Stainforth Force and Catrigg Force

From the car park in Stainforth the walk goes down a lane to the packhorse bridge over the River Ribble and the cascades of Stainforth Force, where the river drops over limestone ledges against a wooded bank; the Ribble Rivers Trust says the bridge was built in 1675 and given to the National Trust in 1931. It returns through the village and climbs by a lane and tracks to the north-east, crosses the fields on footpaths and drops to Catrigg Force, where Catrigg Beck falls about 6 m into a narrow rocky gorge. The way home is down Goat Scar Lane, a track with views over Ribblesdale, to the village.

It is 6.2 km round with 194 m of ascent; allow about 2 hours. The grade is Easy: the climbs are steady rather than steep, apart from the short path down to the gorge.

The gorge at Catrigg Force is steep and the rocks round the top of the fall are slippery with spray, so keep children and dogs back from the edge. Cattle and sheep graze the fields, so keep dogs on a lead. The lanes at either end carry some traffic, and the lane to the packhorse bridge is narrow. The Ribble Rivers Trust says October and November, especially after heavy rain, are the best months to see salmon leaping at Stainforth Force.

Stainforth car park is run by the Yorkshire Dales National Park, which charges everyone to park there and says its daily charges run from 6am to midnight. The nearest station is Settle, about 4 km away.

Route drawn by Global Adventurer along OpenStreetMap paths (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), with figures worked out from it. Check the forecast and the ground on the day: paths change.