Update After 20th May
Flickr Album for the 20th May Walk Click Here
Glorious day in the sunshine, and the trip through the Yorkshire Dales, via Barnard Castle was a delight. It was an early start for us all as the trip from Leeds to the 'Walk' itself was 2 hours and 90 miles to the North of Leeds. So we decided to set off around 7:00 AM Saturday morning, of the 20th may 2023. Monica, Qiniso, Knonzanani, and with John diving we did the 'pick-ups' around Leeds then headed for the M1/AI to the North!
It was a bright day, with some early morning mists being burnt off by the Sun. We drove to the famous "Scotch Corner" where the A66 meets the A1, and headed towards the Yorkshire Dales. A lovely drive indeed, and the scenery, as we turned off the A66 just got better with every twist and turn - and there were plenty of those! No road grid layouts in the UK! The breath-taking Bowes Museum in Barnard Castle that we passed, is clearly somewhere to visit at a later date.
Onward via, Middleton-in-Teesdale and Newbiggin and out to the Bowlees Visitor Centre, just West of Newbiggin. They have a great car parking arrangement with simply voluntary donations, rather than a set fee. And its mostly under the shade of trees and next to a babbling brook/stream too! BUT NOTE - get there early {we arrived at 9:30am and had the pick of the parking spots}, but at 1:00 pm with was completely full, with cars parked all the way along the approach roads!
The actual Walk itself was excellent too, although we set off in the wrong direction to start, and had to rectify that with a walk trough some fields (still technically a footpath as indicated on the Ordnance Survey map I was trying to use. PLEASE NOTE: Little of Zero Mobile Signal in the area of the Bowlees Centre! So in future I need paper maps!!
Since the day was getting warmer and the sun was shining - hard, we set off at a relaxed pace, partly to 'breathe-in' the views and atmosphere, but partly to keep cool. The walk down to the Low Force area, which was pretty close to the Bowlees Visitor Centre, and their car parking. There are steps and other paths that are unsuitable for those in wheel-chairs so be warned. Rocks and stony ground to climb over etc. But the sight of the Low Fall Area in the bright sunshine was magnification, with the waters of the Tees, spilling over a series of falls and into the various pools below. The waters, stained brown due to the peat hills on either side of the valley, were churning over the rocky river bed. The river is highly variable due to the large catchment area of the Tees Valley, today it was relatively calm, but looking of the photos of the High Force previously shown, indicate water levels several yards/metres deeper.
The full photographic log of the day is now available on the ZHRO Flickr Pro Website - LINK HERE TO VIEW. We did meet several interesting people during the day, including several Zimbabweans! We also me the Chair of "Without Borders" who was close to the Stockton-on-Tees base, and he was regularly in touch with Moses Mbano, one of our Walking Hero's and who has completed a few of our Walk for Freedom. Small World as they say.
We enjoyed our day-out to these Falls, and would recommend this walk to anyone again. So from Monica, Qiniso, Khonzanani, Melody, Innocent and myself, we strongly suggest that you too, try a "Walk for Freedom" both locally and for the August 5-6th Brighton to London {or part of it} See the AUGUST endurance details CLICK HERE
As a prelude to the 5-6th August {preferred dates due to full moon for night section} Walk for Freedom - Brighton to Hampton Court, we have organised a 8 and 14 mile trek in the Tees Valley within the Yorkshire Dales to view "High Force" Waterfalls. Mostly to help those walking ZHRO members in the North, - Leeds, Manchester and Newcastle.
Due to the geography and car parking we are also able to help those simply wishing to look at the scenery as well who will be able to walk a much shorter distance to Low Force. We have a link to the MAP software by Ordnance Survey to assist those who can navigate with the APP. ROUTE MAP WEB LINK
Meeting at Newbiggin on the B6277 West of Middleton-in-Teesdale, Yorkshire Dales? Route map of the full walk {in link above}. Limited Walk for those less hardy will be Newbiggin, over the river bridge and up towards Low Force, or as far as they can. ll the others can select the 14 mile full experience or truncate at the Newbiggin river crossing to have covered 8 wonderful miles. They can relate their experience to those Zimbabweans dwelling nearer our car Parking spot.
Map of walk: Meet in Newbiggin {Centre of Map/Walk Route}
High Force is one of England's most impressive waterfalls. The Tees River has been flowing through this gorge for thousands of years, but the rocks it reveals are much older. High Force is surrounded by the beautiful Upper Teesdale countryside and is located in the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Various animal and plant life can be seen at High Force throughout the seasons, from a plethora of wildflowers, ferns, and towering trees to roe deer and rabbits. The trails can fill up quickly on a busy day, so get there early to enjoy the adventure.
Middleton-in-Teesdale & Newbiggin
Once a small agricultural town in upper Teesdale, Middleton was transformed in 1815 by the arrival of the London Lead Mining Company which established its northern headquarters here and constructed workers' houses, offices, a school and chapel. Its prosperity came from the exploitation of the rich lead veins in the surrounding hills and valleys. Many of Middleton's buildings date from this era.
Part of the River Tees in beautiful Upper Teesdale. Low Force tumbles over the Whin Sill, a layer of hard dolerite rock (known locally as whinstone). The Whin Sill formed 295 million years ago from molten rock, which cooled and solidified underground.
Today, after millions of years of erosion it is exposed as rocky landscape features at Low Force, High Force and other places in Upper Teesdale.
The Pennine Way footpath route runs alongside the River at Low Force. Low Force is also easily accessible from Bowlees Visitor Centre.
