Travel Guide Yorkshire Dales National Park

This national park is the green and wild lung of the immense Yorkshire, in the heart of the majestic Pennines chain, the country's backbone. It is the English countryside as one dreams of: endless emerald coloured stretches enhanced by arid peaks and dotted with small picturesque villages. Quietness and delight as far as the eye can see. There are about forty valleys, the dales, which most often bear the name of the river that crosses them. They are nestled between sumptuous hills where small stone walls snake like vast cobwebs. In winter, every nook and cranny is covered with a snowy mantle and is all the more romantic.To the north, the two main dales are Swaledale and Wensleydale, where the pretty villages of Reeth and Hawes are located. Be sure to take a look at Bolton's proud 14th century castle, built with a breathtaking view of the surrounding area (April-October, £7.50/£9. www.boltoncastle.co.uk). Not far from there flow the fabulous Aysgarth Falls, a succession of small bucolic waterfalls that served as a backdrop for the film Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves, with Kevin Costner. Next to Hawes, the Hardraw Force (30 m) is the highest claimed uninterrupted waterfall in the country (all year round, £1.50/£2.50. www.hardrawforce.com). Less impressive but free, you can also take a jump to the Cotter Force, a few kilometers to the west (you will probably need a map to find it). Finally, if you are ready to cross the eastern border of the park to see a second medieval fortress, the imposing ruins of Middleham Castle can be visited in the town of the same name (all year round, on weekends in winter, £3.60/£6. www.english-heritage.org.uk). There is also an amusement park, a kind of curiosity garden with labyrinths, caves and secret passages, to recreate a whole fantastic universe in Coverham: the Forbidden Corner (March-October, £11-13. www.theforbiddencorner.co.uk).In the south, the peaks are higher and have an American western feel. Don't miss Malham and his Malham Cove. This surprising rocky carpet from another world welcomed Harry Potter in the penultimate part of the mythical saga. To rediscover this same cracked limestone geology a little further from the crowds, you can go to the foot of Mount Ingleborough, on the trails connecting it to Horton or Chapel-le-Dale. It will be longer and less accessible, but just as charming and more extensive. In this part of the dales, Ingleton and Settle are the main villages. The first one hosts some of the most beautiful waterfalls in the area that can all be seen on the same circular route (all year round, £3/£7. www.ingletonwaterfallstrail.co.uk). It is also home to Britain's largest public cave, the White Scar Cave (all year round, on weekends in winter, £6.95/£10.75. www.whitescarcave.co.uk) and its neighbour Ingleborough Cave in Clapham (February-October, £4.50/£9. www.ingleboroughcave.co.uk). All around Settle, it is also the waterfalls that are in the spotlight with the magnificent Scaleber Force and Stainforth Force in free access. For more typical villages, there will be Grassington to the west, or the tiny hamlets of Kettlewell and Arncliff, lost in the hollow of the hills.Nearby: if you are staying for a while in the dales and want to explore the surroundings, the town of Skipton, to the south, has a beautifully preserved 11th century castle (all year round, £5.30/£8.50. www.skiptoncastle.co.uk). To the north, Richmond also has its own, massive but more largely in ruins (open all year round, on weekends in winter, £3.90/£6.50. www.english-heritage.org.uk). To the west, in the countryside of Ripon, are the remains of the most complete Cistercian abbey (12th century) in the country, Fountains Abbey (all year round, £8/£16. www.nationaltrust.org.uk).But the main activity of the park, which also costs nothing, is undoubtedly hiking. Get the Landranger Map 98 from Ordnance Survey (Wensleydale & Upper Wharfedale). It can only be recommended for all hiking, cycling and road networks. It is very precise and covers the vast majority of the region.If you like pubs, you will be served throughout the park. Each village has traditional addresses of very high quality, which serve the products of the excellent local breweries. It even has the highest establishment in Britain and Ireland: the Tan Hill Inn, at 528 m (www.tanhillinn.com). It is located on the Pennine Way long-distance hiking trail and is an interesting place of pilgrimage for enthusiasts, in the midst of superb nature. Come for the atmosphere and the beer rather than the food, which is quite commonplace.