Clapham to Austwick including the Norber Erratics.

Start. Clapham.

Route. Clapham - Thwaite Lane (track) - New Close Plantation - Robin Proctor's Scar - Norber - Dear Bought Plantation - Thwaite Lane - Town Head - Austwick - Clapham.

Notes. Family day out today, I had to pick somewhere that would interest a nine year old budding rambler. With me, Sue, my daughter Kirsten, her partner Adam and the star of the show granddaughter Luna who likes to know everything, in detail, and insists on being called daughter of daughter. As it turned out this was a perfect walk for daughter of daughter and any other children for that matter. Not too hard, plenty of interest and an easy field walk back, which Luna ran most of the way because the first person back to the car got the last piece of flapjack.

Our day started behind Clapham Church originally built 800 years ago but re-built by the Farrer family of Ingleborough Hall in 1814, they also built the tunnels in Thwaite Lane to hide the estate grounds from passers by, at the time Thwaite Lane was the main route between Clapham and Austwick. It was this lane that guided us through the tunnels and out into the limestone scenery and big skies of the Yorkshire Dales.

East we walked, Thwaite Lane under foot, ignoring Long Lane on the left we continued until reaching a stile also on the left, this allowed access to New Close Plantation a large cow pasture. We crossed said stile and continued towards the climbing cliffs of Robin Proctor’s Scar. Legend tells us Robin Proctor was a local farmer whom got lost in thick fog, loosing his baring he rode over the edge, obviously killing himself and his horse, or they wouldn’t have named the scar after him.

The path cut under the limestone cliffs and rivers of scree before crossing a ladder stile, it was then Luna, map in hand decided she'd found a better way up, I thought it best to let her go so followed at a discreet distance leaving the others to continue the right way. Imagine how chuffed she was when she got it right and we arrived in the Norber Boulder Fields ahead the rest of the party. I spent some time explaining these boulders were sandstone and didn’t belong there, moved by glaciers then dumped when the ice sheet melted over 12.000 years ago, I continued to explain that 12.000 years of erosion had left many on tiny plinths, the softer limestone eroding around them.

By the time the others caught up she knew all about erratic boulders, after spending sometime exploring we descended the main trod passed Nappa Scar then through sheep pastures to access Thwaite Lane once more, but it wasn’t back to Clapham just yet. A hundred or so yards east a stile allowed access to field paths, this we crossed before descending into Austwick. Folk law tells us the residents of Austwick believed whenever the cuckoo arrived so did good weather, so to keep the summer they built a cage around the nest but the bird flew before it was finished, Luna frowned, she was having none of it.

We strolled through the village to reach a finger-post promising passage to Clapham, field walking then guided us back. Man has lived and farmed these fields for over 4.000 years, archaeological finds include prehistoric burial places, a large Bronze Age Settlement and an Iron Age Settlement. Above the path were Lynchetts earth terraces dug by Anglo Saxon farmers over a thousand years ago, but I couldn’t tell her any of this because Kirsten had said “the first person back to the car gets the last piece of Flapjack", Luna was fields ahead, although the route was straight forward and simple somebody had to catch her up and make sure she stayed on track. Adam took on the challenge as he has the longest legs and can cover ground quicker.

view route map.

home.

Thwaite Lane under Ingleborough Hall Estate.

Ascending Thwaite Lane, Luna decides she's taking over navigation.

From Thwaite Lane views to the limestone scars of Thwaite.

Looking to Studrigg Scar and White Stones from the stile in Thwaite Lane.

Cloud shadows race across the fields under Thwaite, to the left in sunlight Ingleborough.

A curtain of cliffs and scree Robin Proctor's Scar.

Erratic boulder in the fields below Robin Proctor's Scar.

Luna's way up with stunning views over Ribblesdale.

Almost there looking pleased as punch.

From the edge of Norber views unrivaled for miles.

Norber Erratics one of the finest groups of erratic boulders in the country.

Viewing the tiny hamlet of Thwaite (you can just make it out) with Malham Moor reaching across the horizon.

Erratic boulder, the one most people come to photograph, it shows 12,000 years of erosion perfectly.

A pooling of Yorkshire's lesser heights, Smearsett Scar, Pot Scar and In Moor.

Rising up out of Crummack Dale, Moughton.

Still exploring Norber, still looking to Moughton and the cliffs of Studrigg Scar.

Letting Norber Boulder Fields work their magic.

Traversing sheep pastures below Norber looking to the massive cliffs of Robin Proctor's Scar.

A quick glance back to Norber.

Traversing fields near Austwick looking to the distant hills of the Bowland Forest.

A quintessential part of the Yorkshire Dales, the field barn, sadly a lot of them are no longer in use.

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