Hull Pot, Yorkshire Dales, Winter
A month since my last post.
A month since my last post.
I do apologise.
The weather in January has been, well, shocking to say the least. We endured three named storms: Henk, Isha, and Jocelyn. Isha, in particular, was one of the most powerful storms the British Isles have seen since 2000.
Additionally, we’ve had periods of below freezing temperatures, resulting in widespread ice.
It’s been… interesting.
Thankfully, the weekend just gone, it was nice enough for us to finally head out. We chose the Hull Pot route from Horton-in-Ribblesdale in the Yorkshire Dales. I had an inkling that there’d still be some snow liggin’ about in the Dales, contributing to a water-saturated landscape and, hopefully, a waterfall flowing into Hull Pot.
And we finally saw it.
All photos taken on my Sony α7ii using my Pentax SMC 28mm F3.5, Pentax SMC 55mm f2.0, and Rokinon 14mm f2.8 ED AS IF UMC prime lenses. RAWs developed in Lightroom, edited and finalised in Photoshop.
Hull Pot, Yorkshire Dales, Winter by Ian Cylkowski is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
The characteristic drystone walls of the Yorkshire Dales remained steadfast in the face of all the snow we’ve had recently, resulting in these snowdrifts piled up against them.
Our way forward. We knew on this day that there’d only be 2-3 hours of good light, and boy was it dramatic.
Looking back at where we came from. We were very much on the edge of two weather systems. Conditions over Horton-in-Ribblesdale saw blue skies and puffy clouds, but closer to Pen-y-Ghent it was blowy, dark, and stormy, giving us epic light.
A good sign: A small waterfall where there usually isn’t at Horton Scar. Above, Pen-y-Ghent fights with the dark and stormy clouds.
Further up the bridleway, the site of an extinct waterfall below Pen-y-Ghent, which is now obscured by clouds laden with snow. A burst of sun to our right picks out the details in the land.
And there she is, finally ticked off my bucket list. England’s largest natural hole, Hull Pot, with Hull Pot Beck tumbling down 60ft into the chasm. As mentioned before on this blog, Hull Pot is a large cave where the roof has collapsed, which has resulted in this massive chasm below Pen-y-Ghent. With my ultra-wide 14mm equipped, I was able to capture the entire scene.
We clambered as close to the waterfall as possible as it crashed over the edge into Hull Pot. As I had no tripod, I shot this with my ultra-wide 14mm at f/22, taking multiple exposures of the same scene. In post, I then averaged the exposures together that gave me that long exposure effect on the water.
Looking up Hull Pot Beck and its many cascades. By the normal way of things, this beck is dry as it usually disappears into the maze of caves beneath Pen-y-Ghent before it reaches Hull Pot. With all the rain and snow we’ve had, the beck was able to complete its route, crashing 60ft down into Hull Pot and re-emerging at the surface nearer Horton-in-Ribblesdale.
A different view of Hull Pot from its eastern end. Two boulders balance precariously on the lip of the pot.
At around 450 m/1,476 ft above sea level, a few snow patches have lingered around the edges of Hull Pot, allowing for some interesting compositional leading lines.
A particularly clean snow patch nearer the falls gives me an idea for a composition involving Pen-y-Ghent in the distance. Fellow hikers milling about the edge of Hull Pot give you a sense of scale of this place.
Heading back down to the village, signs were clear that the best of the day’s light were done as the storm clouds rolled in. We were thankful to get what we did, though.
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Hull Pot, Yorkshire Dales, Summer
There’s something awe-inspiring yet slightly unnerving about a giant hole in the ground.
There’s something awe-inspiring yet slightly unnerving about a giant hole in the ground.
The Yorkshire Dales is known for many things: beautiful waterfalls everywhere, isolated peaks, perfectly sculpted valleys… and also, caves. It’s home to some of the most extensive cave systems in the UK.
This is largely because of the underlying geology. Most of the Yorkshire Dales features Carboniferous limestone, which is soluble in weakly acidic water, such as rain. As a result, millennia of glacial action and weather erosion has given rise to a karst landscape dotted with deep potholes that lead down into a myriad of cave systems. It’s in the Yorkshire Dales that the UK’s longest cave system—and the world’s 13th longest—can be found: the Three Counties system, which is 53 miles long.
Down the western flank of Pen-y-Ghent, one of the Three Peaks of the Yorkshire Dales, one can find a 60ft deep chasm in the earth called Hull Pot. It is the remnant of a cave with a collapsed roof.
It is extremely impressive.
All photos taken on my Fujifilm X-T2 using my Vivitar “Series 1” 28–105mm f2.8–f3.8 zoom lens and a Laowa 9mm f/2.8 prime ultra-wide. RAW files were converted with Capture One for iPad, developed in RNI Films, and finished in Affinity Photo for iPad.
