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Saunterings: Walking in North-West England
Saunterings is a set of reflections based upon walks around the counties of Cumbria, Lancashire and
North Yorkshire in North-West England
(as defined in the Preamble).
Here is a list of all Saunterings so far.
If you'd like to give a comment, correction or update (all are very welcome) or to
be notified by email when a new item is posted - please send an email to johnselfdrakkar@gmail.com.
222. What’s Great about Great Knoutberry Hill
Should my title have a ?? Am I about to query whether Great Knoutberry Hill
deserves its ‘Great’? Or is the title the beginning of a statement saying that
what’s great about Great Knoutberry Hill is …? Actually, it’s a bit of both.
So picture half a ?.
My plan to tackle Great Knoutberry Hill from Dentdale was thwarted by
a ‘road closed’ sign. So instead I set off from Newby Head on the B6255,
with much of my walk to be along the Pennine Bridleway, which I knew to be an
excellent path. Moreover, starting at Newby Head (at about 400 metres) meant
that I had only 270 metres or so to climb to reach the top of Great Knoutberry
Hill, which is less than the ascent up my local hill, Caton Moor (and I know
that I can manage that).
As I set off I was surrounded by the sound of skylarks, plus the
occasional curlew. However, as the bridleway path rose to skirt Wold Fell the
bird song disappeared, leaving silence. No doubt, the birds prefer to nest
on lower, more sheltered terrain. I strode on and within an hour had reached
the path that rises from the Arten Gill Viaduct.
Approaching the Arten Gill track, Great Knoutberry Hill ahead
I crossed the Arten Gill path to take the track that runs at about 500 metres
around the western flank of Great Knoutberry Hill. If I had to vote for the
best walking track in the Yorkshire Dales I think I might opt for this one.
It used to be part of the Galloway Gate drove road but today it is quiet (apart
from the occasional Settle-Carlisle train below, although there were none
during my walk). From the track there are extensive views into the green valley
of Dentdale and there’s an evolving panorama of surrounding hills (which I’ll
name in a minute), as the track curves north.
From the Galloway Gate track, to the Arten Gill Viaduct and upper Dentdale,
with Ingleborough and Whernside beyond
From the Galloway Gate track, to Dentdale
At a gate directly east of Dent Station below, I left the track to walk up to the top
of Great Knoutberry Hill. There’s a faint path by the fence, probably a bit
boggy after wet weather but otherwise easy going. It is uphill every step but
it is nowhere steep. At last, I reached the top. Great Knoutberry Hill is
hardly an impressive hill. It is the highest point of the huge bulk of Widdale
Fell that extends north-eastwards for five miles or so. The rest of Widdale
Fell is rarely visited, I assume. It has no features of interest that I am aware
of, so it hasn’t attracted me.
The top of Great Knoutberry Hill, looking towards Baugh Fell and
Wild Boar Fell
Great Knoutberry Hill, at 672 metres, is the 16th highest of the Yorkshire Dales hills.
Of the 15 higher hills only three (Great Shunner Fell, Great Whernside (not to
be confused with Whernside) and Great Coum) have Greatness
bestowed upon them. So Great Knoutberry Hill hardly deserves its Great on the basis
of its height. The main thing going for Great Knoutberry Hill is the view from the
top – “it’s a superb viewpoint, the best in the Yorkshire Dales National Park”,
according to Sellers (1984).
By the way, I have a number of walking books on my shelves and only one of
them is written by a woman. Gladys Sellers wrote several walking guides, to the
Pennines, Bowland, the Ribble Way, and so on. I still find her Dales guide excellent,
over forty years on. I also like the fact that there’s a modesty about the book.
There’s nothing to tell us who she was or what else she had written. Apart from the
front pages, there’s nothing in the text to indicate that it is written by a woman
(but why should there be?).
I’ve tried to find out more about Gladys Sellers, without much success.
There’s a 1994 obituary in the pages of Yorkshire Ramblers Club which I assume is
of her. It’s only a few lines long, which seems rather skimpy for a woman who
served on its committee for 48 years, being president twice. It says that she
was “a sound mountaineer, pot-holer and downhill-skier” and a “truly remarkable
woman”, as I’m sure she was. Perhaps someone will revive her memory.
Back to the view. We see (and I put in brackets the ones too indistinct
for me to really see on this occasion), circling from the east: Dodd Fell,
Pen-y-ghent, (Pendle), Ingleborough, (the Bowland hills), Whernside, Great Coum,
Middleton Fell, the Howgills, Aye Gill Pike, (Lake District hills), Baugh Fell,
Wild Boar Fell, (North Pennines), Mallerstang Edge, and Great Shunner Fell. Perhaps
all that warrants a Great.
Just north of the top there’s a tarn, Widdale Great Tarn (shown right), and I
walked over to have a look at it. It seemed a dreary place to me. Just north of
it there’s another but smaller tarn, Widdale Little Tarn. Ah, perhaps there’s a hint
there. Nobody would look at the former tarn and consider it Great. It is only Great
in comparison to the Little tarn. Could something similar be true of Great Knoutberry Hill?
Sure enough, two miles north-east of Great Knoutberry Hill there’s a Little
Knoutberry Hill named on the map. Are all Great hills accompanied by a Little
sibling? Of the 854 hills of North-Western England
(listed in Sauntering 124),
eleven of those over 600 metres are named Great Something. Of that eleven,
six of them are indeed accompanied by a Little Something. These are: Great Calva,
Great Dodd, Great Dun Fell, Great Knoutberry Hill, Great Shunner Fell and Great
Whernside. Also, Great Coum has a Little Combe nearby, which is near enough.
Perhaps we can include Great Gable here too, as it has Green Gable nearby. So
with these eight we might say that their Greatness is relative, that is, in
comparison to a lesser hill nearby.
There are therefore three hills called Great Something in North-Western
England higher than 600 metres that are unaccompanied by a lesser hill of the same
surname. These hills are Great in the own splendid, independent right. Can you
name these truly Great hills?
On the bridleway back, Pen-y-ghent and Ingleborough ahead (I saw nobody
on this or any other path all day)
The three truly Great hills are Great Borne, Great End and Great Rigg. The highest of
these is Great End, which is therefore our Greatest hill. Regardless of all that,
our Greatest hill is obviously Great Gable.
Date: April 25th 2025
Start: SD795836, layby on B6255 at Newby Head (Map: OL2)
Route: W – Pennine Bridleway – N – Arten Gill track – N, W, NW, N on
Galloway Gate track – gate at Green Bank – E – Great Knoutberry Hill – SE – Arten Gill track
– W, S on Pennine Bridleway, E – layby
Distance: 8 miles; Ascent: 270 metres
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© John Self, 2018-
Top photo: Rainbow over Kisdon in Swaledale;
Bottom photo: Ullswater