Outhwaite Ropemakers

Outhwaite Ropemakers is a working factory in the Yorkshire Dales National Park that produces ropes in traditional flax or cotton and man-made fibres. The business was established by the Wharton family before 1840 and taken over in 1905 by the Outhwaite family, whose name it keeps today. By this time the equipment was powered by electricity. The factory moved to the present site in 1922, where it occupies a single-storey stone building. Products include guard rails, dog leads and high-quality braids. The central feature is the ropewalk, a 30-m long path on which a motor twists together twines fixed to a moving carriage (this can be extended outside the building when longer ropes are needed). Braiding machines can also be seen in operation.

Nearby, the Dales Countryside Museum in the former railway station preserves a steam locomotive and carriages and includes displays about mining, hand-knitting and rural crafts.