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I might have been the only person who got round the Ingleton Waterfalls Trail yesterday. The paths, which have been icy for a while, got an extra glaze because of freezing rain. Some men who'd gone there to do maintenance work downed tools because they thought it was too dangerous, and the man at the toll-gate wasn't keen to let me in. However, I showed him my Yaktracks grips and he relented. I saw no-one else all the way, except for three farming folk who were skidding around their own farmyard at Beezleys, and demanded to know how I was able to stride along with confidence. I referred them to the Inglesports outdoor shop in Ingleton, where I'd bought my grips. Anyway, as there were no walkers whatsoever, here's some footage of all the waterfalls, end-to-end.

Loved the sound eh? But not to be watched on a full bladder!

There was fine rain all the time, and I spent as much time mopping the camera as I did walking. Each waterfall gets its 30 seconds of fame. I'm glad I hadn't set my sights on the fell-tops, which were all covered in mist. I was on Ingleborough last Saturday, but it was too bitterly cold and windy to be bothered with the camera.

YouTube will suggest automatically other 'Ingleton Waterfalls' clips, but most of them are pretty crowded with people. The bonus is... they got better weather!

Very nice Paddy

Last time i was there (3 months ago) they were in almost full flood and noisey as hell,it also rained about 100 meters from my car and i have never gotten so wet so quik in my life.One to remember tho .

Sounds fun that. Nice video yes You stood on that bridge over the gorge with it iced up? I'd have been terrified.

First time I went past they were in near drought conditions and not worth it, last time was September or something and lovely. The odd thing though was - despite the hordes on the side leading to Thorton force etc - the 'other' side was nearly empty. Nicer too I think with all the ancient woodland about.

I was told that the trail had been closed for a day or so in the summer because of an unusual amount of water coming down. Actually, I'd be more likely to make a beeline for a place like that in those conditions. I was hoping for more icicles on that trip, but instead it was mostly sheets of ice, especially on the paths. The bridge straddling the gorge wasn't icy underfoot, but all its guard-rails were icy. I was more concerned about dropping the camera in the water than I was about ending up in the water myself. Of course, it's all very pleasant in the summertime, but the foliage gets a bit dense in places and obscures views of some of the waterfalls. From a photographic point of view, overcast conditions are often best for wooded waterfalls in gorges, because when you get dappled areas of sunlight and shade, the pictures tend to look awful. It was getting slightly misty towards the end of the trail, which you'd probably notice from the last couple of waterfall shots.

Simo wrote (see)

Thanks for posting that Paddy, I read an article about this walk a few years ago. I must be honest my head has been turned by hills by the most part, thanks for reminding me why I wanted to do it for so long.

Well... today I walked three times as far as the waterfall trail... only over a hill in the mist, snow and ice. Although it was enjoyable, I couldn't get a single picture that would make it look appealing. Sometimes those short and scenic routes are well worth doing.

The thing you can do with it is doubling it up with climbing Whernside along the length of the ridge. Even lets you get to at least bits of it for free if you come off the hill over twisleton scar.

Although when I was there in September it seemed a bit like they'd placed a collection point at halfway to cut some of that out. Except it wasn't manned anyway, so I was fine Maybe they only bother in high season?

If you're really keen can do Inglebrough too, although that does make for a long day.

I think when I first went round the Ingleton Waterfalls Trail, it was 10p per person. You paid at Ingleton, but you would sometimes be asked to show your ticket at Beezleys, and if you didn't have one, then you paid there instead.

However, the teacher who used to run our school walking club always objected to paying, and he'd cheerfully wade us across the river to avoid the toll-gate at Ingleton. On the way past Beezleys, he told us to keep quiet if anyone asked to see our tickets, but the last lad in line blurted out that we didn't have any. I'll never forget the woman yelling down the path at the teacher, saying "You're not a gentleman!" and "You have no right to be taking children walking!" (He went on to sneak us all into How Stean Gorge without paying, and set a good example to us by giving a false name when being booked for trespassing at Blubberhouses!)

For the avoidance of doubt... I paid my dues the other day... and it was £5! As I left Ingleton, a notice said that the cafe at Beezleys was open, but in fact it was shut. If it had been open, I'm sure they'd have made more money out of me because, given the weather, I would have been very tempted to stop for a hot coffee.