Buckden Pike is a

fell A fell (from Old Norse ''fell'', ''fjall'', "mountain"Falk and Torp (2006:161).) is a high and barren landscape feature, such as a mountain or moor-covered hill. The term is most often employed in Fennoscandia, Iceland, the Isle of Man, pa ...

at the head of

Wharfedale Wharfedale ( ) is the valley of the upper parts of the River Wharfe and one of the Yorkshire Dales. It is situated within the districts of Craven and Harrogate in North Yorkshire, and the cities of Leeds and Bradford in West Yorkshire. It ...

, a valley in the

Yorkshire Dales The Yorkshire Dales is an upland area of the Pennines in the historic county of Yorkshire, England, most of it in the Yorkshire Dales National Park created in 1954. The Dales comprise river valleys and the hills rising from the Vale of York ...

, that stands above the village of Buckden, England. At , it narrowly misses out on being the highest peak in the area, the title instead going to nearby Great Whernside (704 metres). The summit is marked by a trig point.

Routes of ascent

Buckden Pike offers walks a few different routes. Perhaps the easiest and shortest route up the mountain is a bridleway from Buckden, although this is steep and boggy in parts, and therefore somewhat unsuitable for cyclists and those on horseback. Another route, on Access Land, follows Buckden Beck as far as the disused Buckden Lead Mine, then joins a Permitted Footpath to the summit. A longer and more challenging walk is the circular route taking in Buckden, Buckden Pike, Great Whernside and

Kettlewell Kettlewell is a village in Upper Wharfedale, North Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it lies north of Grassington, at the point where Wharfedale is joined by a minor road (Cam Gill Road) which leads north ...

. Walkers can start and finish at either of the car parks in Buckden or Kettlewell - traditionally the leg along the

River Wharfe The River Wharfe ( ) is a river in Yorkshire, England originating within the Yorkshire Dales National Park. For much of its middle course it is the county boundary between West Yorkshire and North Yorkshire. Its valley is known as Wharfeda ...

(part of the Dales Way) is completed at the end of the day for an easier finish.

Buckden Pike Memorial Cross

To the south of the summit is a memorial cross, dedicated to the memory of five Polish airmen of the Polish Air Force 18th Polish Operational Training Unit based at RAF Bramcote who crashed their Wellington Bomber on 30 January 1942. The memorial was created by, with help from various locals, the sole survivor of the crash Jozef "Joe" Fusniak, and completed on 8 August 1973. Fusniak died in July 2017.

The view

There are fine views from the summit. The most extensive are to the East and West. To the East is the ridge running from Little Whernside to the summit of Wharfedale's highest peak, Great Whernside. To the West are views into the heart of the Yorkshire Dales, including mountains such as The

Yorkshire Three Peaks The mountains of Whernside (), Ingleborough () and Pen-y-ghent () are collectively known as the Three Peaks. The peaks, which form part of the Pennine range, encircle the head of the valley of the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales Nat ...

, as well as closer peaks such as Firth Fell and Yockenthwaite Moor. To be found close to the summit is a large wooden pole, standing vertically; it has a number of large holes focused on different views - this used to be labelled with information cards but is no longer.

Buckden Pike Fell Race

Every year, Buckden Pike is host to the Buckden Pike Fell Race, which is held on the third Saturday in June and coincides with Buckden village gala. The race was first run in 1981 on a course designed by Peter Jebb. In 1987, Peter altered the course to make it tougher and more interesting and it has remained unchanged ever since and this was the course on which the records were set. It has now become a classic race in the fell runners calendar and this is recognised by the fact that it is regularly selected as an English championship race. The race record is held by Finlay Wild who, in 2022, completed the course in a time of 30:39. The women's record is held by Carol Greenwood who in 1993, finished with a time of 36:32.

References

*
Buckden Pike
, ''Buckden, Wharfedale Community Website''
The Buckden Pike Memorial Cross Homepage

External links