Cotter Force

The Falls and Cotterdale Beck

Cotterdale Beck has several other smaller falls in its course before joining the Ure, but Cotter Force is the largest. The force is not visible from the road, but it takes only a short walk to reach it. It comprises a series of six steps each its own small waterfall with the largest single drop being about 5 ft. The force is narrower at 4 m at the top widening to 13 m at the bottom. A short path allows easy access from the A684 near Holme Heads Bridge approximately 2 mi west of Hawes.

After the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust carried out an upgrade to its footpath, Cotter Force is now accessible to wheelchair users and less mobile visitors.

References to the Force

The artist J. M. W. Turner sketched here in July 1816 for his Yorkshire Sketchbook. The noted 19th-century etching artist Richard Samuel Chattock is known to have created two works of Cotter Force in 1864. Both etchings now reside in The Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco.

References

References

1. (2006). "Yorkshire Dales National Park". Cotter Force.
2. "Waterfalls of the Yorkshire Dales". Cotter Force.
3. (2017). "The Place Names of Yorkshire; Cities, Towns, Villages, Rivers and Dales, some Pubs too, in Praise of Yorkshire Ales". Stenlake.
4. (2003). "The waterfalls of England : a practical guide for visitors and walkers". Sigma Leisure.
5. (2014). "Yorkshire Dales : local, characterful guides to Britain's special places". Bradt.
6. (8 December 2013). "Cotter Force, near Hawes, Wensleydale 1816 by Joseph Mallord William Turner".
7. (12 December 2007). "World Wide Arts Resources". Richard Samuel Chattock.
8. "Access for all in the Yorkshire Dales National Park".