High Force Circular Day Hiking Teesdale North Pennines England

July 6, 2010

High Force Circular Day Hiking Teesdale North Pennines England UK

High Force Circular Day Hiking Teesdale was the first day hiking trip myself and my partner Anne undertook on our Eden Valley hiking holiday in Cumbria.

If you cannot see video, click link to watch on YouTube –> High Force Day Walk

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Route Description

The route was in an anti-clockwise circular direction in the North Pennines, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and included a section along the River Tees.

Starting at Bowlees we hiked south to the River Tees and then headed west past both Low Force and High Force waterfalls to Bracken Rigg. We then headed east to Holwick Scars before turning north back to Bowlees. The distance was around 7 miles or 11 kilometres.

To sum up, High Force Circular Day Hiking Teesdale was moderate day hiking and was a great introduction to the Teesdale area. It was along clear, well marked paths, including a solidly surfaced section of The Pennine Way. There was a moderate amount of ascent and one section which has a tendency to be a little boggy. We also visited two lovely waterfalls, Low Force and High Force.

High Force Circular Day Hiking Local Information

Northern Pennines

The North Pennines is located in North England, is the second largest AONB (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty), next to the Cotswolds, with a unique stunning landscape of high moorland and broad upland dales. There are also some interesting reminders of a mining and industrial past, and also some unique birds, animals and plants. It borders the Yorkshire Dales National Park in the South and goes as far as the Tyne Valley in the North. On its west border it tracks the Pennine Escarpment, whilst in the east it merges into West Durham. It is the third largest National Park next to the English Lake District and the Welsh Snowdonia National Parks. It is also designated as a European and Global Geopark.

River Tees

The River Tees starts on Cross Fell’s east slope in the Northern Pennines, flowing eastwards for around 85 miles, or 137 kilometres, to the North Sea, just south of Hartlepool. The river goes over a number of hard black basalt rocks where it forms waterfalls, including “Cauldron Snout”, “High Force” and “Low Force”. In comparison with the broken rocks where the river dashes over High Force and Low Force, the landscape turns milder and more charming as it passes Middleton-In-Teesdale in Durham. After Barnard Castle, the valley begins to open out, and the river heads east in sweeping curves. The course of the valley up to this location has been generally east south east but the river now turns northeast towards the sea.

Moor House Upper Teesdale National Nature Reserve

Moor House Upper Teesdale National Nature Reserve (NNR) is amongst the biggest of England’s NNR’s with 8,800 hectares of upland country. It has a nearly whole range of upland habitats characteristic of the North Pennines. There are low lying hay meadows, some rough grazing, juniper woods, limestone grassland, blanket bogs and the summit heaths of the high fells. In particular, it is famous for the plants that initially inhabited the North Pennines from the time of the last Ice Age. You can also see some impressive geological formations like the protruding sugar limestone and the Great Whin Sill, together with beautiful waterfalls and panoramas.

Bowlees Visitor Centre

Bowlees Visitor Centre is a great base for discovering Teesdale and was founded by the Durham Wildlife Trust in 1976. Its aims are to: convey Teesdale’s natural history; show the complexity of the area; create a better comprehension of the Dale way of life; stimulate the importance of conservation. You can purchase light snacks, tea coffee and ice creams from the small café. They also sell maps, gifts, books and many handmade items. There is a picnic site and public toilets with suitable disabled access nearby.

Wynch Bridge

The Wynch Bridge is a chain suspension bridge over the river Tees just down river of the beautiful Low Force waterfall. It was constructed in 1830, made with wrought iron hangers and a timber deck with a span of 21 metres, or about 69 feet. The original bridge was built in 1741 to enable the lead miners of Holwick to get to the mines of Middleton. It was made of wood supported by iron chains with a span of 70 feet across a gap 60 feet deep. It was only 2 feet wide with just one hand rail. A chain snapped in 1802 and the bridge collapsed whilst nine people were crossing it. Two men fell onto the rocks below, one surviving whilst the other drowned. Although the bridge was reinforced after the accident, it was replaced by the current Wynch Bridge.

Great Whin Sill

The Great Whin Sill, is a sheet-like layer of igneous rock, a basaltic rock known as dolerite and was formed around 295 million years ago. It’s an enormous sheet of rock, up to 70 metres thick, which due to erosion, now protrudes from the earth’s surface as spectacular cliffs and waterfalls. It is a major natural aspect in north east England, lying in part within the North Pennines AONB in County Durham and partly within Northumberland National Park. The best place to observe the Sill is probably at High Force waterfall.

Low Force Waterfall

In the Tees Valley on the river Tees is Low Force waterfall which is one of the outcrops from the Great Whin Sill. It is the sister waterfall to the nearby High Force waterfall and is actually a set of small waterfalls. It’s just a short walk away from Bowlees Visitor Centre and Picnic Area near the village of Newbiggin in Upper Teesdale. It’s a picture postcard scene and renowned beauty spot favoured by many visitors and also popular with white water canoeists.

High Force Waterfall

High Force waterfall is located on the river Tees, near Middleton-in-Teesdale, in Teesdale, upriver from Low Force waterfall with a drop of 70 feet, or about 21.5 metres. It was formed where the river crosses over the Great Whin Sill rock formation which is also followed by Hadrian’s Wall. It consists of two bands of rock: an upper band of hard rock known as Whinstone which takes a lot of time to erode; a lower band of softer Carboniferous Limestone which is more easily eroded. As High Force wears away the rock it moves slowly upstream, leaving a deep and narrow chasm in front of it, currently 700 metres long. Although it rarely happens these days, before the Cow Green Reservoir was built in upper Teesdale, when the river flooded there were two individual waterfalls formed.

Bracken Rigg

Bracken Rigg is a piece of land about 500 feet above the river Tees. As one travels up river, the Tees swerves around the rigg to the right into a sharp meander, cutting into the rigg to leave sharp inclines. In order to steer clear of these inclines, The Pennine Way climbs over the short ascent of Bracken Rigg. As you approach the rigg from below in the east, it looks like an isolated hill but it is actually the rim of a massive area of moorland.

Holwick Scar

Holwick Scar, close to Holwick, is one of the protrusions from the Great Whin Sill. You can see the more or less vertical cracks which divide the rock into irregular columns. These were formed when the molten magna from which it was formed, finally cooled and contracted. The dry-stone walls beside the road contain many angular blocks of rock collected from the broken protrusions of the Holwick Scar.

I did this hike with my partner Anne whilst on an Eden Valley hiking holiday in Cumbria, England, during June 2010. We drove from our holiday accommodation in the village of Warcop in The Eden Valley to the starting location which was at Bowlees Visitor Centre at grid reference NY908283.