Gragareth and Ease Gill Kirk loop from Leck Fell Lane — Yorkshire Dales National Park

Gragareth, Green Hill and Great Coum loop from Leck Fell — Yorkshire Dales National Park This is a very scenic 18-kilometre hike, taking in the three Nuttalls of Gragareth (628 m), Green Hill (627 m), and Great Coum (686 m) on the outer southern fringes of the Dales. Not a busy part, I might add, I saw one hiker all day. However, what was super was that the last few kilometres of this hike take you down the dry riverbed, ravines, and 'extinct' waterfalls of the Bullpot limestone area of East Gill. This is a stunning place and very popular for caving.  From the start, it is all quite simple. Head out on the track north. I personally skipped the cairns of Gragareth and went straight up to its trig pointed top. The true summit however is a short distance to the east, marked by a small pile of stones. After this, follow the stone wall for a couple of kilometres north to another slightly bigger pile of stones that marks the top of Green Hill. This pile of stones is to the left of the path. From here, it is but a short walk to the top of Great Coum, where there is yet another cairn. Again, the true top is not this cairn but another smaller pile of stones to the east behind the obvious stone wall. On the way down, south, from Coum Hill is another trig point, this one belonging to Crag Hill. It is just behind the wall that should be on your right. All the way to here, the path has been pretty good, a bit boggy in places, but okay. After Crag Hill, follow the route south off Castleton Fell down to the quirky bridge over the nearly dry river bed of East Gill. Here is a cool, quirky bridge with a narrow limestone channel. If you go around the channel on the left, you soon come to a path that goes down to the river bed, and here is an entrance to a hidden canyon. This is where you will find Cow Dub waterfall. It is a fascinating, beautiful place. The waterfall is very narrow and not very high, but it is multi-levelled, and when I went there, it looked like the water literally wasn’t going anywhere. It literally landed on the floor, and then seeped straight into the limestone network below.  Follow the dry river bed from Cow Dub down towards Ease Gill Kirk. There is a footpath going back and forward over the river bed. You will have to walk in the river bed too. At Ease Gill Kirk, there is an impressive limestone canyon. You leave this canyon on the left, up a steep, indistinct path. You then follow a series of footpaths a couple of kilometres south east back to the start point.  Parking: There is limited parking at the start point for about three vehicles.  Route Description: Generally good paths on the hillside, a bit boggy in places. Not that much height gain, and quite open to the elements. Fascinating limestone gorge network with a quirky waterfall. Route Statistics: A 17.5-kilometre hike with 575 metres of height gain done in 5 hours.