Dales High Way - Shipley to Skipton (★★★★☆)

In recent weeks the weather has pretty much limited me to canal walks, as I have been forced to seek out paths that don't sink beneath you when you step on them - but aided by a mix of sunshine and frozen ground, I have decided that today is the day to head back into the hills.

More specifically, I plan to walk over Ikley Moor and Skipton Moor, following the Dales High Way between Saltaire and Skipton.

The Dales High Way in it's entirety runs between Saltaire and Appleby-in-Westmorland, along a route that generally runs over the Yorkshire Dales. But today's section sits outside the Yorkshire Dales - with the trail not entering the national park until after it passes through Skipton.

Trains to Saltaire are, however, fairly infrequent, whilst trains to Shipley are more common - and so our walk begins as we get off the train at Shipley train station - and head down to the Liverpool & Leeds Canal, which we follow round to Saltaire, and to the start of the Dales High Way.

As it is, our attempt to do something other than canal walking has not got off to a great start, but it is not long before we find ourselves passing Salt Mill - and arriving in the town that Mr Salt built, Saltaire.

Salt Mill

On the walk round to Saltaire along the canal

On my last visit to Saltaire, I had been walking the Liverpool & Leeds Canal - with one day spent walking between Gargrave and Keighley (passing through Skipton along the way), and the second day taking me from Keighley to Leeds (passing through Saltaire along the way).

But whilst I have previously walked between Saltaire and Skipton, our route today will give a very different perspective - and at Hirst Lock we turn off, and start to head north (through the very edge of Saltaire).

Saltaire itself is quite an interesting place - and a UNESCO World Heritage Site - having been built by Sir Titus Salt, as a town that would provide his factory workers with a nicer place to live.

What resulted was a town that not only appealed visually, but which also came with both recreational facilities, and more practical facilities - such as wash-houses, bath-houses, a hospital and a library.

These days Saltaire, Baildon and Shipley largely blend into one - and are in effect suburbs of Bradford, whilst Leeds is fairly well joined up to the east.

But that is not to say that there isn't great countryside - and it isn't long until we are beyond the suburbs, and walking through a rural scene - as we head through woods that line the route of Loadpit Beck.

The view through a gap in the trees

The official route continues on through the woods, but I end up making a slight navigational error, and meet up with the path following Glen Road (above where I am supposed to be) - but this is no great shame, for it goes the same direction, and here there is a clear view out towards Baildon Hill to the east.

Up until this point we have had to deal with a busy mix of paths - and a number of named trails that criss-cross each other on the map - but things get more straight-forward (but a lot muddier), as we continue on following =a path alongside Glovershaw Beck.

If it were warmer this would be a very slippery path, that lies half way up the bank of the beck - but today the ground is cold enough to make the path an easy one to walk along, and we soon reach Golcar Farm, where we turn off to the right (as the Dales Way Link heads left).

Here we are also following the Millennium Way (and so many named trails does pollute the map somewhat), and head on up towards Birch Close Farm - with the first patches of snow becoming visible on the ground beneath our feet.

But it is a pretty uneventful journey as we continue to gain height, and as we start making our way towards Ilkley Moor.

Our first sights of snow

A little bit more snow further up the trail

After Birch Close Farm, we turn to the left, and up past Weecher Reservoir - before turning right to briefly follow a road. With this short stint of road walking complete (there is a verge to walk along), we then turn left to take on what is normally a fairly marshy route across Ilkley Moor.

Today though, the marshy ground is not our primary focus - because up here we have plenty of snow - with the depth of this snow increasing as we continue to gain height.

Plenty of snow about today

What results is quite an unusual landscape, with at times fairly deep drifts of snow - but with this broken up by little ponds of shallow water (what I think would normally be your main obstacle along this section of path).

For those used to walking along the Pennines, this sort of terrain will be familiar (aside from the snow) - and on the Pennines you either need great weather or fairly hardy boots. And during periods of heavy rainfall these aren't always the most enjoyable places to go walking.

