Hardraw Force
Hardraw Force is a
waterfall in a wooded
ravine just outside the
hamlet of
Hardraw at the foot of
Buttertubs Pass and the head of
Wensleydale in the
Yorkshire Dales. The
Pennine Way long distance footpath passes close by.
Comprising a single drop of 100 feet from a
rocky overhang, Hardraw Force is claimed to be
Britain's highest unbroken waterfall – at least discounting
underground falls. The underground waterfall inside nearby
Gaping Gill on the western flank of
Ingleborough has an unbroken fall of over 300 feet.
Access to Hardraw Force is rather unusual, as the visitor has to go through the bar of the Green Dragon Inn public house in Hardraw to reach the falls; an entrance fee is payable on the way through the pub. Hardraw Force is the setting for a brass band competition held annually on the second sunday in September. The competition was first held in the falls' natural amphitheatre in 1884 when six bands took part; the competition lapsed in 1927 but was revived in 1976 and has gone from strength to strength since. In recent years two other musical events have started up at the falls: the Hawdraw Bash is a Folk Rock concert in early July and the Hardraw Gathering is a three-day festival of traditional music at the end of July.
*http://www.hardrawforce.com/
