Whitendale Hanging Stones is a small set of rocks about 4 miles
north of Dunsop Bridge in the Forest of Bowland. Its claim to fame
is being at the centre of Great Britain, although the actual centre
is about 200 metres to the west in a nondescript bit of moorland at
SD 64188.30 56541.43 (see (visit link)
There are several ways to get to the cache, the most direct
route being from the Whitendale valley via Gutter Clough. This is a
very tough ascent, and I would not recommend it. My recommended
route is:
* Park at Dunsop Bridge and proceed north to Middle Knoll (this
road is closed to traffic except cycles).
* Continue via Lower Brennand Farm and Brennand Farm to a point
where the track crosses an aqueduct at N53 59.139 W02 33.123.
* Proceed up the shooters' track to the shooting cabin at N53
59.820 W02 33.531 (following the contour to the left when you reach
a fork at the top of the hill).
* Continue to Brennand Hanging Stones at N53 59.851 W02 33.060 -
the section from the cabin to the cache is rough and very boggy in
parts. Be careful.
* Proceed along the line of grouse butts to the fence and then
follow the fence north to the cache.
Note that grouse shooting takes place occasionally on this land
during the season from the Glorious Twelfth (August) to 10th
December. However, all Sundays are shooting-free. The following
website gives details of access restrictions: (visit link) The distance to Middle Knoll is 2.5
miles, with a further 3 miles to the cache, giving a total distance
of 11 miles. Allow 5+ hours.
Whitendale Hanging Stones is remote and requires crossing rough,
inhospitable terrain. Make sure you are properly equipped for such
a walk - I recommend not doing this cache in bad weather or on your
own. The first section of the route is ideal to be done by bike.
You can cycle to Middle Knoll (or even to beyond Brennand Farm),
chain up your bike and walk to the cache from there. There is a
slight downhill slope from below Middle Knoll to Dunsop Bridge, so
you can freewheel most of the way back if your legs are tired! The
cycling option will take up to an hour off the trip time. There are
three other caches that can be bagged on the way, GCGGVB at Dunsop
Bridge, GCNYRC on the track to Whitendale, and GCH70K at Middle
Knoll.