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Whaw is the last community near the head of Arkengarthdale.
©Gordon Hatton
Dist:0.2km<br/>The highest village in Arkengarthdale. Note the spoil heaps behind the village, a relic of the lead mining industry which was the mainstay of the economy of the valley in the 19th century. For an account of the history of the valley, see http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/YKS/NRY/Arkengarthdale/index.html and for a description of the scenery, see http://www.yorkshiredales.org.uk/index/learning/landscape_character/dales_character_areas/swaledale_and_arkengarthdale_character_areas/arkengarthdale_-_key_characteristics.htm
©Oliver Dixon
Dist:0.2km<br/>The building attached to the house is in need of a helping hand to stay standing.
©Trish Steel
Dist:0.2km<br/>Small farming community in upper Arkengarthdale.
©Richard Webb
Dist:0.2km<br/>The small settlement of Whaw lies in the quiet valley of Arkengathdale, a major tributary of Swaledale. It's seen here from the valley road over a hay meadow rich in buttercups and with the deeper yellow of marsh marigold at the edge of the shadow of the stream groove.
©Trevor Littlewood
Dist:0.2km<br/>The Arkle Beck rises on the wild moorland near the Tan Hill Inn. It is a fast flowing tributary of the River Swale which it joins near Grinton Bridge.
©Trish Steel
Dist:0.2km<br/>This photograph shows a view of Whaw Bridge in Arkengarthdale as seen from the public footpath that approaches it from the south-east. The picture was taken looking in a north-north-westerly direction towards Punchard Gill Bridge.
©Philip Barker
Dist:0.3km<br/>
©peter robinson
Dist:0.3km<br/>The bridge carries the minor road over Arkle Beck. The Arkle Beck rises on the wild moorland near the Tan Hill Inn. It is a fast flowing tributary of the River Swale which it joins near Grinton Bridge.
©Trish Steel
Dist:0.3km<br/>
©peter robinson
Dist:0.4km<br/>In the 18th and 19th centuries, when lime was extensively used on acid clay soil to improve cultivation, lime kilns were widespread. Beehive shaped, with a hole in the top, kilns were usually built on the sides of steep hills and against cliff faces, to make the loading of limestone and coal easier. Alternating layers of limestone and coal were burnt to produce the lime. This kiln dates from the early 19th century.
©Trish Steel
Dist:0.4km<br/>Drystone walls are built without mortar, and their stability – they can stand for 200 years – is due to the skill of the craftsmen who place rough boulders and angular stones together. Many drystone walls were constructed as part of the enclosure of open grazing. They were especially useful in areas too exposed for hedgerows to survive and where stones were readily available. Most drystone walls are wider at the base than at the crown, and are often capped with coping stones. A typical wall has two outer layers of large, flattish stones enclosing an inner ‘heart’ of smaller, rounder stones. Often it is reinforced with ‘through bands’ of even larger, flat stones which can also be used as stiles. The very dryness of a wall makes it more likely to endure wind and frost and to act as shelter for livestock as well as a boundary. The tree appears to be hanging on to life as well.
©Trish Steel
Dist:0.4km<br/>
©David Brown
Dist:0.4km<br/>A well preserved limekiln at the roadside at Seal Houses above Whaw in Arkengarthdale.
©Gordon Hatton
Dist:0.4km<br/>The valley is criss-crossed with drystone walls. Drystone walls are built without mortar, and their stability – they can stand for 200 years – is due to the skill of the craftsmen who place rough boulders and angular stones together. Many drystone walls were constructed as part of the enclosure of open grazing. They were especially useful in areas too exposed for hedgerows to survive and where stones were readily available. Most drystone walls are wider at the base than at the crown, and are often capped with coping stones. A typical wall has two outer layers of large, flattish stones enclosing an inner ‘heart’ of smaller, rounder stones. Often it is reinforced with ‘through bands’ of even larger, flat stones which can also be used as stiles. The very dryness of a wall makes it more likely to endure wind and frost and to act as shelter for livestock as well as a boundary.
©Trish Steel

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