We love the Yorkshire Dales, but in summer it can get quite crowded, with walkers off on adventures up the peaks and the less energetic strolling around the picturesque market towns and villages. In a

The North Country Rover ticket offers four days’ travel within an eight-day period and covers the north of England from Halifax up to Newcastle and Carlisle (excluding heritage railways). Available at

■ Distance: 7¾ miles/12.5km ■ Time: 4 hours ■ ...

We arrive at the top of High Cup Nick in the North Pennines. “It’s like the world starts just over there,” comments my friend Mark. He’s pointing down the U-shaped chasm of High Cup Gill, beyond whose

Neighbourhood know-how, people and places

(Photograph taken in 1888) As a family, we first stayed at Rothay Manor in Ambleside in 1953 and it was then that I had my first experiences in fell walking, trout fishing and negotiating the nearby s