Pub Hiking in the Yorkshire Dales

Clare: Want to hike through the Yorkshire Dales?

Eric: Where’s that?

Clare: Central England. Rolling green hills, lots of sheep and a walking company called Muddy Boots that I like.

Eric: hmmm…

Clare: We sleep in a pub every night.

Eric: Let’s do it!

I always find it fascinating to look back on a trip and ask the question “why did we go there?” What voodoo magic caused us to pick that particular location? Was it a cheap flight? Did we throw a dart at a map? Did someone recommend it to us?

In the case of our recent trip, where we spent two weeks inn to inn hiking in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, our choice was made the minute I saw an image on Instagram. I was researching walking holiday companies for our website Trips to Walkabout when I discovered Muddy Boots Walking Holidays. I felt an immediate kinship with the owners, Helen and Matt, who create custom walking itineraries in the Dales and partner with local businesses. 

With zero knowledge of the Yorkshire Dales, we booked a flight and I handed over complete control to Muddy Boots to plan our itinerary. Helen created the perfect trip for us: 10 days hiking from inn to inn, including two guided hikes, a meetup with an artisan cheese maker, a gin distillery tour and one rest day. We also snuck in a 4-day side trip to Wales, but that’s another story for a later time.

What no one could foresee was the death of Queen Elizabeth II six days before our trip. As we often do while traveling, Eric and I embraced the unexpected, lived fully in the moment, and cherished small joys that the modern world often overlooks. Turns out that’s pretty much the Yorkshire Dales way of life.

Hiking Yorkshire Dales from Malham

Our story begins with a thrilling taxi ride from the Manchester Airport through twisty narrow lanes bordered by stone walls as old as Methuselah. The serenity of pastures full of sheep and dairy cows was juxtaposed by the ever-present danger of being hit by an oncoming car (which almost happened). Our driver’s response of “oh, I guess it is a 2-way road” wasn’t reassuring.

We arrived at Lister Arms in Malham, where we’d be staying for three nights. While eating lunch and sunbathing on the patio we quickly learned that everyone visiting the Dales owns a dog. Apparently Lister Arms is known for their royal canine treatment, including homemade dog biscuits. I was slightly afraid to try the homemade biscuits in our room, which were delicious, but I’m still not certain they were meant for humans.

Malham Circular Guided Hike

Our first full day was a guided hike with Matt from Muddy Boots. Matt took us on a circular walk around Malham, taking in all the popular landmarks such as Janet’s Foss (waterfall and cave once inhabited by a fairy queen), Gordale Scar (canyon made famous by the Netflix series The Witcher) and limestone formations above Malham Cove (made famous by Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows).

I was grateful Matt had us start early because this path was VERY popular, especially at Malham Cove. While the hotspots were impressive, my favorite sections of that walk were the in-between moments where the views opened up and we could see the impressive landscape we’d be hiking for the next week. Having Matt teach us about the region’s geography and answer our numerous questions was icing on the cake!

Hike to Kirkby Malham

The day of the Queen’s funeral we were supposed to do a circular walk that included a tour of Otterbeck Distillery, which was unfortunately closed. I did get to drink several of their Cotton Gins throughout the trip, so it wasn’t a huge disappointment. Instead we walked from Malham to Kirkby Malham, a small village with a 15th century church, the Victoria Inn built in 1840, and piles of silage that I initially thought was a giant wall of poo. It’s the kind of place that if you blink you miss it, and missing it would be a shame.

The Pennine Way (one of many national trails in the UK) runs along side Kirkby Malham and the River Aire and a small tributary runs through the village. We arrived during an hour of silence at the end of the funeral. The only sounds were those of cows and sheep and one radio — a man was sitting in his van listening to the funeral with tears in his eyes. At the end of the hour, the church bells of St. Michaels and all across the UK rang out and life resumed.

Three nights in Malham

Our three nights in Malham were a great introduction to hiking the Yorkshire Dales. We quickly settled into the routine of an English breakfast, followed by 7-8 miles of hiking, a late afternoon nap and dinner at the pub. All our meals were at the inns where we lodged, with the exception of one lunch (which was also at a pub/inn). This is a place of immense beauty that has remained untouched by the 21st century. If you’re a fan of BBC mysteries and mini-series, this region is your own authentic theme park. In fact, we visited a town at our next location that has recently been made famous by a TV remake of the book All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot. Stay tuned for more…