Walk to Pen-y-ghent
Although my walk to the top of Ingleborough was fun, the view was completely obscured by mist. This time, the forecast called for warm and sunny weather for a couple of days, so I trained from York to Horton-in-Ribblesdale. My aim was to walk to the top of Pen-y-ghent, the third of the three famous Yorkshire hills. It has a dramatic profile, and appears from some angles to be a crouching lion.
The hill is visible from the railway station at Horton-in-Ribblesdale. Apart from a misty cloud blowing around the top, the weather looked great.
Pen-y-ghent from the train platform
Horton is a very small place, and there was nothing happening at 10:00 AM. I started up a path that followed a stone wall to the southern end of the hill--the lion's head. As the path rose, I could look across to the other side of the valley, where, unfortunately, a quarry dominates the view. Further back, I could see Ingleborough--still covered in mist.
A look back at Ingleborough
A look up at Pen-y-ghent
Near the top of the field, the path got steep, switching back and forth. The view was very nice--you can look into valleys on the left and the right of the path. I couldn't see over the lip of the top--but the sky looked clear. The slope finally got too steep to support a pile of stones, and the rock wall ended a few yards before the top.
Stone wall ends--and the last view of the valley for 90 minutes
