| Calver Hill - A walk from Reeth - 10th Aug 2008 | |
| Rising up above the town of Reeth and the
confluence of Arkle Beck with the River Swale. Calver
Hill spearheads the divide between Swaledale and
Arkengarthdale. Our walk today starts from the centre of Reeth and takes us up over Calver Hill, down to the small hamlet of Arkle Town then follows the beck back to Reeth - a total distance of 6.75 miles approx. The weather was looking very unsettled as Gerry and I left Reeth walking the short distance along the B6270 to the school house, where we then left the road and joined the footpath leading across the fields. |
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| Passing diagonally through the first field |  |
| We reach a gate at the far side of the second field leading onto Skelgate Lane |  |
| A narrow track leading northeast |  |
| Eventually we pass through a gate and
emerge onto the open fell. We followed the path west along the wall for a short distance further until we reached a faint track branching off northwest up the ridge. The weather was becoming increasingly unsettled so we stopped to put our waterproofs on before heading on up the ridge. |
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| Arriving at the remains of this broken wall we then followed a path alongside to finally reach the Summit of Calver Hill marked by a large cairn. |  |
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| Gerry finding it hard to stand amidst blustery showers on Calver Hill |  |
| The clouds were fleeting and the sun soon
emerged. Calver Hill - 487m / 1598ft We left the summit of Calver Hill amidst a huge deluge of rain, proportions of which I had not experienced before! It felt more like hail stones then rain and was driving horizontally across the fell. It subsided after about five or ten minutes and the sun came out again. |
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| We descended the fell joining a track
leading out onto the road, it was then a short walk into
Arkle Town. We cross the bridge and then fork right entering the small hamlet. |
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| At the end of the small cluster of houses
a stile leads into a field dotted with old gravestones
some dating back to the eighteenth century. It transpires
that there was once a parish here with a church, inn and
workhouse, all long gone now. Passing through the bottom corner of the burial ground we join a path leading down to Arkle Beck. |
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| Plenty of rain had left the beck running
fast today. Once across the stepping stones we follow the path alongside the beck for a while eventually passing through a stile and leaving the riverbank. The path now passes through a succession of stiles as it makes its way through the undulating valley pastures with its intricate pattern of drystone walls |
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| Fremington Edge dominates the view as we
walk back through the undulating pastures to Reeth. A lovely walk, I even enjoyed getting soaked to the skin in a funny sort of way! |
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