Walk Description

This was our second day in Teesdale and we had decided to follow the Pennine Way along the River Tees to Cauldron Snout.  Cauldron Snout is more a long cataract than a waterfall, and at 200 yards (180 m) long, it is said to be the longest waterfall in England.  The falls are caused by the upper Tees passing over dolerite steps.

After a sumptuous breakfast at our B & B in Middleton we set off the Cow Green Reservoir.  We had been advised that the waterboard road to the resrvoir might be impassable and that we should park near the track to Widdy Bank Farm.  As we headed northwards up Teesdale we could see that the fells were blanketed with low cloud and what bits we could see were covered with snow.  We turned off the main road at Langdon Beck and began our journey into the unknown as we headed up along the waterboard road to Cow Green Reservoir.  By the time we reached the reservoir carpark we had had to cross a few very icy/snowy patches and the carpark was shrouded in thick cloud and covered with deep icy snow.  I decided that as more snow was forecast, I didn't want to leave the car in that high exposed area, so I drove back down to the start of the track to Widdy Bank Farm. There was plenty of room there today and I had no trouble parking the car.

We set out along the track and although the views to the north we limited we could see a few bits of blue in the sky.  it wasn't long before we could see the cloud enveloped top of Cronkley Scar.  We then started to head down the flank of Widdybank Fell to Widdy Bank Farm.  Here a sign proudly proclaimed 'Cauldron Snout 2 miles ahead'.  We were now on the Pennine Way, which we would follow all the way to Cauldron Snout.  The path stayed very close to the river bank and in a couple of places we had to very carefully negotiate the snow covered boulder fields that came down into the River Tees.  In some places the path was almost in the river and most of the boulders were covered with icy snow, in some places that snow was almost knee deep. 

This section of the walk had a very rugged beauty, with the steep Cronkley Scar dominating the south bank of the Tees and Falcon Clints dominating the north bank.  In places the river bank became very wet, but thankfully there were boardwalks or old mill flags over the worst bits.  Eventually the river valley widen out and we could see the point where Maize Beck joined the Tees.  We turned the corner and there was Cauldron Snout thundering down a narrow gorge.  We stopped for a while to take our photographs and then looked for the path up to Cow Green Reservoir. 

This was when my stomach turned over.  The Pennine Way route up to Cow Green Reservoir was up a 'path' that climbed through the snow covered heather and rocks just feet from what seemed to be a horrific drop into the churning waters of Cauldron Snout itself.  I am not happy with 'drops' at the best of times and whilst this 'path' might not have been too bad in good weather when I would have been able to pick out an alternative route away from the edge, today I didn't have that choice.  With my heart in my mouth, I scrambled over the icy rocks, clutching as much heather and rock as I could manage, at the same time calling out to Steve for help.  Thankfully I managed to get up this bit and on to a more acceptable path. According to Kevin Donkin in his Circular Walks on the Pennine Way: "The route up the side of the falls is one of the most perilous sections of the Pennine Way, the slippery rock being kept wet by the spray."  If I had seen this comment, I might not have been so keen to do this walk!

We wandered over to the reservoir over flow and saw the twin pipes that allowed a measured amount of water from the Cow Green reservoir to flow into the River Tees.  It seemed strange to realise that the once mightly River Tees, that flows over High Force, is now just an allotted outpouring from a reservoir.  We walked up to the top of the reservoir dam and were greeted with a desolate, almost arctic vista.  Ice, snow and grey mist stretched as far as our eyes could see and although we could see across the frozen reservoir any chance of seeing the high fells was blocked by the cloud that shrouded the edge of the reservoir.  We were going to sit here and have out lunch, but the beginning of a snow shower made us change our minds and we set out along the icy road back towards the car. There was a small old building just after we reached the road from the carpark and we went inside out of the wind for our lunch. We then set off on the two mile walk back to the car.  The adventure was over. 
The walk took just over 4 hours and apart from a few people near Cow Green Reservoir we had had all the views to ourselves.  On the way back to Middleton we decided to stop off at the High Force Hotel for a warming drink, after which we went down the 'hotel' path to have a look at High Force from below.  As it was out of season, there wasn't any charge.

Route & Planning

Details and Route Map

Photo Opportunities

Walk Profile

The route map shown here should not be used as a replacement for the appropriate map(s). Before attempting the walk you should check the suitability of this route in relation to your capabilities and experience.