Planning a day trip to take on the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge? You might want to re-think your route. Popular walking path, High Lot – which leads to the summit of Ingleborough – is set to close to allow for essential repairs for a six month period, beginning next week.
The repairs will be carried out as a result of ‘high footfall’ and weather issues, which have caused the path to slip. Over the past month, contractors have begun removing 160 tonnes of gritstone blocks to make the path safe again, with an additional 172 metres of stone pitching set to also be removed – making way for a new 1.5 metre wide path. Drainage work and landscaping will also form part of the project, helping to combat previous drainage issues faced along the route as a result of heavy rainfall.
The path is often used as part of the route from Chapel le Dale, North Yorkshire, and attracts tens of thousands every single year. Work could be completed by the end of October, however, the route will be provisionally diverted from July 27th to January 25th (subject to change).
Speaking of the repair work, Member Champion for Recreation Management at the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, Nick Cotton, said: “High Lot is one of the most well used public paths in one of the finest National Nature Reserves in the country. It’s our shared objective with Natural England to protect the reserve by tackling footpath erosion. We also want to maintain the path network on Ingleborough to the very highest standard as for many people the Yorkshire Three Peaks is the first they see of the National Park.
“It is important for people to observe the temporary closure of the path. The High Lot section of path to be repaired is very narrow and there isn’t room for the contractors to work safely with walkers passing by. I would ask that people walking the Yorkshire Three Peaks look up the alternative route to the summit that we are recommending, and give themselves a bit more time to complete it, as it is a steep way and not easy to use.”
[Featured image: Three Peaks Challenge Ltd, threepeakschallenge.uk]
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