Walks Around Britain

The Yorkshire Dales - so named as it originally lay inside Yorkshire - now spans the counties of North Yorkshire, West Yorkshire and Cumbria. The Dales is a collection of river valleys and the hills among them, ranging from the Vale of York in the east to parts of the Pennines in the west.

Most of the Yorkshire Dales falls within the Yorkshire Dales National Park, which was formed in 1954. Since the National Park was formed, the name Yorkshire Dales has come to refer to the western dales, whereas the eastern area past the Vale of York is now called the North York Moors.

Most of the Dales in the Yorkshire Dales are named after their river or stream - the best known exception to this rule is Wensleydale (which is named after the town of Wensley, rather than the River Ure).

The scenery which characterises the Dales is green pastures separated by dry-stone walls and grazed by sheep and cattle. The dales themselves are U or V shaped valleys - making for great walking and hiking.

The Yorkshire Dales is crossed by several long-distance routes including the Pennine Way, the Dales Way, the Coast to Coast path and the new Pennine Bridleway.

The National Park has its own museum - the Dales Countryside Museum - located in on old railway station at Hawes, in Wensleydale, and 5 visitor centres throughout the park.

The Yorkshire Dales is mostly accessible by road using the A684 either from the A1 in the east or from the M6 in the west. The Rail network in the Yorkshire Dales was devastated by the cuts of Dr Beeching in the 1960s, and only the famous Settle to Carlisle line now crosses through the National Park - providing a wondrous journey between Carlisle and the real southern end of the line at Leeds.

The mountains of the Yorkshire Three Peaks are all in the Yorkshire Dales National Park - Whernside, Ingleborough and Pen-y-ghent (although the summit of Whernside is now actually inside the county of Cumbria due to boundary changes).

The Three Peaks Challenge is a gruelling 42km (26.2 mile) hike of the three peaks within 12 hours - starting and finishing at the same point.

Friends of DalesRail
A walking organisation specialising in running guided walks.

DalesBus
The official site of The Yorkshire Dales Public Transport Users Group, providing travel information for the Yorkshire Dales.

Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
An AONB covering 233 square miles (603 km2), sharing a common boundary with the Yorkshire Dales National Park to the west.

Yorkshire Dales region guide
An in-depth region guide from our friends at MyOutdoors.


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