Stainforth Force (also known as Stainforth Foss and Ribble Falls), is a high cascade waterfall on the

River Ribble The River Ribble runs through North Yorkshire and Lancashire in Northern England. It starts close to the Ribblehead Viaduct in North Yorkshire, and is one of the few that start in the Yorkshire Dales and flow westwards towards the Irish Sea (t ...

at Stainforth, north of

Settle Settle or SETTLE may refer to: Places * Settle, Kentucky, United States * Settle, North Yorkshire, a town in England ** Settle Rural District, a historical administrative district Music * Settle (band), an indie rock band from Pennsylvania * ''S ...

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. The waterfall is a popular tourist attraction in autumn when

Atlantic salmon The Atlantic salmon (''Salmo salar'') is a species of ray-finned fish in the family Salmonidae. It is the third largest of the Salmonidae, behind Siberian taimen and Pacific Chinook salmon, growing up to a meter in length. Atlantic salmon are ...

are migrating up the river.

Description

Stainforth Force is a small cascade waterfall located near to the village of Stainforth, about south of Stainforth Bridge, and some north of

, in North Yorkshire. The partially eroded rock that the water travels over here is the Chapel House Limestone, which has been exposed by a small anticline. However, to make the way for migrating salmon easier, the

Yorkshire Dales National Park The Yorkshire Dales National Park is a national park in England covering most of the Yorkshire Dales. Most of the park is in North Yorkshire, with a sizeable area in Westmorland (Cumbria) and a small part in Lancashire. The park was designat ...

carved the rock "..in an inconspicuous way.." In autumn the spot is a popular tourist attraction on account of the

leaping up the falls to reach the spawning grounds upriver. The plunge pool below the last fall, described as being "..a dark, ndsinister-looking pool..", is popular with wild swimmers, and the site is also a popular stopping point on the Ribble Way. The site was also said to have been a favoured location of

Edward Elgar Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet, (; 2 June 1857 – 23 February 1934) was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestr ...

, who visited his friend Dr Buck who was living in Settle at the time. A picture of Elgar standing on the bridge is said to have been up on Elgar's wall at his house.

References

External links

Stainforth Force on my Yorkshire Dales
{{Waterfalls of Yorkshire Waterfalls of North Yorkshire Ribblesdale Yorkshire Dales