Yorkshire Bluebell Walks

In and around the Yorkshire Dales

Are you looking for Yorkshire Dales Bluebell walks?

Around the months of April and May the world goes CRAZY for bluebell walks! Well, you know what? We are right here for all your bluebell walking desires!

These walks all feature fantastic places to go and wallow in bluebell heaven! So what are you waiting for?

GO BLUEBELL HUNTING!

Not here for the bluebells? Then you’ve headed right off piste! But never fear, we have waterfall walks, peak bagging walks, pushchair walks and MORE! So head up to the Walks menu and check out what else there is to offer!

Walk Difficulty Ratings

All of our tried and tested kid friendly walks have been divided into 3 categories dependant on difficulty, length and terrain:

Little Monkeys:

Walks suitable for younger children. Shorter length walks with occasional pushchair access.

⭐⭐ Little Adventurers:

Walks suitable for pre-schoolers. Medium length/ difficulty walks.

⭐⭐⭐ Superstar Hikers:

Walks suitable for older children. Longer length walks with some difficult terrain.

Walks at a Glimpse

Here is our quick look key so you can identify what each walk has without taking too long!

👶 Suitable for Pushchairs

🎒 Suitable for Carriers

🚘 Car Park/ On Street Parking

🚌 Public Transport Links

🐶 Dog Friendly

🥾 Sturdy Footwear or Wellies

🧒 A park or play area

🦆 Ducks to Feed

💦 Water play/ paddle/ swim

✨ Cool history or geology

👻 Legendary Story

🌳 Walking Games

Child walking through bluebells in woods

Fishpond Woods and Ice House

⭐⭐ Little Adventurers

📍 Bewerley, near Pateley Bridge

🥾🚘🎒🦆✨🧒🌳🚌🐶

📏 2 miles

This circular walk is short, sweet and PACKED full of cool stuff to explore!

You’ll find woodland packed full of ALL OF THE NATURE! A 200 year old Ice House, hungry ducks and spooky cave spiders all topped off with a park!

Perfect for little legs! (P.S. If you hate spiders like me, visit on a cold winter day when they’re all hiding away!

Ilkley Middleton Woods bluebells

Middleton Woods

⭐⭐ Little Adventurers

📍 Ilkley, West Yorkshire

🚘🎒 🥾🦆💦🧒🌳🐶🚌

📏 2.5 miles

This circular walk will take you to Middleton Woods in Ilkley as well as going along Ilkley riverside.

You’ll find a park, plenty of stick dens, stone throwing, paddling, ducks and picnic spots here! SO MUCH GOING ON!

The archer willow sculpture at Skipton Castle woods

Skipton Castle Woods

⭐⭐ Little Adventurers

📍 Skipton

🥾🚘🎒🦆✨🧒🌳🚌🐶

📏 As short or as long as you like.

We love a little wander through Skipton Castle Woods and during the Spring, you’ll find wild garlic and bluebells too, so it’s the perfect time to pay it a visit.

We have written a blog with all the need to know details about visiting Skipton Castle Woods, so check it out by tapping the link on the button below!

climbing a tree in Grass Woods

Grass Woods in Grassington

📍 Grassington, Yorkshire Dales, Wharfedale

⭐⭐⭐ Superstar Hikers

🥾🚘🎒🧒👻✨🌳🚌🐶

📏 4 miles circular walk

Woodland and Water. We think that is a perfect walk combination!

This circular walk starts and ends in the beautiful Dales town of Grassington, where you’ll also find a play park with skate ramps and plenty of places to eat and drink afterwards!

Playing next to Swinsty Reservoir

Swinsty Reservoir

⭐⭐ Little Adventurers

📍 Washburn Valley, North Yorkshire, near Harrogate

🥾🚘💦👶/🎒🌳🚌🐶

📏 4 miles circular

This is an excellent little wander around the smallest of the Washburn Reservoirs! And with the circular route having just reopened after maintenance it’s a cracking bluebell walk!

Aysgarth Falls in winter with church in background

Aysgarth Falls and Freeholders Woods

⭐⭐ Little Adventurers

📍 Aysgarth, Wensleydale, North Yorkshire Dales

🎒/👶🥾💦🦆🌳✨🐶🚌

📏 2 miles linear walk

I’ll bet you will have heard of the famous Aysgarth Falls!

But did you know it is located next to the Woodland Trust Site of Special Scientific Interest and nature reserve, Freeholders Wood?

