Far Moor Bridge

The heritage of North Yorkshire has resulted in an area of natural beauty which can be enjoyed by all. Communications built up over the centuries — including the Roman Road over Cam Fell and the Settle /Carlisle Railway - enable people to reach all parts of the area. The new Pennine Bridleway, which links the above two routes, makes it even easier for walkers, riders and cyclists to reach the heart of the wild country.

The Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority saw an opportunity to enhance the heritage by building an iconic structure for the bridge to carry the new Pennine Bridleway across the River Ribble. The requirements for the structure were that it should be:-

(i) Environmentally sustainable. (ii) Fit in with the surrounding countryside. (iii) Be easy for horses, walkers and cyclists to cross. This last requirement included the detail that it should not sway like the Thames Millennium Bridge, as horses would certainly find this to be a worry.

The chosen design, by the Forestry Commission Civil Engineering Department, satisfies all these requirements and there is now a wooden arch bridge to be proud of across the Ribble at map reference SD 797 752, on Far Moor, between Selside and High Birkwith.

In 2011 the bridge won the Judges’ Special Award of the British Construction Industry for ‘A building or civil engineering project of any size which the judges consider to be particularly inspirational in one or more aspects’ (New Civil Engineer — bci awards 2011). The bridge also won a ‘Wood Award’ in the same year, and it is said to be the longest bridge of its type in the world. It cost £165,000, which is very reasonable for a bridge of this span. It is made of Scottish Larch and is ‘a combination of stress laminated arch construction acting compositely with a screw laminated stressed timber deck’. This meant that small sections could be transported to an awkward site for in-situ assembly. The arch itself is made of short straight lengths of laminated larch. Successive sets of straight lengths change their angle slightly and are clamped tightly together by horizontal bolts to finish with a stiff curved structure. The clamping force is sufficient to hold the arch shape. The natural frequency of vibration of the structure is greater than 5 Hz (5 cycles per second), compared with the 1Hz for the Thames Millennium Bridge. At 5 Hz horses are unaware of movement of the bridge.

In order to keep a narrow depth to the arch section there was a limit to the length of the main span. As a result, the central 24m long span sits on concrete foundations in somewhat unstable ground in the flood plain at each side of the river. The lateral force component of the bridge and the live loads would cause the foundations to move and the arch to spread, so smaller arches about 15m long, founded on drier and firmer ground above each bank, were added to resist the lateral forces. The result is a shallow arch bridge which not only blends in with the shape of the drumlins surrounding it, but also gives gentle gradients suitable for both horses and pensioners. The superstructure and railings are made of oak, and there is a non-slip surface on the walkway.

A visit to the bridge would make this description more clear, and it is worth a visit in its own right. It can be accessed easily from the B6479 between Settle and Ribblehead by two routes, but to see it you will have to do a 20 minute walk, as it is hidden and is suddenly revealed in a hollow. The walk will do you good anyway and can be extended in either direction into beautiful countryside.

A.Take the road at the side of the Crown Inn at Horton-in-Ribblesdale, through Newhouses towards High Birkwith. After about 3km you will see the sign on your left for the Pennine Bridleway. About 100m further is a passing place with room to park one car. Walk back to the bridleway and follow it west to the Ribble and then south down the river bank to the bridge. It takes about 20 minutes.

B.Park 1km south of Selside, across from the track to South House. There is room for two cars. Follow the track north at the side of the wall until it turns east and then south east. Follow this track under the railway and down to the bridge.