Whernside, Ingleborough and Pen y Ghent are the Yorkshire Dales Three Peaks

But have you ever wondered which is the best way to walk the Yorkshire Three Peaks with the kids in tow? Do you wonder which route is best for the kids wanting to climb Whernside, Ingleborough and Pen y Ghent? Because there are so many options and…. well, when I’ve been trawling the Google galaxy, I’ve not found one route yet that successfully tackles the famous Yorkshire three peaks with the kid factor in play!

But never fear! For we have taken on this challenge! Hooray!

After 3,919 metres of collective ascent across 18 months, walking the three peaks on several different occasions, in all weather conditions, (and bog. Let’s give a special mentions to bog… particularly 2024 bog, for that is the boggiest of them all!) we have settled on the three most family friendly routes there are.

And my friends. That was not an entirely easy feat. In particular the part where I mentioned to the kids that we were climbing them…. again…. Well you can imagine how that went down!

So read on to find out our family friendly walking routes to Whernside, Ingleborough and Pen y Ghent, where to stop, what’s cool to check out, why we decided on the routes we have and where to stop for the park, pub or a tasty treat!

Ingleborough

Want to know the best route for kids when it comes to climbing Ingleborough? Then check this out!

We have spent a LOT of time tackling Ingleborough. Like a LOT of time. The reason? To find the most family friendly route up.

Now, when it comes to route planning a walk, my aim is to get a circular walk. That’s my preference, and I think most people like a circular. A satisfying circular. (Why IS it so satisfying…..? Answers on a postcard)

But when it comes to Ingleborough with kids…. I’ve settled on a linear. Want to hear about the routes we’ve previously tried?

The Circular Route from Clapham

This is a super circular. Absolutely loved it, there’s so much interest, with the towering rock faces of Trow Gill, the always awesome Gaping Gill and then the limestone pavements at Sulber Gate, which basically epitomise the geology of the Yorkshire Dales. To top it off, Clapham is fab little hub to start and end the walk. It has a park, cafe and pubs too!

So far so good right? And in terms of routes up Ingleborough, this is firmly the second in command. If I were pitching this to adults, it would win hands down.

But here’s why we didn’t include it as our winners for the kids.

The ascent was a proper blummin’ slog and that, coupled with the fact that it was well over 10 miles in length did not land well with the kids. Now, I know what you’re saying… ‘your Whernside walk is 11 miles’ but it’s not just about the length guys!

This route takes in 560m of ascent from your start point (which is well over 100m more ascent than the start point of Whernside). That is climbed in over 4 miles (or 7km) IT. IS. A. SLOG! And I’ll happily say that the kids were nearly broken by the end of it (aged 7 & 9 at the time). So broken, that they couldn’t even be bothered to swing on the swing!

For me? That’s a great challenge for an older kid, but not one I can confidently say is a true ‘family friendly’ route up.

Even doing it as a linear still leaves you with the ascent issues. So we went back to the drawing board.

If you fancy tackling the challenge, then the Ordnance Survey map is featured below (this is 1:50,000 scale, I use 1:25,000)

The Circular Route from Chapel le Dale

This route takes you along the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge route, ascending the very steep northern face of Ingleborough. The route is a lovely walk, and actually was my favourite way of ascending Ingleborough.

We attempted the walk, not only to trial the circular walk, but also to bag another of the Dales 30 mountains, Simon Fell which is next door to Ingleborough. In doing the walk, we also managed to bag the trig point of Park Fell, so this route is certainly a peak collector’s dream, bagging all three of the Ingleborough massif. However… not a winner for the kids.

Why? Why did I subject the kids to Ingleborough YET AGAIN, to once more find the route not ideal…. (don’t worry, the kids totally mentioned this to me… ermmm… a few times!)

Well it was largely the return route… and it was a tad lengthy overall in the end! It was by far the longest of the three attempts, but with a large chunk of the return to the parking area being along the very busy Low Sleights Road and with the alternative adding even more in terms of distance onto the total walk, it didn’t feel like it was a goer!

One thing I did learn is that the ascent is the clincher when it comes to doing peaks with kids. This was a steady walk to begin with a short sharp up, which meant the kids were far less shattered by the time they got to the top, giving them more energy for the rest of the distance.

Thinking of doing it as a there and back again? I would advise against this with kids as the final ascent is INCREDIBLY steep (see pic below) and so it would not be an ideal route for descent (it’s the same reason we do Pen y Ghent the way we do!)

The Route we chose…. Ingleborough from Ingleton

Yes, it’s a there and back again route, but for families with younger kids, we think this is the best option.

Here’s why.

The route starts and ends in Ingleton, which is a super little village with a park (and pool) and plenty of options for food and drink either before or after you begin.

At only 7 miles, it’s by far the shortest of all the routes we’ve tried up Ingleborough and despite it being there and back again, there’s plenty to see. In fact on a clear day, on the return route, you CAN see the sea as well as the Lake District and the Howgills.