But with it being such fresh and fluffy snow, the going is not too hard - and fortunately we are able to follow the footsteps of those who have passed before - which help tell if a step is going to be a shallow or deep depth of snow (on the sections which hadn't been walked deer tracks could be used to the same effect).

On my way I pass an older couple, who I have a chat to about the area and about Teesside (where I've come from today) - whilst a jogger eventually makes it past me with a slightly bemused Spaniel in tow (who is having particular trouble with the deeper sections of snow).

As the jogger draws level with me, we both face a fairly deep section of snow - where it has accumulated into a drift that means the snow comes up above our knees.

But with this jogger now ahead, I can follow in his footsteps through the least traveled sections of the path - but in any case, it is great to have some weather other than rain to enjoy today, and the sky is also beautifully clear.

A snowy landscape

Following the footprints across the Moor

Although the snow shows no sign of melting, it is actually pretty warm (with no wind) - and upon passing a Stone Circle we suddenly find a mass of people out for a snow laden walk.

This Stone Circle goes by the name of the 'Twelve Apostles', but it used to have between 16 and 20 stones, and so the name is a bit daft really.

This may have been the site of a burial cairn, and is thought to be a Neolithic site - but whilst it's full history is fairly unclear, these moorlands are common sites for ancient monuments.

From here, we join a busy route that heads on down towards Ilkley Crags, where we get views out over the town of Ilkley below - and it is clear that the population of the town is greatly expanded on the weekend, as people head over for a spot of walking.

Looking out over Ilkley, and out towards Beamsley Moor beyond

Looking out across Ilkley, the ridge on the far side is similarly snow lined - and that ridge lies at the southern end of Nidderdale - which whilst not in the Yorkshire Dales national park, is very similar geography to the Dales.

From here we work our way down Ilkley Crags - heading down a busy set of steps, and then down an icy gravel path that takes us the rest of the way down the ridge. And then from the base of the ridge we find ourselves following a path that tracks only slightly above the rest of Ilkley.

Having reached the edge of Ilkley

Quite a pleasant route past the houses

Having a chat with some of the locals

Ilkley itself seems like a very nice place. The paths here are very well done, and it is clearly a place that is setup for outdoorsy people, who actually want to be able to walk out their front door, and head straight into the outdoors. 

And so whilst it is a fairly busy place to go for a walk, it is also an enjoyable place to be passing through (although we don't see too much of it on our way by).

Here you do have the option of splitting up the walk further, as there is a train station in Ilkley - and although the station is a terminus (the line used to run all the way to Skipton, but that extension closed in the 1960s), the town is popular enough to still merit a half hourly train service on weekdays and Saturdays.

We will come back to Ilkley later in the year to walk the Dales Way from here over to Ribblehead, but for now we continue on - and our path takes us on past the slightly concerningly named Swastika Stone.

Fortunately, the carving on this stone dates back to either the Neolithic or Bronze Age - and so rather than being a sign that the people of Ilkely are proud Nazi's, this is in fact just another indication of the ancient habitation of this area. And with that fresh news we can stop running, slow our pace a bit, and continue to enjoy our walk again.

Now leaving behind Ilkley

Looking down at the plain below (towards Addingham)

From here we have about a mile of walking along this ridge - and up here the snow shows no sign of melting away, with the path quieter now that we have opened up a small gap between us and Ilkley (for reference, visitors to Ilkley seem to predominantly congregate around the Cow and Calf Car Park east of Ilkley Crags).

For those after a quiet walk in the Ilkley area, my advice would be to come by train, skip the crowds, and to walk this more peaceful section of path - with it being possible to loop back into Ilkley along the Dales Way from Addingham.

Looking back towards Ilkley

Looking back from further along the ridge

Looking out towards what I think is the direction of Keighley

Eventually though it is time to say goodbye to this winter wonderland - for our next task is to head down the ridge, and to Addingham - on the plain below.

Dropping down off the ridge

On the way down, we pass through what seems to be a natural cut in the rock, and then curve round to the east, as the path seeks out a suitable route down off the ridge.

