Day 5: Cowling to Malham
30km along the Pennine Way
As I alluded to in the last post, the shops open a little late in Cowling so I set off towards Malham with very few supplies in my bag. Thankfully not too far into the walk I passed through the village of Lothersdale where there were cakes for sale on the street. You’ll be surprised how far you can walk on a £1 piece of flapjack! After dropping down into Lothersdale you’ll head uphill to the trig point on Pinhaw Beacon.
You’ll also pass through Thornton-in-Craven which stands out in my memory because a group of builders offered to make me a brew. I declined as I was on a mission to reach Gargrave for lunch. Soon after Thornton-in-Craven you’ll join the Leeds & Liverpool canal for a little stretch, which is a welcome change of scenery and terrain from the hills and fields.
After crossing a few fields (and likely passing a few cows) you’ll reach Gargrave, where there are shops and pubs for a well-earned rest. Having walked 19km on that one piece of flapjack I treated myself to a pub lunch. Plenty of people end the day in Gargrave, but I was heading for Malham…just a few more (!) fields away.
I found the rest of the day quite exhausting due to the fields of cows to cross. Thankfully none of them charged, although one calf was overly curious and I jumped over a wall to flee from it, but it’s quite draining to be on high alert whilst navigating, walking and trying not to dehydrate at the same time! Nevertheless the afternoon was a beautiful walk, particularly the stretch from Airton to Malham, where I could eventually relax.
Check out my walk on Relive to see the elevation »
I camped at the riverside campsite in Malham which was very spacious, peaceful and right beside the Pennine Way at the foot of Malham Cove.
Happy walking!
Kate x