(AGENPARL) – Tue 16 December 2025 Please find our latest news release below.
Andrew Fagg
Media Officer
Working hours: Mon | Tue | Fri
http://www.yorkshiredales.org.uk
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Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority
Yoredale | Bainbridge | Leyburn | DL8 3EL
News Release
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Pen-y-ghent path fixed
Bainbridge, 16 December 2025
Rangers have completed the repair of one of the most well used public paths in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.
Stone pitching has been installed at Brackenbottom near Horton in Ribblesdale on the traditional Three Peaks route up Pen-y-ghent, with re-surfacing works also carried out.
A total of 80 tonnes of stone blocks for pitching, and 232 tonnes of aggregate for the surfacing, was brought from nearby Horton quarry earlier this year.
The four-week job was led by Three Peaks Ranger Thomas Andrews (pictured), whose role is to maintain the paths on the 24-mile circuit known as the Yorkshire Three Peaks.
The post depends entirely on public support through the Three Peaks Project, which last year raised nearly £30,000 from a combination of donations and sales of the Three Peaks app and merchandise.
Thomas Andrews said: “When I started here last year, I was amazed at the erosion of this section. It was all brown and scarred and the path had widened as people found ways around the mud. In summer months hundreds of people come up and down here every day.
“Pen-y-ghent is for many people their first experience of hill walking in the National Park, so we’re pleased to make this section of the path good again.”
Member Champion for Recreation Management at the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, Lizzie Bushby, said: “Maintaining the paths of the Yorkshire Three Peaks is one of our greatest challenges. Thankfully we have a Three Peaks Ranger who is not overawed, and we are really proud of the work that he and colleagues have done at Brackenbottom.
“The work was made possible only because of generous public support. I hope people will continue to back the Three Peaks Project, so we can look after this fragile environment. There are several ways to donate, including by becoming a Friend of the Three Peaks.
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Note to Newsdesk
Images:
1 Three Peaks Ranger Thomas Andrews beside the repaired path to Penyghent (on 25 Nov 2025)
2 New stone pitching at Brackbottom on the path to Pen-y-ghent
** Note: The stone pitching illustrated in this story, completed this autumn, was the third section of pitching to be installed in recent years at Brackenbottom. In 2022-23 and 2023-24 stone pitching and landscaping works were also carried out. The public footpath is “number 36” in the parish, starting at Brackenbottom Road and following a north-easterly direction towards Pen-y-Ghent summit.
1. The Yorkshire Dales National Park is one of 15 National Parks in the UK. It is administered by the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, which has two main purposes: “to conserve and enhance the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage” and “to promote opportunities for the understanding and enjoyment of the special qualities of the National Park”. In carrying out these purposes, the Authority has a duty “to seek to foster the economic and social well being of local communities”. The National Park Authority comprises 25 members, made up of unitary, county and city councillors and members appointed by the Secretary of State for the Environment to represent parishes or in recognition of their specialist skills or knowledge.
1. All of our work is guided by the vision for the future of the National Park set out in the Yorkshire Dales National Park Management Plan: “Through their passion for this special place, local people and businesses will keep the Yorkshire Dales National Park a thriving area. Its unique cultural landscape will be treasured for its stunning scenery, exceptional heritage and wonderful wildlife, and every year millions of people will be inspired to be a part of it.”