Before long, we are heading more directly north - as we make our way down to Addingham Moorside. And here we pass close to another prehistoric marking - marked on the map as Cup & Rings marked Rock - which is again believed to date to the Late Neolithic or Bronze Age period of history.

And if you take a look on your map, you will find that there are quite a few of these carved rocks in the area, many of which date back to a similar period of prehistory.

But from Addingham Moorside, we are now heading across green farmland - and whilst the ground is in general still fairly frozen, there are a few patches where we step down into oozing mud.

Looking back across the ridge we have been following

Green grass, and what I think is Barden Fell

But you need not worry too much about the muddy fields here, for once we make it safely across the A65, we are faced with a very wet and muddy route along paths, which were clearly built by someone who was not a great believer in drainage (and so you will get your feet muddy anyway!).

Unless you walk this section during a period of extreme drought, I suspect you will encounter the same wet and muddy route past Addingham - because the road drains straight down onto the footpath. 

Here it might be more enjoyable to head north earlier - and to walk through, rather than round, Addingham.

As it is though, I make it round Addingham - and once again cross over the A65, before heading out along a track (at this point it is a minor road), which we will follow all the way round to Skipton (over a distance of about 5 miles).

But whilst this lane sounds fairly unexciting on paper, it is taking a fairly high route across this terrain - and it is a fairly long climb up from Addingham, as we head up past the small wind farm near the peak of Draughton Moor.

The lane up from Addingham (with the snow capped ridge behind)

The wind turbines at Draughton Moor

As we close in on the peak of this ridge at Draughton Moor, the lane turns into a grassy track - and we are now following a fairly flat ridge, that will take us on across Skipton Moor.

High enough for some light snow now (looking back)

Looking out across Chelker Reservoir (towards Bolton Abbey)

From here on some level of snow cover will remain until we start dropping down into Skipton, and here we also start to get a better view of the hills that lie at the southern end of the Yorkshire Dales (to the north of Skipton).

Looking out towards the hills north of Skipton

Looking back from a slight dip in the path (just about got some snow here)

And now we start passing the odd walker, heading out from Skipton for the winter equivalent of an evening walk - and it is here that we get the best views out towards Skipton itself.

The town itself can really be thought of as a bit of a border town - with it remaining fairly well integrated into the well-populated areas of Burnley, Bradford and Leeds, but with the significantly less populated Yorkshire Dales running up from here northwards.

And so here we have a last outlier of civilization, before any further walking takes you into the Dales towns of Settle, Malham and Horton-in-Ribblesdale.

Towards Embsay Moor

Our snowy path towards Skipton

Looking down on Skipton itself

Eventually this lane comes to an end - and at Jenny Gill, we drop down through the woods on a muddy path that is doubling up as a drainage channel for a decent chunk of the water heading down from Skipton Moor.

This path turns into a lane, but it's quite a muddy lane, with a lot of mud coming down off the moors with the water - and as this lane turns into a proper road I take the time to clean up my shoes in one of the streams coming down off the hills.

But from here we enter civilisation again, cutting down through the very centre of town, where the Dales High Way turns off to head on towards Sharp Haw, Gordale Scar, Malham Cove and Settle - whilst our path takes us on to the shop and our train home.

Total Distance: 18.5 miles (17.4 miles on the Dales High Way itself)

Total Ascent: 2,500 feet (2,490 feet on the Dales High Way itself)

Enjoyment Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ ★ / 5

The snow made for a particularly special day that really deserved the full 5-stars, but I have judged this walk based upon how enjoyable it would normally be - and in normal conditions I think it would be the slightly lower (but still good) rating of 4-stars.

Click for the next section of the Dales High Way from Skipton to Settle.

Disclaimer: This writeup provides a narrative of what to expect rather than a route guide to follow. The route is covered by the 103 (not really needed though) and 104 (covers 99% of the route) OS Landranger maps - while there is also a Dales High Way guidebook which includes OS mapping (links redirect to Amazon). The route would be very hard to follow without a map, but there are waymarks in key places