Buckden Accessible Walk

An out-and-back walk of 1.6 miles total (the official 1.3 km each way, rounded), following the northern branch of the Buckden accessible walk. Allow 1 to 1.5 hours including the car park access and stops. Graded easy-to-moderate for an accessible route, and classified red, or route for some, meaning it suits many wheelchair, buggy and stile-avoiding users but is not a guaranteed easy roll.

• Leave Buckden National Park car park by the short, steep access down to the road.
• Cross the road and follow an unsurfaced track to Dubbs Lane, then cross the river at Buckden Bridge.
• Turn north and follow the riverside path beside the River Wharfe for a little over a kilometre to the official northern turning point.
• Return the same way. There are no loop options on this branch.

The official access route also offers a separate southern branch, again about 1.3 km each way, on mixed stone flags, aggregate and grass. It is a different out-and-back from the same starting area and is not part of this stored route, so treat it as an alternative outing rather than an extension.

• North of the bridge the path is a mixture of grass and compact aggregate, not a uniformly paved surface.
• Expect low steps up to 10 cm and loose stones up to 10 cm in places.
• Existing gradients are no steeper than 1:8, but the exit from the car park is the steepest part and comes first.
• Sections can be rough or uneven, which some self-propelling wheelchair users may find easier with company, though that is a matter of preference.

The walking is level and open, with the Wharfe close at hand, fields, scattered trees, dry-stone walls and the surrounding Upper Wharfedale hills. Kingfisher, oystercatcher, dipper and sand martin are among the birds recorded near the river, though nothing is guaranteed on any single visit.

• Start from Buckden National Park car park, which has public parking, two blue-badge bays, toilets and a RADAR facility. Normal parking charges apply.
• Dogs are welcome on the public rights of way. Keep them on leads around livestock, on a short lead from March to July for ground-nesting birds, and close by near other people and the water.

The steep initial climb or descent at the car park, livestock in riverside fields, and patches of rough ground and small steps are the durable drawbacks here. The walk is short and returns by the same path, so anyone wanting a longer day nearby may prefer the Buckden to Starbotton route, a considerably longer fellside and river walk.