Yesterday, my good friend Louise and I decided we needed a little day out together, a good laugh, a little walk and a good pub somewhere along the way. I decided that we catch the train to Garsdale, along the wonderful Settle to Carlisle route. The plan, to hopefully see red squirrels which scamper around the platforms and tracks at Garsdale station, the sculpture of Ruswarp the dog and then to catch the little bus to Hardraw to see the famous falls then lunch at Green Dragon inn.
The weather was kind to us for the first part of the day and as the bus was waiting for us when we arrived at Garsdale there was no time for squirrel spotting, this would have to wait for the return journey. The bus to Hardraw was around a 15 minutes journey, crossing over the boundary from Cumbria into North Yorkshire and beautiful Wensleydale.
Upon arrival at Hardraw, the walk to Hardraw Force was around a mile and as the fall is on private land there is a £4 charge (£2.50 for kiddies). The waterfall claims to be the highest single drop waterfall in England (100 feet) and is famous for the scene in Robin Hood Prince of Thieves where Maid Martian spots Robin Hood bathing under the waterfall. The fall cascades over Hardraw Scar, a limestone gorge and natural amphitheatre which adds to the awe inspiring, majestic setting. You are able to walk right up to the waterfall and we even walked behind it, although I have since read on the website that, for safety reasons, this is not permitted, although there are no such signs warning visitors against doing so. I would say that this was one of the most impressive waterfalls I’ve seen in this country and is well worth a visit and offers some wonderful photo opportunities.
Following our visit to the waterfall we had a table booked at the Green Dragon Inn, apparently interior scenes recently used for the latest series of All Creatures Great and Small. We filled our bellies and I had a couple of cracking pints of Timothy Taylor’s Landlord. The weather was still pleasant and discussions had arose concerning the bus trip back following some confusing information regarding pick up from the driver, which we did not think at the time to challenge.
Our assumption was that the bus would not be picking us up where we were dropped off and that we had to make our way to nearby Hawes, despite the timetable and locals advising that it did stop outside the inn. The walk to Hawes was due to take us around 35 minutes, giving us around 7/8 minutes to spare for the bus, doable but no time to saunter. We set off and of course the heavens opened! We arrived at Hawes pretty soaked, although my new waterproof jacket passed its test, Louise faired less favourably. We had time for a quick dram in The Crown before the bus arrived. Hawes looked a great little place and I wish we had had more time to explore, an excuse for a future visit!
Once on the bus, as promised earlier it was the same driver and a chance to clear up the confusion over pick up points. The driver confirmed it did pick up where he had dropped up but assumed we would walk to Hawes after our stop at Hardraw so that’s why told us about the Hawes pick up time. We could have stayed where we were and stayed dry although we would have been a little bit worse for wear with an extra hour in the pub, albeit much drier!
The plan was to be dropped at Garsdale station giving us a good 90 minutes to wait for the train, giving us a good chance to see the red squirrels and Ruswarp the dog with time to tell the sad tale to Louise. As we were about to dry off in the station waiting room (and pour ourselves a wine) the slightly delayed 14:40 train was fast approaching so it was decided we catch this train giving us chance to dry off in warmth and comfort but sacrificing the opportunity to see the squirrels, the rain was also torrential at this point. As Louise said, the squirrels would still be there another day but the preference was get dry and get back (to the pub!).
To those of you who are interested, dog Ruswarp (pronounced 'Russup') was a Border Collie owned by Graham Nuttall, co-founder of the Friends of the Settle to Carlisle line group who campaigned to keep the line open after if was threatened with closure. Graham and Ruswarp were inseparable companions and on 20th January 1990 they went walking in the hills but failed to return. Graham's body was found on 7th April and Ruswarp had stayed at his master's side for 11 weeks. Ruswarp was so weak that he had to be carried down from the hills and lived just long enough to be at his master's funeral. The bronze statue of Ruswarp was unveiled in 2009 to mark the 20th anniversary of saving the line and its subsequent success and the loyalty of man's best friend. Below is a photo of me with Ruswarp during a previous visit in 2020, in between lockdowns.
All in all, despite the disappointment of not seeing the squirrels, it was a fantastic day out with great company and scenery in a place I’d not visited before and all done by public transport, when it works it works well!
A highly recommended day out.
A previous red squirrel 🐿️ sighting at Garsdale station.
Great write up and lovely photos. Love the details you put in too, we spend a lot of time in the Settle and Long Preston area and never ventured to Hardraw but that will change after reading this.
Looks like a great day out Lee. Amazing photos too :)