Discovering Malham

I went on my most challenging hike today. And the most rewarding. I joined a small group of hikers for an organized hike to Malham Cove and Gordale Scar. It took about an hour to drive to the village of Malham, with the last half hour or so on on a very narrow roadway. The village is oh-so-charming and quaint but in a natural, earthy way, not in a cutesy way that you see in many other Dales villages. I think it has retained that natural charm because it is fairly remote. We parked in the National Park Centre and hiked towards Malham Cove -- a limestone cliff shaped like an amphitheater. At this point it began to rain. It never rained really hard but it rained all day long and the wind was mighty strong at times. From Malham Cove we climbed up more than 400 steps to the top of the cliff. It was a tough climb, many of the steps were quite high and the rain made for slippery going. But once on the top, I turned around and saw the splendid view and I knew the effort had been worth it. At the top of Malham Cove we paused for awhile to examine the limestone pavement -- a sheet of limestone that has been carved into blocks by erosion. The crevices in between the blocks are quite deep and the surface of the rocks is irregular but polished by water erosion. It was fun looking at the pavement and taking pictures of it, but walking on it scared the bejesus out of me. Thankfully we only had to walk for a short way on the limestone pavement. After that we were on a path of jagged slippery rocks. Then we hit the boggy fields. All the while the rain was being blown sideways into our faces. And I was having a marvelous time because the scenery was just so magnificent! We eventually made our way back to the village of Malham for a warm and cozy break and some tasty lunch at Lister Arms. After lunch we went for a shorter, less strenuous hike to Gordale Scar, a gorge created by melting glacial waters. There is a small waterfall there and the rock formations were incredibly beautiful. From Gordale Scar we took an easy hike back to the village through a lush woodland. I took as many pictures as I dared, given the nasty weather and hope to return to take some more pictures under sunny skies.