Distance: 4 miles Time to complete walk: 2 hours
Safety Tips: Be careful at the waterfall- Hardraw Force is literally a force of nature after heavy rain and needless to say the path near the waterfall will be slippy - take a walking stick. The stiles on the walk are referred to as squeeze stiles, bear this in mind as on the middle part of the walk there are a lot of stiles to negotiate.
This walk is highly recommended to be done after heavy rain. The route will be unaffected as it is a well worn route and much of it is on a flagged pavement. The waterfall is simply jaw dropping after heavy rain and you can feel the full force of nature and the power of this wonderful waterfall. The walk itself is a nice ramble through well worn field paths and flagged paths over numerous squeeze type stiles. Bear in mind that there is an entrance fee of £2.50 to visit the waterfall- it is well worth it!. Parking is at the Dales Countryside Museum and it £2.50 for two hours - take some change. A visit to the museum either before or after the walk would be highly recommended.
The Hardraw Force walk
Getting There
From Middlesbrough, take the A19 south to the Northallerton turn off. Follow the A684 after Northallerton to the Yorkshire Dales and through the town of Leyburn. Keep on the A684 until you reach Hawes. Look for right turning signed to the Dales Countryside Museum and the car park is where the walk starts.
Map of the Hardraw Force walk
The Walk
From the car park head to the right of the toilets and climb some steps to reach the road above.
The Dales Countryside Museum
Take the steps up to the road above
Turn right on the road and follow the road ahead and head towards the industrial estate to the left. Almost immediately leave through a kissing gate on the right to cut across the field on a flagged path. Rejoin the road on the other side.
Head to the left towards the industrial estate
Go through the kissing gate and follow the flagged path
Rejoin the road and cross over the bridge over the River Ure and 100 yards ahead look for a stile on the right.
Cross the bridge
Go through the stile on the right
Follow the path and cross over a hump back bridge at the edge of the woods.
Go over the bridge
Follow the path which rises and go through more stiles and emerge onto a lane.
Go through several stiles
On the lane cross over to the stile on the other side. Follow the path which is signposted to Sedbusk on the fields afhead. Head to the left of a barn and to another stile in the top right hand corner of the field.
Head towards the barn
Follow the path to the left of the barn
Emerging onto another lane, head towards another stile to the right which is signposted to Simonstone.
Turn right on the lane
Go through stile signposted to Simonstone
In the field ahead head towards a stile to the left half way up the field.
Head to the stile on the left half way up the field
Go through the stile
The way head is now through a number of stiles which all head in the same direction towards Simonstone. When you see the village coming into view head through a few farmyards and fields and eventually you will emerge on a road.
Head over and through the stiles
Emerge onto the road
Turn left on the road and immediately follow the track up to Simonstone Hall Hotel which is well signposted.
Turn right and head towards Simonstone Hall Hotel
Just before the hotel look for a small gate on the left and head onto the path which passes under the hotel gardens to the right
Go through the small gate on the left
Go through another stile and then past a farmhouse to another squeeze type stile.
Head towards the farmhouse
Go through the stile at the farmhouse
Go to the left and head towards Hardraw through fields and emerge at the Green Dragon Inn.
Head down the field
Emerge at the Green Dragon Inn
Head to the right of the Inn on a path which will take you to the Visitors Centre. A charge of £2.50 will need to be paid to access the waterfall.
Access the waterfall at the Visitor Centre
Follow the path ahead towards the waterfall- you need to head to the right to see the waterfall. There are a number of picnic tables to have refreshments on after you visit the waterfall or you could visit the Green Dragon Inn.
Views of Hardraw Force
You are able to walk behind the waterfall if you take care. After you finish your visit, head to the right of the Green Dragon inn and look for a telephone box.
Telephone Box
Take the path to the left of the telephone box signed as the Penine Way. Head through a stile and follow the flagged path ahead.
Go through the stile
Follow the path which then merges onto a grassy track and keep the wall to your right.
Follow the flagged path
Keep on the grassy path
Soon you will emerge back onto a road. Turn right and follow the road back into Hawes and the carpark.
Follow the road back to Hawes
Hardraw Force
Comprising a single drop of 100 feet (30 m) from a rocky overhang, Hardraw Force is claimed to be England's highest unbroken waterfall– at least discounting underground falls. (The underground waterfall inside nearby Gaping Gill on the western flank of Ingleborough has an unbroken fall of over 300 feet (91 m).)
Geologically, the bed of the river and plunge pool is shale; on top of that is sandstone and the top layer is carboniferous limestone.
Public viewing of Hardraw Force is rather unusual, as the visitor has to go through the bar of the Green Dragon Inn public house in Hardraw to reach the falls; an entrance fee is payable on the way through the pub. It is currently £2.50 per adult, £1.50 per child.Access behind the falls is now prohibited.
Both J. M. W. Turner and William Wordsworth have visited the waterfall and both men stayed at the Green Dragon Inn.
The falls were used as a location in the film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, in the scene where Maid Marian catches Robin Hood bathing under a waterfall.Hardraw Force is the setting for a brass band competition held annually on the second Sunday in September. The competition was first held in the falls' natural amphitheatre in 1884 when six bands took part; the competition lapsed in 1927 but was revived in 1976 and has gone from strength to strength since. In recent years two other musical events have started up at the falls: the Hawdraw Bash is a Folk Rock concert in early July and the Hardraw Gathering is a three-day festival of traditional music at the end of July.
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