Malham Moor Circular

A 3.5-mile (5.5 km) total circular walk from Malham Tarn car park, climbing onto the moors above the water to a high point of about 440 m. The official grade is easy to moderate, and most walkers should allow 1 to 1.5 hours. It suits anyone who wants big, open Dales country without a long day out, provided they are happy to navigate.

From the car park a short stretch of quiet road leads to an unmade road that passes National Trust estate buildings. A gate puts you onto the Pennine Way, which runs north past Great Hill. Where the route meets the tarmac road, turn left onto a waymarked bridleway, pass through the wall crossings, then descend across open-access lower fell side and rough pasture. The drop back down is the highlight, opening out a wide view of Malham Tarn and its nature reserve, and it is the place to have a camera ready. A final short road section returns you to the car park.

The going changes character several times: tarmac and firm unmade track at the start, a defined line along the Pennine Way, then open moor and rough grazing where there is no obvious path in places. Navigation, not effort, is the real difficulty. Bring a map and the skills to use it, work gate to gate and wall gap to wall gap, and expect uneven, tussocky and locally wet ground on the descent. The moor is exposed and offers little shelter, so poor visibility makes route finding noticeably harder.

Early summer is the pick of the year for the meadow flowers along the way. Tarn Moss, close to the tarn, is an important fen and raised bog conservation area, so keep to the route and stay off fragile wet ground. Dogs are welcome on the large areas of open-access land here under close control, but they must be on a lead from 1 March to 31 July to protect breeding birds and animals, and on a lead on public rights of way and in fields with livestock. Local restrictions can apply.

This is the quieter, higher alternative to the low-level circuit around Malham Tarn. You trade an easy, mostly obvious lakeside path for fell-side views, more solitude and a stretch of genuinely pathless moor. If you want a relaxed walk with simple route finding, choose the tarn shore instead. If you want height, space and the long view back down to the water, take this one.