Landscape

So much has been said about the beauty of the Yorkshire Dales that we're not going to try and wax too lyrical on these pages, its all been said before and guide books abound to the extensive walking possibilities available from this location - the Pennine Way and Coast-to-Coast walks meet just a short way up the valley via a walk that is featured as a classic in many books.

Swaledale is a landscape carved out by ice and water and man with a rich heritage that goes back to prehistoric times - iron-age forts and burial sites, castles, lead-mining and many ages of agriculture have all formed the landscape that you see now. Most obvious are the dry-stone walls that separate the fields and the stone barns, there are over 1000 in Swaledale alone!

The Swale is England's steepest mountain river and between Muker and Keld cuts its way through picturesque farmland and limestone gorges with many waterfalls. Kisdon Force provides an idyllic spot for swimming with two great pools to choose from.

The range of wildlife to be found locally is rich and varied and usually quite easy to see, you just have to keep your eyes open. Red kite, hobby, peregrine, hen-harrier, buzzard, golden eagle and osprey have all been sighted in and around the dale in recent years.

The fell and farmland provide habitat for pheasant, grouse and black grouse, lapwing, oystercatcher, curlew, snipe, redshank, golden-plover, dipper, common sandpiper and in the villages in the summer the sky is filled with darting swallows and swifts.

Keld always seems to surprise us with new things to see and last year was the first time I'd seen a red squirrel in the area (it was a Hen Harrier the year before, almost standing on the same spot).

You can find more image of the landscape and wildlife on our galleries page.