Malham Cove with its 300 foot limestone walls.

Malham & Skipton

The small village of Malham is home to the National Park Centre, which is a mine of information for the local area and provides maps of local walks. At the time we visited access to the area was restricted due to the Foot and Mouth epidemic, things are now back to normal.

Malham is a magnet for dales visitors and Malham Cove is the most impressive feature, with 300 ft walls it is an awesome sight. It is a challenging climb but for the less adventurous a path at the side leads walkers to the top.

Also worth visiting are Gordale Scar with its waterfalls and Malham Tarn which is a natural lake 375 metres above sea level.

Where is Skipton?

A short ride from Malham is Skipton a bustling market town, known as the Gateway to the Dales. It is home to one of the best preserved medieval castles in England.

skipton dales view
Skipton is the capital of the Southern Dales, a sample of which is pictured here.

What to do in Skipton?

The town has lots of character and was made prosperous by the sheep market, and is still transformed into a large and busy market every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. The busy high street boasts many more shops than one would expect in a small town.

skipton grassington road
This is the road from Grassington entering Skipton, it continues past the medieval Church into the High Street.

Other attractions include a Waterways Festival in May, a Sheep Day in July and boat trips on the canal. Both the Leeds-Liverpool canal and the River Aire wind their way through the town, the canal is full of pleasure barges also the town is a favored meeting point for the many dales walkers.

town of Skipton
The attractive and historic town of Skipton, both the Leeds-Liverpool canal and the River Aire wind their way through the Town.

Just a few miles from Skipton is Bolton Abbey and the Embsay and Bolton Abbey Steam Railway.

Skipton and Malham can be reached from York using the A59 via Harrogate and then the A65.