IT’S a place of beauty that has fascinated walkers and geologists for years.
The waterfall formed in sandstone and shale – known as Folly Dolly Falls – is close to Meltham Greenway and popular with many families.
But now fly-tippers and rubbish-dumpers are spoiling the natural beauty of the area.
Heather Foster, who owns the land, says the spot is being spoiled by some thoughtless people dumping rubbish.
She is happy for visitors to enjoy the sights, but has urged them to be more respectful of it in the future.
Ms Foster owns the fields and woods around the falls and uses some of the land for grazing horses.
She said: “There is public access and I am delighted that people want to see the falls in such a lovely setting.
“I would not want to stop people visiting the falls, but it is amazing how much rubbish and litter they leave behind.
“There have been people starting fires there, which can obviously cause problems, and I have to clear up a huge amount of rubbish every time I go.
“All types of litter is being thrown away and rubbish is being dumped in the stream, including a shopping trolley the other week.
“I want people to enjoy the area but respect it.”
The falls have lured visitors for many years. They can be found down a steep muddy track, near to the former railway, where tractors built at the neighbouring David Brown Tractors were tested.
The Meltham Greenway runs close to the site and has encouraged more visitors in recent years.
The falls were a Victorian spectacle and many decades ago weekend day trippers used a halt on the Huddersfield to Meltham railway line to picnic and enjoy the scenery of the little valley.
The geological feature is said to have been named after a woman named Dolly, who lived in one of the cottages above the waterfall.
She is said to have got into financial difficulties, but the ending of her sad story is unknown.
The trees have now grown up around the falls so they cannot be seen from the disused line, but it is still possible to walk along the Greenway to see the waterfall.
The site is also popular with geology groups. The waterfall is made up of rocks aged around 310 million years old and gives an excellent view of a fault.
