Paley

Dentdale

Easy

5.6 miles | 9.1 km | 302 m Ascent | 7.1 Naismith miles | Rick Clapham
Dentdale is one of the more popular gems of the Yorkshire Dales, and so not surprisingly, Bentham Footpath Group visit regularly. Every time we come here there is something different to see, and this time we start from the Church Bridge and take a riverside path downstream for a short distance before coming back to the centre of the village via the picnic area. We then head up the enchanting Flintergill, visiting an open air museum and enjoying a viewpoint, before climbing to the Occupation Road overlooked by the Megger Stones.
After following the Occupation Road for about a mile we head back downhill along a green lane to High Nun House, then cross the minor road and head down to Deepdale Beck which we follow downstream back to the Dee, which we then follow back to our starting point.

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Wyresdale, Scorton

Easy

6.2miles | 10.0 km | 100m Ascent | 6.7 Naismith miles | Mary & Kate Taylor
For this walk we head southwest into Lancashire and park at the convenient Scorton Picnic site adjacent to the river Wyre, before we explore the riverside, the adjacent lakes, and the farmland in the Wyre valley as they come back to life as spring takes hold.
This is a walk without a great deal of change in elevation, and is quite short, so we class it as easy. However, it may be worth considering that in common with most riverside and valley bottom walks, how easy it feels may well change with the weather – heavy rain makes the paths muddy and slippery so if you are picking this walk for ease of use, make sure you pick a suitable day.

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Barbon Beck and Brownthwaite

Moderate

8.2 miles | 13.3 km | 385 m Ascent | 10.2 Naismith miles | Rick Clapham
Barbon is great place to start and end a walk. Not only is there convenient parking – either at the layby at Hodge Bridge, or at the Village Hall – but there is a great deli and a highly rated pub, the remains of a Roman Road, the course of a disused railway, grand houses, ancient stone circles, and a motor sport venue.
This moderately challenging walk offers all that, plus artworks by Andy Goldsworthy, great views down the Lune Valley, an invigorating climb up Brownthwaite, a very attractive waterfall, and then an easy finish along the banks of Barbon Beck in the grounds of Barbon Manor.

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Bolton by Bowland

Easy

6.5 miles | 10.5 km | 155 m Ascent | 7.3 Naismith miles | George Sheridan
We head back to the Forest of Bowland for this great and relatively easy walk from the pretty village of Bolton by Bowland, creating a great opportunity to combine the walk with a visit to the village – which boasts two great pubs and a very interesting church.
We start at a free car park next to the road bridge over Skirden Beck and then follow the beck upstream to Oak Trees Nursery. A short section on the road takes us up to Forest Becks, where we pick up Monubent Lane, which we follow as far as Monubent Head. From there we cross Fooden Moor until we get to Raygill Moss where we pick up the Ribble Valley Jubilee Trail. This takes us to Fooden, where we start to see the Ribble over to our left. We then follow the Ribble Valley down to the estate where Bolton Hall once stood and walk back into Bolton by Bowland via the estate grounds. We then stroll through the village, passing the church, the two greens and one of the pubs.

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Tatham Fells

Easy

6.4 miles | 10.4km | 344 m Ascent | 8.2 Naismith miles | Mary Taylor
Members of the Bentham Footpath Group tend to consider the Yorkshire Dales, the Forest of Bowland, and the South Lakes as their walking territory. This relatively easy walk is at the North end of the Forest of Bowland and is very local to Bentham – so much so that many of the farms, and other buildings that we passed along the way hold important personal memories for those in the group lucky enough to be born and bred in and around Bentham.
For the rest of us, this is still a great walk in a timeless landscape that never gets busy – despite the idyllic autumn weather we enjoyed, we passed no other walkers, and the only people we met all day were residents pottering in their gardens and making the most of the sunshine before winter sets in.
Although we consider this walk to be “easy” based on the total distance and elevation change, you should be aware that Tatham Fells are poorly drained, and so the ground can be very wet. This can make the walk feel longer than stated but on the other hand wet weather makes the rivers and becks we cross so much more attractive.

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Claughton

Moderate

7.5 miles | 12.1 km | 274 m Ascent | 8.9 Naismith miles | Alison Kinder & Colin Stroud
The road journey form Bentham to Lancaster is relatively mundane, making it easy to forget that that there are good walks on either side of the main road – as this excellent route shows. We start from the Bull Beck parking area on the A683 just east of Caton, then walk over fields to Brookhouse. A quiet country road takes us up to the wind farm at Caton Moor, with fantastic views across the valley and Morecambe Bay, before we head back down to the main road passing the quarries that feed the Claughton Brick works. We then cross the road and pass more evidence of the area’s railway history before coming through fields at the back of the brickworks to follow the banks of the Lune back to Bull Beck.
We list this walk as a “moderate” challenge, simply because it’s just over our 12km threshold. The route is generally quite easy and there are relatively few stiles, so if you normally prefer “easy” walks, don’t discount this one.

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Roeburndale Bluebells

Easy

6.5 miles | 10.5 km | 351 m Ascent | 8.2 Naismith miles | Kate Rowe
The clue is in the name as they say . . . this walk features the woodland in Roeburndale, and the spectacular bluebells and other wildflowers that make the most of the spring light that reaches the woodland floor just before the trees get into full leaf. Timing is everything, as this phase of spring lasts for just a couple of weeks; we scheduled our walk for early May.
Is this a worthwhile walk at any other time? It absolutely is. Roeburndale, like the rest of the Forest of Bowland is quieter than the Dales or Lakes, yet this particular part of it is very accessible. The village of Wray has an interesting history, and an excellent tearoom. On the walk we pass an abandoned rope bridge, a hidden orchard, see slow worms, and there are great views over the three peaks. So, this is a great walk at any time, and or is perfect in early May.

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Littledale & Caton

Easy

6.1 miles | 9.9 km | 313 m Ascent | 7.7 Naismith miles | Mary & Kate Taylor
Bentham is a great place to live – particularly for those who like walking: We have access to the Yorkshire Dales, the Lake District, and as we see in this walk, the Forest of Bowland.
Of that trio, the Forest of Bowland is the least visited, so it’s possible to find a quiet walk with unspoiled countryside, without seeing anyone else all day.
This easy, but interest-filled walk starts from a free car park at Little Cragg outside Brookhouse. The high farmland here offers great views over Morecambe Bay to the Lakeland Fells, before we drop down and cross the Udale Bridge, then climbing up to Crossgill with Caton Moor on our left and Littledale Hall on our right.
We head up one side of the valley at high level and then descend to the river (Closegill Beck) to return at low level, before exploring the woodlands next to the Hall and then heading back via Littledale and Sweet Beck to Little Cragg.

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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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Levens And Sedgewick

Moderate

8.0 miles | 12.8 km | 322 m Ascent | 9.6 Naismith miles | Ed Badley
The Kent estuary and the surrounding hills may not be as spectacular as the Northern end of the Lake District, but they are filled with interesting history, great views, and much quieter paths.
This walk is classed as moderate – simply because it’s fractionally longer than our 12 km break point, and takes in riverside paths, a waterless canal, 16th century halls, an Elizabethan manor house, a deer park, and a herd of Bagot Goats.
Pick a bright autumn day and the woodland colours are spectacular – as you can see in the gallery.

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