Malham Walks

Family friendly walks in and around Malham, the Yorkshire Dales

Do you want a walk in Malham?

Then you are in the right place! All of our kid friendly walks that are in and around Malham can be found right here on this very page! (WOO HOOO!)

Malham is a perfectly proportioned Yorkshire Dales village with picturesque cottages and a thoroughly traditional Dales village vibe. It's surrounded by soaring moorland, rugged limestone scars and is the home to a pretty magical waterfall (and I mean, it’s fairy tale stuff!)

To put it very simply, it’s bloomin’ gorgeous. Which is why you will find Malham to be permanently popular, with visitors in their thousands coming more or less all day, every day and all year round! If you’re looking for peaceful solitude, it’s unlikely you’ll find it anywhere near the village hub, but if you take yourself to some of the more remote areas, you might be in luck!

But that’s not to say it’s a no go zone! Oh no. Just be prepared for other people….. many other people!

Want to see the Malham family friendly walks? Scroll down the page!

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Thank you for taking the time to have a look at my website and for reading this now!

I set up the Reluctant Explorers and maintain the website and attached social media accounts in my spare time, around mum-life and two jobs. It was designed to provide access for parents to free resources to help get more families outside and exploring in nature. These walks have all been created by myself and the kids and we have walked each one ourselves (and re-walk them regularly to keep the information as up to date as we can).

If you would like to support us and can afford a few pennies, you can make a donation to our ‘Buy Me a Coffee’ page. Simply tap the button below to head there!

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Child sat at the foot of a large rocky cover with trees playing in the stream

The Star Guides

Each of our has been walked by our own 6 feet (in the sense of us being three actual humans, not in a kind of weird monster-like way!) Often, they have been walked several times and sometimes, they have been walked so often that they have been added to. This website has been growing alongside the OG Reluctant Explorers and now they can handle a little bit more - maybe yours can too.

I will say. As parents we know our kids better than anybody. I have done my best to include as much information as I can in each individual walk, so you can make your own judgement as a family. So the star ratings are just a guide to get you started.

⭐ Little Monkeys:

Walks suitable for younger children up to preschool (and beyond!) Shorter length walks with occasional pushchair access, no technical or tricky terrain. Perfect for those who are just getting out of the pushchair (and then back in again… and then back out…. and then… you know how it goes!)

⭐⭐ Little Adventurers:

Walks suitable for pre-schoolers and younger kids. Medium length/ difficulty walks. In these walks, there may be some more challenging terrain, but they are still fairly short.

⭐⭐⭐ Superstar Hikers:

Walks suitable for older children. Not necessary longer length, but they are more technically challenging in the terrain, and on occasion the distance as well.

Children walking along stony path towards a large cliff face under blue skies

The Walk Emojis

I’m renowned for a heavy used of emojis in my regular life, so why on EARTH should my website be any different?! Here is a guide as to what they all stand for.

Essentially, it’s a brief look at what you can expect from the walk, but in emoji form. (I’m campaigning for a pram emoji. It would make my pushchair friendly walk life MUCH easier.)

👶 Suitable for Pushchairs (see? no pram emoji)

🎒 Suitable for Carriers (that’s a rucksack, not a weird satchel. Closest thing to a kid carrier I could find!)

🚘 Car Park/ On Street Parking (plain sailing there - all of our walks have places to park, although if possible try….

🚌 Public Transport (PLEASE! To try and alleviate parking problems and to just in general be an excellent egg.)

🐶 Dog Friendly (plenty of those!)

🥾 Sturdy Footwear or Wellies (I’d say for most, walking shoes/ boots, for some, wellies)

🛝 A park or play area (I try my hardest to find one, or at least tell you where the nearest one is!)

🦆 Ducks to Feed (bring your duck food!)

🍦 Ice Cream! For Ice cream is truly a WONDERFUL addition to a family walk!

☕ As is coffee (for the adults obviously - I’m not going to subject you to a caffeine fuelled reluctant explorer THE HORROR!) This one means you can find coffee, tea or hot chocolate (ok - that one’s for the WHOLE family!)

🍻 Because I know how a family walk can go, you’ll be relieved to know that I’ll also tell you if there’s a pub at the end!

