Catrake Force is a

waterfall A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in several wa ...

on the

River Swale The River Swale in Yorkshire, England, is a major tributary of the River Ure, which becomes the River Ouse, that empties into the North Sea via the Humber Estuary. The river gives its name to Swaledale, the valley through which it flows. Th ...

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

, England. It is not visible from the road but is accessible via a campsite in Keld. It comprises a series of four steps, each its own small waterfall, and each with a very different character – the largest single drop being about . It lies just upstream of Keld, downstream from

Wain Wath Force Wain Wath Force is a waterfall on the River Swale in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, North Yorkshire, England. The falls are at grid reference , upstream from the hamlet of Keld which has three other waterfalls in its vicinity (Kisdon Forc ...

. The next waterfall downstream is

Kisdon Force Kisdon Force is a series of waterfalls on the River Swale in Swaledale, England. The falls are situated within the Yorkshire Dales National Park in the county of North Yorkshire, 500 metres downstream from the small hamlet of Keld at grid refe ...

. Waterfalls in the north of England are often termed ''Forces'' after the Norse word ''Foss'' which means waterfall, whilst Catrake derives from the Latin ''cataracta'' (waterfall) via Middle English.

East Gill Force

East Gill Force East Gill Force is a waterfall in Swaledale, east of the hamlet of Keld, in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, North Yorkshire, England. The falls are located on East Gill at grid reference , just before its confluence with the River Swale a ...

, a nearby waterfall on the tributary of East Gill just above its confluence with the Swale, is more obvious and accessible (being on both the

Pennine Way The Pennine Way is a National Trail in England, with a small section in Scotland. The trail stretches for from Edale, in the northern Derbyshire Peak District, north through the Yorkshire Dales and Northumberland National Park and ends at Kir ...

and

Coast to Coast Walk The Coast to Coast Walk is a long-distance footpath between the west and east coasts of Northern England, nominally long. Devised by Alfred Wainwright, it passes through three contrasting national parks: the Lake District National Park, th ...

) and is often mistaken for Catrake Force.

References

{{Waterfalls of Yorkshire Waterfalls of North Yorkshire Swaledale