Kisdon Force is a series of

waterfall A waterfall is any point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in seve ...

s on the

River Swale The River Swale in Yorkshire, England, is a major tributary of the River Ure, which becomes the River Ouse, Yorkshire, River Ouse, that empties into the North Sea via the Humber Estuary. The river gives its name to Swaledale, the valley throu ...

Swaledale Swaledale is a valley in North Yorkshire, England. It is one of the Yorkshire Dales, which are part of the Pennines, and within the Yorkshire Dales National Park. It is named after the River Swale, which runs through it. Swaledale is the mo ...

, England. The falls are situated within the

Yorkshire Dales National Park The Yorkshire Dales National Park is a national park in England which covers most of the Yorkshire Dales, the Howgill Fells, and the Orton Fells. The Nidderdale area of the Yorkshire Dales is not within the national park, and has instead ...

in the county of

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in Northern England.The Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority areas of City of York, York and North Yorkshire (district), North Yorkshire are in Yorkshire and t ...

, 500 metres downstream from the small hamlet of Keld at grid reference . Kisdon Force is one of several waterfalls on the Swale in the Keld area: the others are

East Gill Force East Gill Force is a waterfall in Swaledale, east of the hamlet of Keld, North Yorkshire, Keld, in the Yorkshire Dales, Yorkshire Dales National Park, North Yorkshire, England. The falls are located on East Gill at grid reference , just befor ...

, Catrake Force and Wain Wath Force. All occur where the river cuts a gorge through the Carboniferous Limestone between the hills of Kisdon and

Rogan's Seat Rogan's Seat is a remote hill located near East Stonesdale and Gunnerside Gill, in the Yorkshire Dales in England. It is a high expanse of moorland that stretches alongside Swaledale, Swinner Gill and Gunnerside Gill. It is the joint 17th h ...

. The falls in this area are termed "forces" after the Norse word ''fors'' or ''foss'', which means "waterfall". Both upper and lower Kisdon Force can be negotiated by canoeists, although a high degree of skill and experience is needed. The upper falls are rated Grade IV whilst the lower falls are rated more difficult at Grade V. The falls drop over two cascades and are surrounded by Kisdon Force Woods, a

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

covering an area of 38 hectares, which consists of mixed broad-leaved

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with woody plants (trees and shrubs), or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the '' plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunli ...

with

ash Ash is the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash is the ...

wych elm ''Ulmus glabra'', the wych elm or Scots elm, has the widest range of the European elm species, from Ireland eastwards to the Ural Mountains, and from the Arctic Circle south to the mountains of the Peloponnese and Sicily, where the species reac ...

and

rowan The rowans ( or ) or mountain-ashes are shrubs or trees in the genus ''Sorbus'' of the rose family, Rosaceae. They are native throughout the cool temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with the highest species diversity in the Himalaya ...

dominating. In the spring, primroses grow profusely in the area. The falls can be easily visited by a riverside path from Keld. However, care should be taken since the stones around the falls are often wet and slippery. Visitor numbers to the falls are swollen by walkers along the

Pennine Way The Pennine Way is a National Trail in England, with a small section in Scotland. The trail stretches for from Edale, in the northern Derbyshire Peak District, north through the Yorkshire Dales and Northumberland National Park and ends at Kir ...

, a long-distance footpath that passes the falls.

References

{{coord, 54.4041, -2.1575, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Waterfalls of North Yorkshire Force (waterfall) Swaledale

See also

References