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WALK 5 - Trollers Gill and Kail Hill This
is an easy walk beginning with a pleasant stroll
along the Dales Way footpath. The river scenery is
spectacular and panoramic views unfold
throughout. Trollers
Gill This
is an easy walk beginning with a pleasant stroll
along the Dales Way footpath. The river scenery is
spectacular and panoramic views unfold
throughout. Barden
Bridge, with its three high arches and angled
buttresses, is a very elegant and impressive
structure. The bridge was rebuilt in 1676 after
being washed away in the disastrous flood of 1673.
Bridges at Kettlewell, Burnsall, Bolton, Ilkley and
Otley were also destroyed in the same flood.
Barden
Tower, sited on the main road above the bridge, was
built in the eleventh century as a hunting lodge in
the Forest of Barden. It was rebuilt and the keep
enlarged in 1485. The ruined but imposing shell of
the tower remains. There is a chapel next to it and
traces of an outer curtain wall and gate.
During
most of its 900 year history the tower was owned by
the Clifford Family who held title to the Honour of
Skipton. In 1461, their estates were seized by
Edward IV after the ninth Lord, 'Butcher' Clifford,
was killed at the Battle of Towton. On the
accession of Henry VII, in 1485, the estates were
restored to Henry Clifford. Henry
was known as the 'Shepherd Lord.' Lady Clifford,
fearing that the Yorkists might harm her son, had
sent him to be raised secretly by a shepherd at
Threlkeld near Keswick. In 1513, at the age of
sixty, Henry led an army from local villages to
help defeat James IV of Scotland at Flodden Field.
From
Barden a pleasant riverside path is followed to
Howgill Bridge and after a short climb to Howgill
Lane there are extensive views of the dale. The
route continues through the meadows to the peaceful
hamlet of Skyreholme and on to Parcevall Hall.
Parcevall
Hall stands in sixteen acres of exquisitely
landscaped gardens with terraces, woodlands and
nurseries. It is stocked with many rare plants and
shrubs. The gardens are open to the public from
Easter to October. Early records suggest that it
was first called Parson's Hall, which is
appropriate today because the Hall is now used as a
retreat for the Diocese of Bradford. The
path to Troller's Gill passes the former Skyreholme
Dam. The dam, which supplied water for a paper mill
in the village, burst in 1899 and was never
repaired. The mill is said to have had the largest
waterwheel in the North of England. Troller's
Gill is a narrow, steep-sided limestone ravine
about 300 yards long and just a few yards wide. The
gill is usually dry but, after heavy rain, it can
become a raging torrent. According to local
folklore a barguest, the 'Spectre Hound of Craven,'
lives in a cave near the gill. A cobbler from
Thorpe, who had lost his way, saw the barguest and
described it as, "Yellow, wi such eyes! they war as
big as saucers. This mun be a barguest, thowt I,
an' counted mesel for dead!" He escaped by crossing
the beck. A barguest cannot cross running water!
After
visiting the gill, the path leads to the remains of
the Gill Head Mine. The mine closed long ago, but
it was reworked for fluorite in the 1970's by a
group of local men. The fluorite was concentrated
in one large deposit at the side of the old lead
vein. During
the descent to Woodhouse there are excellent views
of Simon's Seat, Barden Moor, Thorpe Fell and the
deep valley of Barben Beck. The dome shaped hill in
the foreground is Kail Hill which is a good example
of a reef knoll. Reef knolls are composed of pure
limestone, rich in coral fossils and were formed
330 million years ago. An Iron Age camp existed on
the summit of Kail Hill and a grinding stone was
found near the site. From
Woodhouse a riverside path is followed back to
Barden, allowing more of the River Wharfe's scenery
and wildlife to be enjoyed. |
