Doing the Malham Cove circular walk was high priority on my list when I visited the Yorkshire Dales this summer. I had one day to myself to do whatever, and I wanted to get outside in the sunshine and enjoy some new views. I followed this Malham Cove and Gordale circular walk route using the All Trails app, and it was a great route to do solo being pretty easy to follow and not too remote.
Parking at Malham National Visitor Centre
The Malham National Visitor Centre is perfectly placed in Malham with easy access to the village and the walks surrounding. The centre includes toilet facilities, including a Radar toilet and also has a picnic area. This is a pay and display car park however – I paid £4.80 for the day in July 2021. If this car park gets full, there is also an open field used as a car park almost opposite and this is pay and display too.
Hiking the Malham Cove Circular Walk
The first section of the walk takes you uphill, travelling along a stony/mud path and past a few barns. Just over a kilometre in, you’ll come to a stile on your right. It’s pretty well hidden within a stone wall and very easy to miss – I walked straight past it to begin with. Funnily enough, as I walked past it I saw a couple heading towards me. It was only when I realised I was off course and headed back that I figured out they’d done the exact same thing. So something to keep an eye out for!
Once over the stile, you’re really starting on the steep incline of this walk. You’ll head through fields and just keep on going until you reach the top of the hill. There is a faint path that you can follow, so it’s easy enough to keep on the right track. This first section will see you getting up to 500m elevation gain within roughly 3.5km. It’s pretty much downhill from there onwards!
Hiking Through Farmland
Once you’ve caught your breath back at the top of the hill, you just need to carry on and follow the path. This next section is very flat, and feels very vast. Not too much of a view as you’re just in the middle of fields. Soon enough you’ll start hitting the fields with the cows. This is maybe something that depends on the time of year and where farmers are keeping their cows, but it is something to be mindful of. In this case, there wasn’t any other choice but to walk through that field.
Read more: Tips for walking through fields with cows
The walk stays very similar for a while, right up until you get towards Malham Cove. The first half really takes you off the beaten track and it’s much quieter walking this first section than it is once you get towards the more touristy ‘attractions’. Especially on a hot, sunny day.
Standing at the Top of Malham Cove
You’ll know when you’re close to Malham Cove because you start to head down into what feels like a valley, and you’ll then hit much rockier paths. Walking down this narrow path that opens up to a huge area of limestone rock, formed in the strangest of shapes, and then seeing the view onwards. It really is such an incredible sight.
This is where it’s likely to get pretty busy. Now the Malham Cove circular walk that I was following just included staying at the top of Malham Cove. There are steps on one side will take you right down to the bottom of the cove so you can see it at all angles. At this point, I didn’t walk down them as I knew I would be trying the other way in to the bottom of the cove from the village at the end of my walk. Apparently there are 400 steps, so that’s something to bear in mind!
Malham Cove Harry Potter Filming Location
Did you know Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows scenes were filmed at Malham Cove? The limestone rock formation was formed thousands of years ago by a waterfall carrying water from the glacier, and it gives such an interesting background for photos/videos.
Heading towards Gordale Scar from Malham Cove
Once I’d had a little break, had a snack and done a bit of people watching I carried on towards Gordale Scar. This starts across the grassy area you can see in the photo on the left, above. The viewpoint from over there is what’s photographed on the right.
There’s a little distance to walk on grass, but from there on you’re following a proper track, and it’s really simple to navigate. With hills surrounding you it is a beautiful section to walk, though this is a more touristy section with people going between Malham Cove and Gordale Scar so you are unlikely to be alone here on a weekend.
At the end of the path you’ll come to a little area that has a refreshment truck and a couple of tables. If you head out of the gate and turn left, you’ll walk through Gordale Scar campsite as you head towards the Scar itself. This campsite area seemed very spacious, and would be a lovely area to stay in. I can imagine at night it’s super peaceful.
I almost cut out the Gordale Scar section of the walk, just because it was super hot and I was struggling with lack of water to be honest – I hadn’t prepared for hiking in hot weather very well! The Gordale Refreshments truck saved me, and after some juice and an icelolly I headed towards it.
And what a beautiful sight Gordale Scar is! This natural feature was formed on the Middle Craven Fault, and glacial meltwater flowing over it is what has cut through the rock to create the scar. Photos don’t really do it justice, the rock towers over you when stood in there.
Climbing at Gordale Scar
I was very surprised actually to see so many climbers on the wall – it wasn’t something I had even thought about. The rock looks great to climb though, and the climbers had a small crowd gathered, watching them scale the rock. It’s something I’d love to do, but having only been bouldering outdoors once and never having trad or sport climbed, it’s something to look towards in the future…
Janet’s Foss Waterfall and Wild Swimming
Heading back down the same path, the turning for Janet’s Foss is not far from the refreshments truck. There’s a little woodland path that you follow, and the waterfall is not far from the entrance.
Unfortunately, I have to say this was the most disappointing section for me. Naively maybe, I didn’t think it would be as busy as it was. So many half naked people lying on the rocks on the side, some people in the water and then loads more people standing around the edges – no space for them to get any closer.
I know I was part of the problem being there that day, but honestly it was like hell. So noisy and busy. If you’re wanting a nice relaxed dip in the water here, I’d probably avoid days where the weather is good! Needless to say, I wasn’t hanging around.
This does have a nice little woodland walk though, following a stream until you get to the edge of the trees. Then you’re on a properly paved track and heading back into the centre of Malham village.
Getting to Malham Cove from the Village
In the photo on the right, you can see from the top of Malham Cove there is a long winding path that stands out – this is the path you’ll follow from the village to get to the bottom of the cove.
When in the village, you need to walk past the shops and away from the carparks. You will end up walking on the road for a small section, but soon enough you’ll be able to turn right onto a path and this will lead you right up to Malham Cove.
Again, much busier as an area due to it being such a big landmark, and the easier route to get to it. You’ll walk alongside a little stream and on a hot day many people will likely be having a paddle!
There are a lot of trees at the base of Malham Cove and also quite a few flat areas of ground or boulders, so a lot of people were just sitting around, lying down, eating, playing games etc. It was a nice atmosphere to be honest, despite the number of people around.
I spent a good 40 minutes or so here just taking photos and having a rest in the shaded areas and it was just nice to enjoy the scenery.
Walking up to Malham Cove from the village is a really easy walk, though it does mean if you want to see the top you do have to walk up those 400 steps from the bottom! That said, you could definitely walk up to the top and then take the walk past Gordale Scar and Janet’s Foss for a longer, but easier walk back rather than tackle those steps again. Likewise, you could do it the other way round and walk to Janet’s Foss, go to Gordale Scar and then head over to the top of Malham Cove before making your way down the steps.
Lots of options to choose from if you’re wanting a shorter walk, but still want to see the sights! My walk came to just under 17km in total and took me around 4 hours of moving time.
Have you done this Malham Cove circular walk, with Gordale Scar and Janet’s Foss?
Let me know if you’ve been here and what routes you took!