Fungus on the side of Bolton Abbey walk

Strid Woods, Bolton Abbey

⭐ Little Monkeys

📍 Bolton Abbey Estate, North Yorkshire

🎒/👶🌳🚘🥾🚌🐶

📏 3 miles linear walk

This family friendly walk through the famous Yorkshire woodland will mean finding SO MANY EXCITING THINGS!

Starting and ending at the Cavendish Pavillion (COFFEE!!!!) this walk will take you to the infamous Strid which is a waterfall in the middle of the Bolton Abbey Estate and is regularly the home to the Bolton Abbey Seasonal Trails.

walking through the bluebells of Riffa Woods

Riffa Woods, near Otley

📍 Near Otley, West Yorkshire

⭐⭐⭐ Superstar Hikers

🥾🚘🎒🌳🐶

📏 4 miles

Looking for bluebell walks? Then look no further!

This walk is a top secret woodland wander during Bluebell season!

Heber’s Ghyll, Ilkley

⭐⭐ Little Adventurers

📍 Ilkley, West Yorkshire

🚘🎒🥾💦✨🌳🚌🐶

📏 2 miles

A waterfall, woodland and a Neolithic carved stone. What more could you want from a walk? (Unless you fancy a dinosaur hunt as well…)

Middleton Woods with bluebells

Middleton Calvary and Middleton Woods

⭐⭐⭐ Superstar Hikers

🎒🚘🥾💦🦆✨🌳🧒🚌🐶

📍 Ilkley, West Yorkshire

📏 6 miles circular dependant on how much exploring you do!

This walk will take you right past the spine tingling and atmospheric Middleton (or Myddleton) Calvary, and along Ilkley Riverside which is a paddler’s paradise!

Oh…. and there are ducks to feed and a park too!

One of the giant stick dens in Nidd Gorge

Nidd Gorge

⭐⭐ Little Adventurers

📍 Between Knaresborough and Ripon, North Yorkshire

🥾🎒🚘💦🌳🐶🚌

📏 Less than 2 miles

The most woodlandy woodland that ever woodlanded!

Nidd Gorge is another place owned by the Woodland Trust and is packed full of woodland wonder, stick dens, places to splash and loads more!

the waterfall at Flintergill

Flintergill, Dent

📍 Dent, Cumbria, Western Yorkshire Dales National Park

⭐⭐⭐ Superstar Hikers

📏 Circular walk 6 miles

🥾🎒🚘🚌🧒✨👻💦🌳🐶

This fab circular walk starts and ends in the village of Dent. The walk is PACKED full of cool stuff for the kids, it features a waterfall, a small farming museum, ruins, paddle spots, ice cream, a park AND a vampire stone! You’ll have to read more about that in the walk details!

Hackfall woods mowbray castle folly

Hackfall Woods

⭐⭐ Little Adventurers (dependant on how much of the trail you do)

📍 Near Ripon, North Yorkshire

🥾🎒🚘💦🌳🐶🚌

📏 Variable dependant on the route you choose

Hackfall Woods is Woodland Trust owned area that is packed full of bluebells! With trails of varying lengths around the woodland, you can always find something to suit your needs!

Check out the follies too and find out all about Hackfall Woods by reading the blog!

Bluebell Facts and Useful Stuff to Know!

⭐ It’s tempting to grab that super Instagrammable shot by plopping the kids and yourself right amongst the masses of blue, but please don’t! A crushed bluebell cannot effectively produce food for the plant and it will die back, taking 5-7 years to recover from the damage. Sad stuff right?

⭐ Did you know that the UK is the home for more than HALF of the ENTIRE WORLD’S population of bluebells? That’s why we have to take care of them.

⭐ DO NOT PICK OR UPROOT BLUEBELLS!! They are protected by law and you could be landed with a hefty fine.

⭐ The native bluebell is under threat by the more vigorous Spanish bluebells. You can tell the difference by looking at the style of the flower. The native bluebell is curved with the bells hanging to one side, whereas the Spanish is more upright with bells all around it.

Looking at a fairy door amongst the bluebells

Scroll using the arrows for all our Family Friendly Walks

Follow us for up to date Outdoors Adventures!

We live and BREATHE the Yorkshire Dales outdoors life!

Come follow our journey over on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and TikTok, where you’ll find up to date walk info, breaking news on Yorkshire Events, new Yorkshire Dales wild swim spots, climbing, caves and more!

Follow us on Social Media for all the up to date info: @thereluctantexplorers