Wain Wath Force is a waterfall situated on the River Swale

River Swale

The River Swale is a river in Yorkshire, England and a major tributary of the River Ure, which itself becomes the River Ouse, emptying into the North Sea via the Humber Estuary....

 in the Yorkshire Dales National Park

Yorkshire Dales

The Yorkshire Dales is the name given to an upland area in Northern England.The area lies within the historic county boundaries of Yorkshire, though it spans the ceremonial counties of North Yorkshire, West Yorkshire and Cumbria...

, North Yorkshire

North Yorkshire

North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. The falls are located at grid reference , one kilometre upstream from the hamlet of Keld

Keld, North Yorkshire

Keld is a hamlet in the English county of North Yorkshire. It is situated on Swaledale, in the Yorkshire Dales. The name derives from the Viking word Kelda meaning a spring, and the village was once called Appletre Kelde - the spring near the apple trees.Keld is the crossing point of the Coast to...

 which has three other waterfalls in its vicinity, namely Kisdon Force

Kisdon Force

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

, East Gill Force

East Gill Force

East Gill Force is a waterfalls in Swaledale, 300 metres to the 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 at the point where the Pennine Way and...

 and Catrake Force

Catrake Force

Catrake Force is a waterfall on the river Swale in North Yorkshire, England. It is not visible from the road but only a short walk to reach it. It comprises a series of 4 steps each its own small waterfall and each with a very different character with the largest single drop being about .It lies on...

. The falls in the north of England are often termed “Forces” after the Norse word “Foss” which means waterfall.

Its name derives from the ford above the fall, wath being the anglo-saxon word for a ford. Wain may denote that it was passable for a cart or wain.

Wain Wath Force is not a substantial falls; it has a drop of only around 1.5 metres as the river flows beneath the limestone

Limestone

Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....

 cliffs of Cotterby Scar. Despite its modest height it is popular with visitors, the Coast to Coast long distance footpath

Coast to Coast Walk

The Coast to Coast Walk is a 192-mile unofficial and mostly unsignposted long distance footpath in Northern England...

 passes the falls on the north bank of the River Swale while the main motor road up Upper Swaledale

Swaledale

Swaledale is one of the northernmost dales in the Yorkshire Dales National Park in northern England. It is the dale of the River Swale on the east side of the Pennines in North Yorkshire.-Geographical overview:...

passes on the south bank.