💦 Water play/ paddle/ swim (Check out our advice on Wild Swimming with Kids and the RLSS Water Safety info)

✨📚 Cool history, geology, something blummin’ awesome to talk about.

👻 Legendary Story. Ghosts, horrible history, witches and trolls!

🌳 Walking Games - they all have these!

Two kids sat next to Gordale Scar waterfall

The BEST Malham Circular for the Kids

📍 Malham, Yorkshire Dales

⭐⭐⭐ Superstar Hikers

🚘🥾🎒🍦🍻☕✨🌳👻🚌🐶

📏 just over 5 miles

I’m just going to put it out there…. this is the BEST family friendly walk around Malham, taking in most of the ‘local celebrities’ Janet’s Foss, Gordale Scar and Malham Cove.

Whilst below, you’ll find bite-sized chunks suitable for younger explorers who might not manage the full route, this one is for those kids who can handle for whole 5 miles! And with LOADS of interesting stuff going on, there’s plenty to keep the kids occupied too!

Tap here to head to our Malham Circular walk
Climbing up to Janet's Foss

Janet’s Foss and Gordale Scar

📍 Malham, Yorkshire Dales

⭐⭐⭐ Superstar Hikers

🚘🥾🎒🍦🍻☕✨🌳👻🚌🐶

📏 1, 2 or 5 miles dependant on the route you opt to take.

This walk takes in the epic waterfalls of Malham; Janet’s Foss and Gordale Scar.

The stuff of legends! Literally.

Did you know that Janet’s Foss is the home of Janet the Queen of the Fairies?! True story….. or is it?

Tap here to head to our Janet's Foss walk
Looking up at Malham Cove

Malham Cove

📍 Malham, Malhamdale, Yorkshire Dales

⭐ / ⭐⭐ Little Monkeys/ Little Adventurers

👶/🎒🥾🍦🍻☕💦🌳🚌🐶

📏 Less than 2 miles circular

A work of geological wonder, Malham Cove is not only the home of a top kid friendly walk, but was the filming location for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1! Love a Potter reference!

Tap here to head to our Malham Cove walk
Playing next to Malham Tarn

Malham Tarn and Great Close Hill

⭐⭐ Little Adventurers

📍 Malham, Yorkshire Dales

🚘🥾🎒💦🌳🐶

📏 3 miles

No trip to Malham would be complete without a walk to its famous tarn! This circular walk takes in the tarn and Great Close Hill which overlooks it.

Yes, it’s NOT the one you were expecting! This one is a bit of a twist on the standard Malham Circular. But it’s ok, the famous one is down below!

Tap here to head to Malham Tarn walk
Map reading at the edge of Malham Tarn

Malham Tarn Circular

📍 Malham, Malhamdale

⭐ Little Monkeys - ⭐⭐⭐ Superstar Hikers

📏 Circular walk, under 2 miles - 5 miles

🥾👶/🎒🚘✨💦🌳🐶

Malham Tarn is the highest natural limestone lake in England and the largest in North Yorkshire! A designated Site of Special Scientific Interest, this walk will take you to the Nature Reserve and round in a circular route taking in sculptures, a bird hide, the ruins of a smelt mill and water sinks.

There is a shorter pushchair friendly route, and also a wheelchair accessible route too with all terrain wheelchairs available to borrow from the Malham Field Centre.

Tap here to head to our Malham Tarn Circular
child standing in a cave in front of rock formations with a information sheet hard hat and clipboard

Staying in the Malham area?

We have a Visit with Kids guide to provide you with all the family friendly inspiration you need! Think family friendly walks, local attractions and importantly, where to find the ice cream (and the play park!)

There are two guides covering this area and the nearby areas so why not check out our…

Visit Settle and Ribblesdale with the Kids Guide

Visit Skipton with Kids

Tap here to head to our visit with kids guides

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!

BEEN INSPIRED? Tag us @reluctantexplorers

Come follow our journey over on Instagram and Facebook 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

Leave No Trace

The Yorkshire Dales is our home, and the home of so many others who care deeply about this beautiful space.

Should you visit, make sure to:

Take home anything you bring, leave no rubbish behind.

Make the world a better place by picking up any rubbish you see, even if it isn’t yours.

Leave everything else as you found it.

Help us to protect our wild spaces.