THURSDAY, JUNE 18, 2015 The Northern Echo 39 Walks what’son Walks and Conistone

dry valleys and outcrops all around. on, passing some barns on your Walk information From Dib Beck, a track leads down right, to reach two gates at the end to Conistone with superb views of the walled track. Head through Distance: 10.75 km (6.7 miles) towards the impressive bulk of the right-hand gate and walk Time: 3 hours Crag. From Conistone, straight on across the field, through a footpath leads up through the a gateway in a wall then straight on Maps: Ordnance Survey Explorer spectacular dry limestone valley of (bearing very slightly to the right) OL2 - always carry an OS map on Conistone Dib, one of the ‘natural to reach a wall-stile that leads into your walk wonders’ of the Dales. Grass Wood. Parking: Large pay & display This deep steep-sided gorge was car park along Hebden Road at scoured out by glacial meltwaters Grassington towards the end of the last Ice Age Cross the stile, and follow the when the permafrost prevented 2clear path straight on rising Refreshments: Plenty of choice at steadily up through the woods for Grassington.No facilities en route. the water from seeping down (triangular junction with maypole through the limestone bed-rock. In 275 metres to reach an obvious fork Terrain: Farm tracks and field and old signpost) along the road places, Conistone Dib closes in to in the path, where you follow the paths lead to Grass Wood, and then then almost immediately right little more than a narrow passage right-hand path, rising steadily up a path leads up through the woods again along a track across the beneath towering limestone crags. through the woods for a further to reach Dib Beck. A narrow path 575 metres to reach a crossroads of village ‘green’, bearing right crosses this limestone ravine (steep paths (4-finger signpost). Turn right at the fork up to reach a metal in places with drops to the side at this crossroads of paths (signpost gate to the right of the houses of the path) before a grassy track The walk ‘Bastow Wood) and follow the clear at the top of the green (signpost leads down to Conistone. A rocky path up through the woods for 200 ‘Conistone Dib’). Head through path then heads up through the From Grassington’s Market metres to reach a wall-stile, after the gate and follow the path ahead right-hand path heading straight dry limestone valley of Conistone 1Square, walk up the Main which follow the path meandering up through a narrow limestone on down for 225 metres to reach a Dib, with some simple rock steps. Street to reach the Town Hall (The through the woods (tree cover ravine (Conistone Dib). The path wall-stile at the end of the rough Grassy paths then head across Lea Devonshire Institute) where you gradually thins). After about 350 soon opens out into a steep-sided pastures of Lea Green. Cross the Green back to Grassington. turn left along Chapel Street. Head metres, the path emerges from dry valley (scree slopes) and leads stile and follow the path straight Caution: The path that traverses straight on along this road then, as the sparse woodland and leads on up to reach a bridle-gate in a wall on across the field to soon reach Dib Beck is quite steep, with steep you reach Town Head, turn right up across undulating grassy limestone across your path. Continue along another wall-stile, after which head drops to the side of the path. The along Bank Lane (signpost ‘Dales terrain and then down to reach a this footpath heading steadily to the left skirting around the large section up through Conistone Dib Way, , Bycliffe Road, gate in a wall across your path. up along the bottom of the deep field (keeping close to the wall is narrow in places with some short Grass Wood Lane, Moor Lane’) and valley for 450 metres then, as you on your left) to reach a wall-stile approach the end of this field, turn ‘scrambles’ up rocky steps. follow this walled lane up out of the Do NOT head through this gate in the far left-corner of the field. right up through a gate. After the village. Continue on along this lane 3but turn left immediately before Cross the stile and walk straight on Points of interest for 225 metres to reach a junction it and follow the path straight on gate, follow the clear grassy track across the field, which gradually of tracks (at a small stream), where then, where the path forks after a heading up through a dry side- narrows, to reach a wall-stile to you turn left through a wall-gate valley then, where it levels out, your left (just before Town Head UST to the north-west of short distance, follow the right- (signpost ‘, Kettlewell, continue straight on to reach a stile Farm). Cross this stile and head Grassington lies Grass Wood, hand path (wall on your right) that Grass Wood Lane’), over a small over a wall across your path (where to the left across the narrow field a beautiful swathe of ancient leads down into a rocky ravine (Dib footbridge across a stream and head you also join the clear Dales Way to soon reach a wall-stile to your Jsemi-natural woodland that Beck) and up the other side to a straight on across the field (Town path). right, then head straight on across once formed part of the much wall-stile (signpost). After the wall- head Farm across to your left), over the field back to join the enclosed larger Forest of . It stile turn left alongside a low wall a wall-stile then head left across track of Bank Lane. Turn right is a fascinating place with many on your left (ravine down to your the next field to reach another Cross the stile and follow the along this lane back down to join native tree species including left) then, where this wall ends, small wall-stile to your right at the 5very clear grassy path straight the road at Town Head where you oak, ash, hazel and birch as well carry straight on across the steep on across the flat limestone bottom of the narrow field that slopes of the ravine then, after a turn left back into Grassington. as over 70 varieties of flowering leads onto a rough track (that leads pastures for 1.3 km, crossing four plants that thrive in the calcareous while, the path heads up to the right more wall-stiles along the way (and out of the farmyard). Cross straight away from the ravine (waymarkers) soils beneath the tree canopy. It passing an old lime kiln). After the Mark Reid over this track (signpost ‘Grass to reach a gate in a wall. The path also boasts many archaeological fourth stile you come out onto the Walking Weekends 2015 Wood’) to quickly reach a wall-stile, now becomes a clear grassy track remains thus meriting Nature rough pastures of Lea Green (site The sociable way to enjoy the Great after which bear slightly right that leads straight on through a Reserve and Site of Special of Iron Age settlements) and a fork Outdoors. down a bank then heading to the series of gates for 1.1 km all the way Scientific Interest protection. in the path just beyond the stile - walkingweekenders.co.uk right down across the field to join down to Conistone. Just to the north of Grass Wood, the wall on your right which you follow the left-hand path heading TeamWalking our route crosses the impressive follow down to reach a squeeze-stile straight on across Lea Green for 1.1 Hill skills, team building experiences limestone ravine of Dib Beck. This in the bottom right corner of the Turn right along the road into km to reach an obvious fork in the in the great outdoors. whole area boasts some wonderful field that leads onto a walled track. 4the centre of Conistone where path in front of you (Grassington teamwalking.co.uk limestone scenery with pavements, Follow this walled track straight you turn right at the road junction comes into view ahead). Follow the

