Cauldron Falls (also known as West Burton falls), is a series of waterfalls on Walden Beck in the village of
West Burton,
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 known as ''Cauldron Falls'' due to the swirls in the plunge pools beneath the cascades of the waterfall. The beck continues on underneath a packhorse bridge where there is another cascade.
Description
The waterfall is located on the Walden Beck, a tributary of the
River Ure
The River Ure in North Yorkshire, England is approximately long from its source to the point where it becomes the River Ouse. It is the principal river of Wensleydale, which is the only major dale now named after a village rather than its ...
, in West Burton, which traverses a fault in the bed of the shelving rock. The initial step of the waterfall is a steep cascade which flows east, then immediately south into a plunge pool, the section under the packhorse bridge then cascades into another pool. The first drop falls , and is sometimes referred to as Upper Cauldron Falls. The upper falls section is surround by a north-facing "limestone amphitheatre", over which the water falls. The lower section of the falls travel under a stone bridge known locally as ''Blue Bridge''.
The name ''Cauldron Falls'', refers to the swirling effect of the water in the plunge pool below the main waterfall. The limestone was carved out by the movement of ice across the valley sideways, rather than the effect of melting ice running over it.
J. M. W. Turner painted the falls when he travelled through Wensleydale in 1816.
References
External links
Cauldron Falls on My Yorkshire Dales
{{Waterfalls of Yorkshire
Waterfalls of North Yorkshire
Wensleydale