Austwick
Walks from Austwick
About Austwick
Austwick is an attractive village, situated only 1/2 a mile off the busy A65 but could be in a different world. The access from the A65 does make the village busy at weekends in the summer months, particularly in and around the pub, but avoid these weekends and the village is a delight. Most of the buildings are of traditional Yorkshire stone and centred around a small green , near the Game Cock Inn. The best area of the village though for a visitor is up on Town Head which has excellent views and with best access to the fells. Most of the walking from Austwick is north out of Town Head but if you are staying for more than a couple of nights there are some excellent low level walks to the neighbouring villages and hamlets. All the walks though are set against the backdrop of the limestone hills formed along the Craven fault line.
The history of Austwick is typical of the area. There is evidence of a settlement 4,000 years ago but the village itself was mentioned for the first time in the Domesday Book in the 13th century. At the time Austwick was one of 4 manors forming the parish of Clapham with its own lord who collected rent from his ‘tenants’. The feudal system was built around the lord collecting rent from those around him; for 100s of years this was based upon a mix of low level pastoral farming and the tending of some fields which is very unusual for the uplands of Britain. Agriculture was replaced by the farming of sheep, cows and other livestock in the 18th century and the fields were abandoned. Since 1782 the Farrer family has held the largely figurative post of lord of the Austwick manor with the latest incumbent still glorifying under the herditory title.
Today the village has a store/post office (and long may it continue), a high quality country furniture outlet at the Smithy, 2 churches, a primary school and the Game Cock Inn. The Game Cock is a traditional Dales inn with good beer (Thwaites), a beer garden, wood beamed interior, solid pub grub and variable service. It is fine but if you are after high quality dining in an elegant country house then cross the A65 and visit the Traddock. Renowned as one of the top 5 eateries in the Dales the Traddock prides itself on excellent cuisine in a sophisticated environment and well worth a visit. Austwick has a traditional Dales fete at the end of each year, called the Street Market locally this is a day of entertainment where traditional street sellers mix with fell runners and the women’s institute. However Austwick is at its best in the quieter months and midweek when you can soak up a genuinally traditonal Dales village.
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