Tales of the Dales: Trollers Gill
Trollers Gill, plenty of places for those trolls to hide
‘The cries of crows echo through the rocky ravine….. the crack of a rock as it hits the ground sends your attention upwards towards the steely grey sky…. Pressing onwards, your gaze returns to ground, only to be met with two pinpricks of red in the distance, you squint as you try to make out the owners of the two yellow lantern like eyes, glowing in the mist….’
Trollers Gill. Literally the place of legends.
Ever wondered how Trollers Gill got its name? Have a guess. No, it doesn’t have a reputation for bullying other Yorkshire Gills, it’s origins are actually probably not what you think if you’re familiar with the place!
The popular story is that it is the home of some pretty malevolent trolls, who’s sole desire it is to throw rocks at your head. Or anybody else’s head for that matter. See? Not quite your average Princess Poppy (sorry, casual Trolls reference there). It is the trolls that give the gill its name.
I mean if I were a troll, I’d DEFINITELY choose Trollers Gill as my chosen haunt. Steep rocky walls, a mysteriously disappearing river, masses upon masses of troll sized holes, this place is perfect!
But delve a little more into the history of the stories of this place and you might be surprised to find out something a little different to explain the name.
Keep your eyes peeled for those rocks
Not only is this breath-taking place home to some pretty evil trolls, but it is the residence of a legendary demon dog. The barghest. With it’s saucer like glowing eyes, it’s sole purpose it not to throw stones, but to kill anybody who lays eyes on it. Da Da DAAAAAAAH!
I know….. BRUTAL!
Appearing in Hone’s Table Book, published in 1828 the story of the Trollers Gill barghest was immortalised in a ballad and it gives us another reason for the name of Trollers Gill. (source: Ian Humberstone: The Barguest of Troller’s Gill | Caught by the River | Caught by the River)
The ballad tells us that a Stroller (or a local wizard - troller) set off for the gill with the intention of conjuring the beasts that lived there (and presumably living to tell the tale…..)
Unfortunately, the fate that befell this magical chap was not to bravely return home having faced the barghest, but was to be found dead the following day by a shepherd, reportedly with wounds and marks on him, that could not have been human. Creepy right?
In fact this place is so inspirationally creepy, rumour has it that the Trollers Gill barghest was the inspiration for Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Hound of the Baskervilles. It’s a rumour that I like, whether or not it has any fact behind it, well I’ll leave that up to you!
So what do you reckon? Going to brave the barghest? I mean, we have many times, because this is one of our FAVOURITE walks.
So, if you fancy the route that also takes you past the incredibly aptly titled Hell Hole, then find it below!
Head through to our Trollers Gill walk page for more.
Spooky Walks
Since originally writing this blog back in 2021, I have a collected a whole LOAD of ghost stories, folk tales, witch stories and horrible history about the Yorkshire Dales and they now all have their own dedicated pages!
To find links to them and the spooky Halloween walks, then tap the button below!