It’s a gentle ascent followed by a shorter steeper section. If you’ve read the rest of the blog, you’ll know by now that this is the clincher. It’s not as steep as the ascent from Chapel le Dale, but it is steep enough that you get it over and done with quickly, so you won’t experience the fatigue of the longer ascent from Clapham. It’s also not so steep that you can’t come back down by the same route.

So that’s why it won!

So there you have it, our suggested route for kids who are headed up Ingleborough. You can read the full route description on our Ingleborough page.

Whernside

The tallest of them alllllll!

Whernside marks the highest point in the Yorkshire Dales National Park and is a super challenge for explorers. However…. I’ll let you into a secret. SHHHHH don’t tell anybody!

It may be the highest…. but the walk involves the least ascent of all three of the Yorkshire Three Peaks! SHOCK HORROR! Yup. At only 438m of actual ascent from the parking area, this is the longest in length, but with the smallest climb!

Having walked Whernside by both clockwise and anti-clockwise routes, I have a firm favourite for doing this with the kids and…… It’s clockwise all the way baby!

You will avoid the longest ascent known to humankind…. JOKES! But I absolutely despise the Yorkshire Three Peaks route up Whernside, simply because you feel like you are literally climbing FOREVER (maybe it’s because the memory was tainted by the -10 wind chill we experienced on the day I did it the anti-clockwise way…. but. Actually no. It was dreadful!) So to do it the other way round, you get warmed up with a flat-ish start, and then you get the ascent done in a short steep up.

If you need further persuasion, during the Three Peak Challenge season, there is often an ice cream van parked at the bottom of the ascent too, which is the BEST way to start a big ‘ol climb in my humble opinion!

AND then you get a lovely gentle descent back to Ribblehead.

You can also stop off at Force Gill waterfall, which by the time you hit it on the clockwise route, is on the home straight, so you can take time to explore and maybe have a snack!

Then of course, there’s the pub and ice cream at the end too (although…. that’s a given whichever way you choose to do it!)

We LOVE The Station Inn pub at Ribblehead, with a super beer garden and an always friendly welcome!

You can find the full route description and walk details for Whernside on the walk page.

Pen y Ghent

The smallest of the Yorkshire Three Peaks is actually our favourite walk of them all! What it lacks in height, it makes up for in fun and our preferred route up is via the scramble (pictured). Going up the rocky section is far FAR easier than coming down, as it can be slippery when damp and is a particularly steep exposed section of the walk which is not ideal on a descent!

This one was an easy decision for us and I feel that the circular walk from Horton in Ribblesdale offers the most excitement and the best challenge.

I’ll admit it’s been hard to create bite-sized family walks around the Yorkshire Three Peaks. If there’s one thing I can say from experience of the Yorkshire Dales, is that there are very few walks that bag a peak, are short and that are also interesting!

But Pen y Ghent is probably our favourite! And to shorten the route even more, simply take out Hull Pot!

Although….. a detour to see this epic collapsed cavern, is worth the extra length. Even better if you can go when the waterfall is flowing into it (only after heavy and prolonged rain on saturated ground)

There’s also a super little play area in Horton in Ribblesdale too!

For the full route description and walk details head to our Pen y Ghent walk page.

Frequently Asked Questions

Over on our Instagram and Facebook pages, I get asked quite a lot of questions about climbing the Three Peaks with kids, so here’s the answer to the most frequently asked questions…

How old do kids have to be to climb one of the Yorkshire Three Peaks?

This is hands down the most frequently asked questions and is virtually impossible to answer!

Because there are so many blummin variables! All I can give you are the ages of my two when they first climbed each of the peaks. Whernside, my eldest and youngest were both 6 when they tackled Whernside for the first time. My youngest was 7 when he first tackled Pen y Ghent, and Ingleborough. But then both are reasonably experienced and confident hikers.

Is there anything technically challenging about climbing any of the Three Peaks?

The scramble up to the top of Pen y Ghent is probably the most ‘technically’ challenging part of any of the Yorkshire Three Peaks, that said it is ungraded in scrambling terms.

I stop short of saying that it’s easy, because easy for some isn’t necessarily easy for others, but both of my children handle it comfortably. There are however steep unguarded drops, and in places hands and knees may well be required. I wouldn’t attempt this with kids in ice and snow or very wet conditions as the rocks can be slippery, nor would I attempt to descend this route.

Can you attempt all three peaks in the same day?

Yes! This is the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge and is just under 24 miles, and involves around 1600m of ascent. The aim is to complete all three Yorkshire Peaks in 12 hours.

It is NOT a challenge that should be underestimated though. It is long and there is a lot of distance between each of the peaks (with the exception of Whernside and Ingleborough, who are relatively close to each other)

With kids?

Well you can make that judgment call. I have not attempted all three in one day with the kids, and having walked 22 miles with 1200m of ascent myself in the Lake District, I can confirm it is NOT easy. I am attempting the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge this year and will let you know how I fare before I attempt to get the kids involved!!

To do this with kids as a family friendly challenge, why not attempt three over three consecutive days, or you could attempt all three in two days with a stop overnight nearby.

Are you inspired to tackle the Yorkshire Three Peaks with the Kids?

Then make sure you check out the Yorkshire Three Peaks page, dedicated to the famous trio!