Malham is a village in North Yorkshire set in karstic scenery: its best-known feature is the cliff of Malham Cove. In 2021 its population was just over 200, which includes the neighbouring smaller village of Kirkby Malham.
Get in
[edit]
Malham is 11 miles northwest of Skipton, which has buses and trains from Leeds and Bradford.
By road follow A65 from Skipton to Coniston Cold, then take the lane north through Bell Busk and Airton. Bikes and small vehicles can short-cut along the lane from Gargrave.
Chapel Gate at the south end of the village is the main parking lot and visitor information centre, open daily 10AM-5PM.
NY Council Bus 210 / 211 runs twice M-F from Skipton, taking 40 min via Gargrave and Kirkby Malham.
Kirkby Lonsdale Bus 75 runs three times on Saturday from Skipton.
Keighley Bus 864 runs hourly on Sunday May-Oct from Ilkley via Bolton Abbey and Skipton. It may start from Bradford.
1 Buck Inn is end of the line for the buses.
Get around
[edit]Hike between the village attractions.
See
[edit]
- Village centre is attractive but touristy.
- 1 Malham Cove was once the Niagara of Yorkshire, when glacier meltwater roared over and created its curving cliff. Nowadays water only cascades after exceptional rainfall, as normally it all disappears through fissures and sinkholes into the bedrock. Malham Beck emerging at the base of the cliff has no connection with the Tarn outflow stream above, and the complex cave system is only partly explored.
- 2 Clints and grikes make up the limestone pavement above the cliff: clints are the flat blocks and grikes are the deep fissures between them; with a low sun they resemble the foundations of a lost city. Glaciers exposed a smooth layer of limestone, then acidity in rainfall etched the fissures. The easiest approach from the foot of the Cove is by the stairs to the west.
- 3 Malham Tarn
is a small lake created when glaciers scraped a depression then their debris blocked the outflow. The shale bedrock stops it draining away, and the water was artificially raised to its present level in 1791. The alkaline water and altitude of 1237 ft / 377 m creates an unusual habitat, and it's managed by the National Trust. The outflow stream gets half a mile then disappears into a sinkhole. - 4 Janet's Foss is a small waterfall plunging into a pool, which is the better for swimming now it's not longer used for sheep-dipping. Reach it either along the lane from the village, or from Chapel Gate parking lot zag south onto the footpath along Gordale Beck.
- 5 Gordale Scar is a dramatic ravine a mile northeast of Malham, probably created by the collapse of caverns. The limestone cliffs are over 330 ft high. Follow the footpath upstream from Janet's Foss.
- 6 Kirkby Malham is a smaller village a mile or so south of Malham. As the name implies, the parish church is here: St Michael's may date to the 7th century but was completely rebuilt in the 15th and restored in the 19th.
Do
[edit]_-_Gordale_Scar,_Yorkshire_-_1990.103.1_-_Grosvenor_Museum.jpg)
- Maps: use OS Landranger 98 (1:50,000, "Wensleydale") for Malham and the Pennine Way north to Wensleydale.
- Use OS 103 ("Blackburn & Burnley") for hiking approaches from the south to Kirkby Malham.
- You could also use is OS Outdoor Leisure Map 10 (1:25,000 "Yorkshire Dales South").
- The Pennine Way follows Malham Beck north via the village, cove and tarn. It continues north onto Fountains Fell then trends west towards Pen-y-Ghent above Horton-in-Ribblesdale.
- Rock climbing: climbs of all grades of difficulty are found here.
- Caving is for experienced spelunkers only, there are no public show caves.
Buy
[edit]H's of Malham is a convenience store behind Buck Inn, open W-M 10:30AM-4:30PM.
Eat
[edit]- Old Barn is a tea room at Chapel Gate near the car park, open daily 9:30AM-4:30PM.
- Secret Garden is a vegan restaurant within Beck Hall, open daily 8AM-11PM.
Drink
[edit]
- Victoria Inn, Main St, Kirkby Malham BD23 4BS, ☏ +44 1729 830499. Pleasant pub with rooms.
Sleep
[edit]- 1 YHA Malham, off Finkle St, Malham BD23 4DB, ☏ +44 845 371 9529. Clean comfy hostel open April-Oct, with dorms, cabins and private rooms. Bunk £25.
- Lister Arms, Finkle St BD23 4DB (by YHA), ☏ +44 1729 830444. Pub with rooms, dog-friendly, in village centre. B&B double £150.
- Buck Inn, Cove Rd BD23 4DA (at bus stop), ☏ +44 1729 830317. Cosy pub with rooms. B&B double £120.
- River House is a B&B next to Buck Inn.
- Miresfield Farm is a B&B across the bridge from Buck Inn.
- Malham Glamping Pods are 100 yards north of Buck Inn.
- 2 Beck Hall, Cove Rd BD23 4DJ, ☏ +44 1729 830729. Charming small hotel with vegan cooking. B&B double £160.
- Hill Top Farm, Back Lane BD23 4DJ (100 yards west of Beck Hall), ☏ +44 1729 830320. The bunk barn sleeps 32 in 6 rooms and is normally only let to groups, but it accommodates individuals on weekdays out of school holidays. Bunk £40.
- Riverside Campsite is on Cove Rd 200 yards north of Beck Hall.
Connect
[edit]As of Sep 2025, Malham and its approach roads have 4G from EE but no signal from O2, Three or Vodafone. 5G has not reached this area.
Go next
[edit]- Gargrave 6 miles south is where the Pennine Way leaves the lowlands. The canal climbs through locks to summit on the Yorkshire / Lancashire boundary.
- Horton-in-Ribblesdale is the next stop on the Pennine Way after Malham, 14½ miles northwest.
- Grassington is another scenic village in the next valley east.
| Routes through Malham |
| Edale ← Gargrave ← | S  N
|
→ Horton-in-Ribblesdale → Kirk Yetholm |