Hull Pot, Yorkshire Dales, Summer by Ian Cylkowski is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
The route to Hull Pot is simple enough and starts at the small village of Horton in Ribblesdale. Heading up the Pennine Bridleway, views quickly open up looking back to Ingleborough.
The characteristic barns of the Yorkshire Dales, some in a better condition than others.
The first glimpse of Pen-y-Ghent’s unmistakeable shape comes into view.
The clouds above us were ridiculously pretty, ranging from low-level fluffy clouds, high-level streaky ones and even some lenticular in between.
A dilapidated barn connecting to the drystone wall provides a perfect Yorkshire Dales subject for this gorgeous composition.
Though not busy, there were still plenty of people on the trail. Mostly heading to, and from, Pen-y-Ghent.
It’s always important to check the view behind you occasionally. Beyond the winding drystone walls, Smearsett Scar rises above the karst landscape.
As the morning progresses the clouds burn off, revealing the flat-topped Ingleborough on the left with Simon Fell on the right.
Painterly clouds like a mad genius’ brush strokes decorate the skies as we advance along the bridleway.
Around Horton Scar the path averages out in height at around the 400m asl mark. The light picked out the folds and ruffles in the landscape.
Fellow hikers make their way back down to the valley bottom after climbing Pen-y-Ghent.
The western aspect of Pen-y-Ghent with its famous brow and “nose”. I enjoyed making this Z in the landscape using the drystone wall as it climbs up Horton Scar.
A female Northern Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe), seemingly unfazed by our presence and appreciation.
Another extinct waterfall, located at the head of Horton Scar. There are many of these in the Yorkshire Dales. The rivers that feed these waterfalls usually break down the limestone riverbeds and valleys they create before heading underground, leaving the waterfall to dry up.
We arrive at Hull Pot. With my 9mm ultra-wide lens equipped, I shot this expansive view of the 60ft chasm from near its eastern edge. From the edge you can actually hear the rushing of a waterfall.
This is Hull Pot Beck. In times gone this river would flow over the lip of Hull Pot, crashing down as a large waterfall. These days it’s mostly dry except during times of heavy rainfall, as the water now sinks underground further up the river.
Lisabet and I played around the edge of the “waterfall” and Hull Pot, finding compositions. In the distance is Pen-y-Ghent, always watching.
Weird to think that this composition would, in ancient times, mean standing at the precipice of a large roaring waterfall.
As we move into late summer, beautiful pink and magenta heather starts to bloom.
My favourite composition in the area: the chasm of Hull Pot with Pen-y-Ghent rising high above.
The 50ft+ sheer walls of Hull Pot. In the darkness there is actually a waterfall that rushes out of the caves at the bottom of this chasm.
After a spot of lunch perched on the lip of Hull Pot’s eastern end, I snap one last photo of the chasm before heading back.
The Pennine Bridleway continues up towards Pen-y-Ghent, the common route to summit the fell.
The atmosphere was wonderfully clear. From above Horton Scar we could see all the way to Pendle Hill in Lancashire, here towards the left of the photo.
The characteristic “rakes” that line the shoulders of Pen-y-Ghent were revealed after a frightful storm in the 19th century washed away a lot of top soil from the fell.
Nearly back at Horton in Ribblesdale. What a beautiful day.
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Hull Pot, Yorkshire Dales, England
After two weeks of illness kicking both me and Lisabet hard in the dick, it was nice to have a weekend where we were both well and the weather looked good.
After two weeks of illness kicking both me and Lisabet hard in the dick, it was nice to have a weekend where we were both well and the weather looked good.
We took full advantage—of a lie in—then made our ways towards Horton-in-Ribblesdale, a small village in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales. It was here that we would take a glorious hike along the Pennine Way towards Hull Pot and Pen-y-ghent.
Hull Pot is essentially the remains of a cave, of which there are many in the Yorkshire Dales, where the “roof” has collapsed, leaving a giant chasm in the surrounding moorland underneath Pen-y-ghent. It’s the largest natural hole in England, measuring 300 ft long, 60 ft wide, and 60 ft deep.
But arguably the main showstopper of the area is Pen-y-ghent (694 m/2,277 ft), the fell that dominates the skyline all around the Ribblesdale valley. It’s an unusual name as it sounds very Welsh; that’s because the name survives from ancient Cumbric, which is related to Welsh. Pen means “top” or “head” and y is usually the definite article. Ghent could mean “edge” or “border”, giving the fell’s name as “Hill on the border”.
Shots taken on a Fujifilm X-T2 using the Fujinon XC 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 OIS lens. Also an extra one or two with my Google Pixel 3XL using a Moment 18mm v2 wide lens.