Askrigg, Thackthwaite Beck, Greenhaw Hut, Greets Shooting House, Yorkshire
[ 13.8 km] wed 02 Jun 2010

SD 9582 9310
After a pleasant drive I reached Askrigg Greets above Askrigg in Wensleydale and parked up by the narrow lane to get my stuff ready. I was greeted by the call of curlews who didn’t seem concerned by my presence and came quite close to the car. I set off over the moor heading in a SE direction. The map calls it Askrigg Greets and further to the east Woodhall Greets.

Curlew

I soon came to the wall and followed it for a while before crossing over at the first wall junction. The reason was to walk along the top edge of Ellerkin Scar on the other side and I’m glad I did. The views were a bit hazy but on a clear day it will be very spectacular. Further to the east I re-joined the wall to have a look at the Shooting House shown on the map.

The building is a well maintained shooting hut in very good condition and unlocked. Continuing along the wall I came to the public footpath which I joined and followed south. I left the path near Bluescar Vein and followed a wall due east. I was hoping to investigate a cave shown on the map near Thackthwaite Beck so had to cross the wall to get to it. At the edge of Blue Scar (which isn’t blue) there were nice view down into Wensleydale. Also below was a good view of the old mine workings and spoil heaps by Thackthwaite Beck.

I descended to the beck and followed it uphill slightly to the point where it issued from the rock scree and the base of Blue Scar. I couldn’t see any sign of a cave so after photographing the waterfalls I climbed the scree to where it meets the main rock face. There I found a vertical shaft partly protected by some pieces of wood across the entrance. The whole area was very loose and friable. I looked around the area but couldn’t find any other evidence of a cave so climbed to the top of the low cliff and continued across the grassy moor.

I thought someone was out shooting because every few minutes a gun shot would go off but I couldn’t see anybody. Further up the hill the bangs became louder but still no sign of anybody. Then I found out why. A short way from the path was a gas canister connected to a bird scarer which was a metal device that ignited a gas charge which sounded exactly like a gunshot. Greenhaw Hut was clearly visible on the horizon so I followed the moorland track up to it.

It is another well maintained stone shooting lodge but this time locked. A date on the door step said 1919. Being the highest land in the area there were nice views so I stopped for an early lunch. This is an area I’ve never visited before so has little idea what to expect. I followed the track down to Beldon Beck and then along the beck till the track ended at a line of shooting butts. The map shows extensive old mine workings and spoil areas on West Bolton Moor but as I struggled to wade through the deep heather I didn’t see any evidence. The area is maintained for grouse shooting and has no appeal for walkers due to the complete lack of any paths.

Remains of Greets Shooting House

Once on the moor there are no interesting views so it’s a place I’ll probably not return to. Over Cabin Hill I saw a fence line to the right of Whirly Gill and headed for it. As I got there I noticed road marker posts and hadn’t realised how close I was to the road. After struggling across difficult moorland it was a welcome relief to walk on tarmac for a short while. On the hill ahead I could see Greets Shooting House which I reached by a short path. This old shooting lodge is now derelict with the entire roof now gone. It is another good vantage point though.

To the south is a tall narrow cairn so I continued along the path to check it out. The map calls it a beacon and it is also another good vantage point. I stopped to take a photo and noticed that my jacket, which I’d put in my rucksack earlier, was missing. The last time I saw it was back at Greets Shooting House so I retraced my steps to recover it. Even though I couldn’t see the car I was fairly close so took a direct line across the moor to descend to the road and back to the car.

It was now around 2pm and as I listened to the news on the radio I was shocked to hear about the shootings in the west Cumbria area. Yesterday I’d planned to go to the Wast Water area and would have drive past Boot on the way back. At the last minute I decided to try this area for a change. Later this afternoon the police found the body of Derrick Bird after he’d taken his own life in woods near Boot after shooting and killing 12 people and injuring many more.