Cauldron Falls (North Yorkshire)

Cauldron Falls (also known as West Burton falls), is a series of waterfalls on Walden Beck in the village of West Burton, North Yorkshire, England. It is known as Cauldron Falls due to the swirls in the plunge pools beneath the cascades of the waterfall. The beck continues on underneath a packhorse bridge where there is another cascade.

Cauldron Falls
The waterfall at West Burton
LocationWest Burton, North Yorkshire, England
Coordinates54.275°N 1.971°W / 54.275; -1.971[1]
WatercourseWalden Beck

Description

The waterfall is located on the Walden Beck, a tributary of the River Ure, in West Burton, which traverses a fault in the bed of the shelving rock.[2][3][4] The initial step of the waterfall is a steep cascade which flows east, then immediately south into a plunge pool, the section under the packhorse bridge then cascades into another pool.[5] The first drop falls 20 feet (6 m), and is sometimes referred to as Upper Cauldron Falls.[6][7] The upper falls section is surround by a north-facing "limestone amphitheatre", over which the water falls.[8] The lower section of the falls travel under a stone bridge known locally as Blue Bridge.[9]

The name Cauldron Falls, refers to the swirling effect of the water in the plunge pool below the main waterfall.[10] The limestone was carved out by the movement of ice across the valley sideways, rather than the effect of melting ice running over it.[11]

J. M. W. Turner painted the falls when he travelled through Wensleydale in 1816.[12]

References
  1. "West Burton Falls". www.gps-routes.co.uk. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  2. "West Burton, Waldendale – Conservation Area Character Appraisal" (PDF). yorkshiredales.org.uk. p. 1. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  3. "Walden Beck from Source to Bishopdale Beck | Catchment Data Explorer | Catchment Data Explorer". environment.data.gov.uk. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  4. Speight, Harry (1897). Romantic Richmondshire: Being a complete account of the history, antiquities and scenery of the picturesque valleys of the Swale and Yore. London: E Stock. p. 47. OCLC 252008733.
  5. Coates, Neil (2012). Walks to waterfalls : walks to the best waterfalls in the Yorkshire Dales. Tattenhall: Northern Eye. p. 10. ISBN 978-1-908632-11-1.
  6. Chrystal, Paul (2017). The Place Names of Yorkshire; Cities, Towns, Villages, Rivers and Dales, some Pubs too, in Praise of Yorkshire Ales (1 ed.). Catrine: Stenlake. p. 106. ISBN 9781840337532.
  7. Hartley, Marie (1991). The Yorkshire Dales. Otley: Smith Settle. p. 235. ISBN 1870071727.
  8. Bagshaw, Mike (2010). Go slow Yorkshire dales & moors : local, characterful guides to Britain's special places. Chalfont St. Peter: Bradt Travel Guides. p. 89. ISBN 1841623237.
  9. Bharier, Julian; Thompson, Marianne V. (1996). West Burton. West Burton: W.E.I.C. p. 2. ISBN 0-9525905-1-4.
  10. Reid, Laura (25 April 2022). "Cauldron falls a swirling sight of Wensleydale". The Yorkshire Post. p. 18. ISSN 0963-1496.
  11. Waltham, Tony (2007). The Yorkshire Dales : landscape and geology. Ramsbury: Crowood. p. 77. ISBN 1861269722.
  12. "'West Burton Falls, Wensleydale', Joseph Mallord William Turner, 1816". tate.org.uk. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
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