Distance: 3.3 miles
Ascent: 500 ft
Walking: Andrew & Gaynor
Weather: Sunny, warm
OS Map: OL21 - South Pennines
Parking: Informal parking area, Back Lane, Stanbury
Photography: Andrew using Nikon D610 / Nikon 24-70 mm f2.8
The classic short walk up to the ruins of Top Withens Farm, the location believed to have inspired Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights.
Parking in the small informal parking area on Back Lane cuts out about half a mile of the walk from Stanbury and this seemed like a good idea with the weather being so warm. From there it is simply a case of following the well trodden path (and plenty of signposts) for about 1.5 miles up to the ruins. For most of the way up, you can see your destination in the distance, just below the horizon, and the path winding its way up to it, which gives you a sense of how isolated the place is.
On the way, the walk was accompanied by a soundtrack of birdsong, mainly curlews, grouse, skylarks and lapwings, some of which occasionally broke cover and showed themselves.
After the final climb up to the ruins, Gaynor sat and took in the spectacular views, while I had a wander around taking more photos.
Our return route took us down the beck towards the Bronte Waterfall but turning off and heading around the small plantation of pine trees to rejoin the original path. The views back up to Top Withens from this route are every bit as impressive as from the other path.
This is probably more or less peak season for the casual visitor in a normal year but things are a bit different this year with the COVID-19 pandemic and we only saw a handful of other walkers and, despite it being a relatively short walk, it's remarkable how isolated it feels up there, even on a bright summer's day.
