Distinctive features of the Yorkshire Dales
Sheep!
Look closer and you’ll eventually be able to spot the different
breeds, including the Swaledale ram whose face appears on the
Yorkshire Dales National Park signs. The influence of sheep is
everywhere, from the grass terraces on the hills to the amazing
architecture of great abbeys like Fountains and Jervaulx, built
with the riches from wool and sheep farming.
Over 20 named valleys or dales, cut by rivers, each distinctive in character and sense of place.
Names like Swaledale, Wensleydale, Wharfedale, Ribblesdale, Dentdale are evocative and known to
lovers of nature and outdoors throughout the country.
Small, compact villages, hamlets and market towns with a strong sense of community and
continuity.
Unfenced roads across open moorlands with dramatic panoramas across the landscape and into the
valleys below, and hay meadows, rich in herbs and wildflowers
Spectacular waterfalls, such as Hardraw Force, Aysgarth Falls, Cautley Spout and Thornton Force
A sense of tranquillity, enhanced by the natural sounds of wind, water and birdsong and an amazing
night sky, with dramatic effects from the moon, stars, and planets
Classic limestone scenery, with its crags, pavements and extensive cave systems in the south of the
National Park and valleys with stepped profiles in the north, separated by extensive moorland
plateaux.
The high winding Butterrubs Pass and heather tops: a great seasonal indicator when it changes
colours from brown, green, purple & white.
Millstone grit outcrops such as the Three Peaks and sandstone tors like Brimham Rocks
The Howgill Fells, a series of grassy rounded hills with deep ravines
Ruins and remains of the lead mining and lime industry, particularly just below Coldstones Cut in
Nidderdale and the Hoffman Kiln between Langcliffe and Stainforth
Lines of dry-stone walls
Tom Lord of Lower Winskill Farm, Langcliffe has over seven
miles of dry-stone walls on his farm, some of which date back
to the 13th century and are believed to have been built to
deter wolves!
The new dry-stone wall at Layhead Farm Cottages was built by
12 women in 2008. Some of the features you’ll spot within the
walls include cripple holes, sheep creeps & throughs. Visitors can learn more about thurles, batter
and smoots, working with Tim and Stewart, bookable through www.wensleydalescottages.co.uk
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Traditional stone-built field barns
Field barns or laithes are a distinctive feature of the Yorkshire
Dales landscape. Barns were used as a combination of cattle
housing and fodder storage.
You’ll notice that most are in fields and hay meadows, away from
main farm buildings. Hay was stored on the first floor, ready to
feed the cattle on the lower floor. Muck from the cattle could
then be spread on the hay meadows ready for the next crop. This saved farmers the effort of
carrying hay or muck to and from the main farmstead.
Before the early 18th century many of these had wooden cruck frames and a heather thatched roof.
You can see a fine example in Nidderdale at Grimwith High Laithe near to Grimwith Reservoir.
In places like Upper Swaledale where winters can be more severe, you’ll also notice some hogg
houses, built to over-winter young sheep or hogs.
Caves and crags
The Yorkshire Dales are a fantastic destination for those want to enjoy caving, climbing, walking and
exploring some unusual geological features. Visitors can safely explore the crags and caves of the
Dales with www.YorkshireDalesGuides.co.uk. Here are just a few examples of amazing caves and
crags:
Caves: Gaping Gill System, Kingsdale Master System, Alum Pot, Hull Pot
Hunt Pot
Show caves: Ingleborough & White Scar Caves, Ingleton, How Stean Gorge, Stump Cross Cavern
Crags, ghylls and other distinctive features:
Malham Tarn,
Malham Cove & Gordale Scar
Thief’s Moss
Beggar’s Stile
Limestone pavements at Malham, Selside, Oxenber, Moughton
Norber Erratics
Drumlins between Coniston Cold and Hellifield and to the south of Gearstones
Castleberg Crag
Brimham Rocks
Fremington Edge
Great Shunner Fell
Three Peaks
Cracoe Reef Knolls
Earl’s Seat & Simon’s Seat on Barden Fell
Kilnsey Crag
Trollers Ghyll
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Waterfalls
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Stainforth Foss/Force: a picturesque waterfall where the salmon leap on their way
upstream to spawn
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Janet’s Foss: a small and pretty waterfall near Malham
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Ingleton waterfalls: a trail takes in a series of lovely waterfalls
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Catrigg Force: a hidden gem located in a small wooded copse one mile upstream from
Stainforth Village.
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Force Gill Waterfall: an often overlooked beautiful 6m waterfall just a short detour from the
Three Peaks Route between Ribblehead Viaduct and Whernside.
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Hardraw
Scaleber Force
East Gill Force
Catrake Force
Richmond Falls
Kisdon Force
Wain Wath