Hackfall Wood ~ Medium Walk

Distance Covered: 2 miles   Time to complete walk: 2 hours

Safety Tips: A highly enjoyable walk with no big safety issues. The river is Ure is fast flowing so stick to dry land.

Discover a magical wood, with a waterfall, grotto, castle, fountain pond and many other secrets. Ideal for families with children or  just those who are big kids at heart, once you visit Hackfall Wood you're sure to return...

 

 

The Hackfall Wood walk

 

Getting There

 

From Middlesbrough follow the A19 south to Thirsk. Look for the A61 right turn off to Ripon. Follow the A61 until you come to the A1608 turn off. Follow this to Masham which is well signposted. When you reach Masham follow the road out of Masham which is called Thorpe Road and look for the car park on your left for Hackfall. The car park is small and often full. Alternative parking can be found in the next village, Grewelthorpe.

 

The Walk 

 

 

Map of Hackfall Wood

 

From the car park, make sure you pick up a map of the wood. They are kept well stocked up and you would be lost without one. Follow the route for the longer walk. Make a note of your position as the P for parking on the map. Follow the meadow downhill until you reach the wood. The woods are spectacular in the Autumn so get your camera ready. Also take a good pair of boots and a walking stick as it can get muddy in places.

 

 

Entrace to Hackfall

  

 

On entering the woods through a gate make a note of your bearing on the map. You are near Limehouse Hill on the map and whichever route you take will take you to the banks of the River Ure. There is an excellent beach to stop at and take in your surroundings.

 

 

Beach on the river bank

  

 

Follow the rivers bank path passing the Sandbed Hut on your right. Eventually you will come to a series of stepping stones. Instead of crossing the stream at this point double back and follow the path upwards to Fishers Hall. This is an intriguing building which can be used for a pitstop.

  

 

 

Fishers Hall

 

Continue up the path from Fishers Hall and turn right and you will soon come across The Grotto. If you sit on the seat in The Grotto you will be able to see the third attraction in this area, the Forty Foot Fall. You will probably want to linger here a while. It has a magical atmosphere!.

 

 

The Grotto

 

 



If you can tear yourself away from these stunning views, continue on the path until you come to another folly, the Rustic Temple and the Fountain Pond. If you're lucky the Fountain will be on.

 

 

 

Rustic Temple

 

 

If you continue on this path you will find yourself at a log fence. If you hop over this and turn left this will take you back to the car park. However if you double back and cross the stream by the stepping stones, this path will take you to a fork in the path. If you again double back to your right, this path will take you past the other attractions, the Castle, Alum Spring and the Mowbray Point and Ruin.

 

 



 

Hackfall Wood

 

It was probably sometime towards the end of August 1816 when Turner visited Hackfall, whilst exploring Lower Wensleydale between Ripon and Middleham.  In Turner's day Hackfall was famous as one of the finest and largest wild gardens in Britain.

Between West Tanfield and Masham, the River Ure cuts a winding route through high ground. Set in a 350ft gorge on the edge of Grewelthorpe, the site was bought in 1731 by John Aislabie, famous for his landscaping work at nearby Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal.  The most dramatic section at Hackfall was laid out as a woodland garden by his son, William, around 1750. There are pathways, grottos, follies, springs, ponds and waterfalls, on a grand scale, and Hackfall was one of the most important managed landscapes of its kind and period in Britain.

The woods are now owned by the Woodland Trust and in the care of the Hackfall Trust, and considerable work has been done since 2002 to recover this 'lost landscape' and to preserve the historic buildings and improve access.  Hackfall is now a Grade 1 registered landscape garden and a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).  The recent restoration work has been made possible due to a grant of almost £1 million from the Heritage Lottery Fund and further grants from the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Yorventure.