Ingleton and its Waterfalls

This is one of the classic walks of the Yorkshire Dales, and was first opened to visitors in 1885. A workaday town, and today one of the Dales' honeypots, Ingleton shows its mining and quarrying history in its buildings. It became a place for tourists to visit when the railway arrived in 1859 - the viaduct almost cuts the village in half. The entrepreneurs who developed the Waterfalls Walk in the 1880s, and charged for the privilege of taking the route, were tapping into the start of one of the most profitable of industries in the Dales.

The spectacle of the Waterfalls Walk begins in Swilla Glen, where the River Twiss passes through a deep gorge, with rapids and whirlpools giving a taste of what is to come. The first of the cascades soon follows - Pecca Falls, where the river tumbles over a shelf of the hard greywacke stone, eating away at the softer slate beds below. Beyond, the narrow glen opens out as you approach Thornton Force. Unlike the other falls on the walk, this is not a series of rapids confined within the valley, but a majestic plunge of water 40ft (12m) from its lip of hard limestone into a pool gouged into the slate beds below, which have been heaved into a vertical position. This is one of the classic spots for studying the geology of the area; the different strata are conveniently exposed. A glacier came to this part of the valley - the tip of its nose reached just above the point where the water now falls. Here it deposited the mass of boulder clay it had pushed in front of it; the remains can still be made out beside the fall.

The route beyond follows Twisleton Lane, an ancient packhorse route on the line of the Roman road from Bainbridge to Ingleton. Above you are Twisleton Scars, great bands of limestone interspersed with horizontal bands of shale. One of the best limestone pavements in the area is to be found at the top of the Scars. The walk then joins the second of the waterfall-filled valleys, this time of the River Doe, on its way back to Ingleton. The woodland here is some of the oldest and most unspoiled in the area, with ancient oak trees flanking the waterfalls. Eventually the route leaves the river and comes out into a former limestone quarry - there is still quarrying in the area, for the greywacke, which is used for road surfacing. Ingleton also once supported a number of cotton mills, powered by water diverted in mill races from the rivers.

Where to eat and drink

As you would expect, Ingleton is well-served with places to eat and drink. There are refreshments available at the entrance to the Waterfalls Walk and beyond Pecca Falls. Among the recommended cafés are Bernies, Fountain Café and Curlew Crafts and Tea Rooms. Inglenook Chippy serves traditional fish and chips. The best of the pubs is the Wheatsheaf.

What to look for

Once growing in profusion in the area, the Lady's Slipper orchid is one of the rarest of Britain's endangered plants. They died out largely because of people digging them up to plant in their gardens, or taking the flowers for their collections of pressed specimens. English Nature has now reintroduced this beautiful plant, which has large maroon-coloured flowers, with a yellow lip and red spots inside - resembling the footwear that gives it its common name. Its leaves are pale green, with definite ribs to them. It is a characteristic plant of open woodland like that beside the waterfalls. Seeds were propagated at Kew Gardens, and the seedlings were planted in a protected area.

While you're there

A visit to White Scar Cave will take you underground into one of the country's largest caverns, discovered in 1923. An 80-minute guided tour passes underground waterfalls and gives you the chance to study the massive stalagmites and stalactites, some with names such as Devil's Tongue, Judge's Head and Arum Lily. The entrance is on the B6255, just north of Ingleton.