.8 km | 429 m Ascent | 10.7 Naismith miles | Sandra Craggs
Most of the walks that Bentham Footpath Group offer are circular – that’s not a policy, just a practical constraint. However, the fact that one of the most scenic railway lines in the UK runs through “our patch” offers the opportunity to add linear walks where we let the train cover one half of a larger loop.
This walk does just that – we start from Settle and then take the train to Horton in Ribblesdale, before walking back.
There are many ways we could plan a walk from Horton to Settle, and in this case we opt to take a route via Brackenbottom and Dub Cote, before picking up the Pennine Journey and then Ribble Way paths to take us to Stainforth. We then climb Stainforth Scar past Lower Winskill, and then descend into Langcliffe before taking a quiet lane back into Settle. This involves a number of ascents – none of them too challenging, but together placing this walk at the top end of our “moderate” category.

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Giggleswick Scar 2

Easy

5.4 miles | 8.6 km | 249 m Ascent | 6.6 Naismith miles | Sandra Craggs
In recent walks we have travelled further afield and enjoyed some stunning scenery. Sometimes though, it’s nice to remind ourselves just how beautiful our own area is – and this walk is a perfect way to do that.
This easy route is a shortened version of our earlier Giggleswick Scar walk and makes an ideal half day stroll. We start from The Mains in Settle and then head up to Stackhouse via Lord’s Wood. We then take the Pennine Journey path round the back of the scar, as if heading to Feizor, but before we get that far we find a fingerpost which indicates the path returning to the front of Giggleswick Scar.
The top edge of the scar gives us great views to the south and lots of interesting limestone features including caves and cairns, before we arrive at the Schoolboy Tower. We then circle round the now disused quarry and then wrap things up by heading back down to Lord’s Wood and our cars. Two added benefits for this walk are that starting from Settle makes it accessible by Public Transport, and adding Elaine’s Tea Rooms would be an easy (2km) extension.

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Giggleswick Scar

Easy

7.4 miles | 11.9 km | 400m Ascent | 9.4 Naismith miles | Sandra Craggs
This walk starts from Giggleswick Village and then heads up through Lord’s Wood, past the quarry, to join the top of Giggleswick Scar at Schoolboy’s Tower where we get great views across the Ribble valley. From there we walk along the top of the scar until we meet the path coming up from Buck Haw Brow, when we head North to Feizor Thwaite.
A sharp turn back along the Pennine journey path brings us down to Stackhouse, and from there we stroll back to Giggleswick along the side of the Ribble at Settle.
Although this walk is classed as easy because it’s (marginally) less than 12 km, be aware that there is a steep climb and some terrain that can be wet and slippery in poor weather.

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