Countrydiary By Phil GatesBBirdwatch y Ian Kerr

OMATO sauce is strange stuff. Try to the masked crab. ARE birds which should now be in waved his arms to try to frighten it off but pour it out of a narrow-necked bottle Its elongated, oval far-flung breeding areas are the cheeky fox simply paused, looked at R continuing to appear in the region. A T and it gets stuck, but give it a shake carapace is about him and then carried on. and it will flow. That kind of behaviour, an inch and a half marsh warbler from eastern Europe sang His colony of around 60 pairs had just where solids surrounded by a film of liquid long and if you hold at Whitburn on Tuesday where last week’s re-established ten years after being wiped flow like water when you agitate them, is it with the head rosefinch also remained in song. However, out by an otter. Black-headed gulls are a called thixotropy, and it plays a big part for facing downwards its the pick of the rarities was a superb female common species and such loses have very many animals living on beaches. markings resemble red-necked phalarope in full breeding little impact on population levels. But the plumage which lingered for several days at Jump up and down on the sand near the a face. It burrows second incident involved a much rarer Grindon Lough in west Northumberland water’s edge and it will turn to sloppy quickly using rapid leg species, the avocet. when she should have been in Iceland or quicksand. Damp sand is as thixotropic movements to create Avocets, now well-established as breeders northern Scandinavia. as tomato sauce because its particles are quicksand and then around the north Tees marshes, have more surrounded by a film of water, and it’s uses its long antennae Foxes and otters can be a major problem recently colonised south Northumberland, this property that allows many seashore to form a breathing at this time of year for ground-nesting Britain’s most northerly breeding area. Six animals to burrow quickly. All they need tube to the surface. birds, as I’ve been reminded of by two pairs nesting on a sandbank at Cresswell to do is jiggle about a bit and then wriggle Some birds seem to master the secrets of recent incidents. The first involved a Pond all lost their eggs overnight. into the liquefied sand. At low tide sandy thixotropy, too. Watch wading birds probing farmer friend out doing his early morning Foxes and otters are resident and were checks on the sheep. beaches might seem like lifeless places the sand for their prey and you’ll sometimes the prime suspects. Both are wonderful but below your feet there are thousands see them jiggling their beaks rapidly, He noticed that black-headed gulls on a creatures to watch but they are always on of animals, including worms, sea urchins turning hard sand into liquid and making small lake were dive-bombing something at the look-out for an easy meal. and clams, together with vast numbers of it easier to catch hidden worms. Some gulls the water’s edge. Last year at another colony I twice saw smaller shrimp-like animals, all exploiting seem to learn the secret of thixotropy and He raced across on his quad bike across an otter take newly-fledged black-headed wet sand’s thixotropic properties. One patter their feet to turn sand into slurry, just in time to see a fox running from gulls by simply swimming underwater and of the most unusual sand burrowers is dislodging buried animals. nest to nest devouring eggs. He yelled and dragging them down.