A tiny, but worthwhile, 2km walk along the canal into the woods and back on a wet early autumn day.
Route: starting from outside the Castle Inn, in an attempt to delay a final pint, and walking west to take the steep stairs south onto the canal tow path, under the road and along the tow path overshadowed by the castle to the right, with a much lower stream to the left. The path becoming a narrow fenced raised walkway between two water courses, following this until it turned left across a footbridge and then right to enter the woods at the sawmill. Following an obvious broad track in surprising gloom for 1:30pm to reach Round Dam and looping round this, gaining height, to follow a track at the edge of the woods eventually being forced left to join a raised pavement between the castle and the road back to the church and crossing in front of it, back to the pub.
Conditions: after heavy rain, mere drizzle but dark for daytime.
Pub: the Castle Inn, Skipton, for Theakstons Old Peculier (‘always available’)
