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Bessy Sike is a tributary to Deepdale Beck, and starts life in this boggy bit of moorland enclosed within the MoD boundary fence on Bowes Moor. Downstream, the valley becomes only slightly deeper [[[1236296]]]. This view is from the road, described by Wainwright as the Pennine Way's Ugliest Mile (it is part of the Bowes alternative, which allows walkers to get somewhere near accommodation on the section between the Tan Hill Inn and Teesdale). When I walked the Pennine Way in 1974, it was indeed still very desolate, with the decaying remains of old storage buildings scattered across the moor. Now only the foundations remain, although signs indicate that the ground may still contain unexploded ordnance and toxic materials (the site was used to store Mustard gas). It is certainly frequently visited by R.A.F. bomb disposal, whose vans and landrovers are a common sight in Bowes.