Austwick: Village History and Limestone Landscape

Austwick is located in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. The village brings together old stone houses and architectural history with a landscape shaped by limestone, historic cultivation terraces and glacial erratics. When choosing a destination for a stay, these different features help put the area into context: the village centre and church architecture tell different stories from the rock formations and paths.

Village and Architectural History

Austwick’s old stone houses face a small village green. This arrangement places the houses and green space directly opposite one another. The parish of Austwick contains many listed buildings, some dating from the 17th century. This applies to the parish as a whole, not just the houses by the green.

One specific example is the Church of the Epiphany in Austwick. This Grade II listed building was formerly a lecture room and is now a parish church. It was built for Charles Ingleby in 1839; an apsidal chancel was added in 1883. Austwick Hall is also a Grade II listed building. The house dates from the 17th century and was altered in the 19th century. The two building histories can therefore be distinguished chronologically: the church’s history is shaped by its construction in the 19th century and the later addition, while Austwick Hall originated as an older house.

Limestone and Glacial Traces

West of Austwick are old cultivation terraces known as lynchets. The Neolithic long cairn of Dudderhouse Hill has a different landscape character: it is surrounded by limestone pavement, steep slopes, short rock cliffs and scree slopes. Thus, historic traces of cultivation sit alongside the distinctive landforms around a prehistoric monument.

The Norber Erratics near Austwick are classic examples of glacial erratics. They lie on a limestone plateau and include hundreds of large Silurian slate blocks. A glacier transported them there from the western slopes of Crummackdale during the last Ice Age, about 12,000 years ago. At Robin Proctor’s Scar, a path from Thwaite Lane leads to the foot of the limestone scree slopes. Together, these places offer different ways to explore the local geology: the erratics and their story of origin, and the scree slopes as a distinctive landform.

Circular Walks and Route Planning

A circular walk starts and ends at The Green in Austwick. It passes through Austwick, visits the Norber Erratics, goes through Crummackdale and continues to Feizor. Check the published route details locally before setting out.

The senior route of the Austwick Amble follows a loop of about 8 miles (13 kilometres) and has a total ascent of about 1,200 feet (370 metres). The first 4 miles pass through the limestone landscape of Crummackdale. This provides both overall distance and ascent figures for planning, as well as a specific description of the first section. Check the event arrangements before travelling.

Discover more destinations: Pateley Bridge, Shipton, Scalby, Ganton, Crathorne, Selby, Cray, Hellifield.

Return to the main travel overview: North Yorkshire.