Cautley in the Howgill fells and Ribblehead Viaduct
Intended route - Cautley Cross Keys, Cautley Spout, Cautley Crag, The Calf & Great Dummacks:
But........Part (1)
Parking up by the Cross Keys on the Sedbergh to Kirkby Stephen road. Originally a public house the Cross Keys became a Temperance House before being bought by the National Trust. It's now run as a tea room with B&B and has retained its zero alcohol policy
Plenty of fresh snow around this morning as I parked the car
Adjacent to the parking area a path leads straight down to a footbridge over the river Rawthey
The top cascades
At this point I noticed the cloud was beginning to descend on Cautley Crag and felt a little snow falling
As I reached Hare Shaw the cloud seemed to be lower....
....and the path ahead a little daunting....
....to say the least.
At best I'd likely be in cloud for the rest of the day and quite possibly in snow as well!
Safety on the fells being always the top priority I decided to go no further and returned to the car.....
Part (2)
Having returned to the car I drove south to Ribblesdale. I thought to have a short walk with some photos around the Ribblehead viaduct
Ingleborough was looking particularly impressive with its covering of snow
The viaduct is 440 yards long and 104ft high with 24 arches. Over 100 men lost their lives in its construction many of whom are buried in the nearby church at Chapel-le-Dale
It was completed in 1875 after 5 yrs under construction and a full restoration finished in 1991
Perfect timing to catch a train crossing!
The viaduct stands at 950ft above sea level
Finally a last look at Ingleborough looking like it's just beginning to catch the snow clouds I'd left behind at Cautley.
It was time to go home after a rather different day than planned but non the worse for that.
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