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The Upper Eden Valley and Howgill Fells is in an especially beautiful and distinctive area known as the Westmorland Dales, part of the Yorkshire Dales National Park. It's hard to beat for anyone who enjoys spending time in quiet, scenic countryside and pretty villages, as well as being perfectly placed for day trips to the Yorkshire Dales, Lake District, and Pennine Dales Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. 

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Locally, the countryside is exceptionally easy to access on foot. There is a vast amount of common land to explore on high and low fells and a good network of footpaths to roam through fields and villages. Our booklet "Nine Great Walks from Low Greenside" is available at the campsite (£3) and gives a route description and map for each circular walk from your tent.

 

Here we focus on helping you experience our favourite special places and walks within a 12 mile radius. Recommended activities are mainly free or inexpensive. There are links to the most interesting, useful, and inspiring websites we've found to help you.

It's easy to find info on t'internet about the Lakes and Dales, but we've included a few links to help you find some of the best walks in those areas and a couple of recommendations for wet weather days out. You'll also find info on going car free. Accessibility info is highlighted in red.

Accessible public toilets and baby change facilities around  Eden District.

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For an inspirational peek at our countryside, watch this nice little video showing some of the lovely walks and villages near the campsite, all on accessible routes.

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The Visit Eden website is a good place to get an overview of the area, including the nearby market towns of Kirkby Stephen and Appleby, and the villages of Shap, Orton, and Tebay. Another lovely little market town is Sedbergh, which is nearby in North Yorkshire.

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OUR PRETTY VILLAGE, RAVENSTONEDALE, has the rare distinction of having 2 pubs! It's a pleasant 10-15 minute stroll from the campsite, through the fields or down the lane.

 

Call in for coffee, a pint or a meal (including breakfasts) at the Kings Head or the Black Swan. Both have riverside gardens, serve real ales and excellent food, and are dog friendly. It's advisable to book your meal in summer and at weekends.

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Visit the Scar Art Gallery, next to the Black Swan, to see work by local artists; St Oswald's church with it's unusual layout and the churchyard with Gilbertine monastic ruins. Children will enjoy the little playground next to the public tennis court and the river.

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​​ACTIVITIES IN AND AROUND RAVENSTONEDALE VILLAGE

  • You don't need to be a serious golfer to enjoy a round at the Riverside Golf Course - pretty, informal, fun, and inexpensive. 9/18 holes. Clubs available free of charge at the campsite.

  • Bring your racquet and play tennis on the public court by the river. Honesty box.

  • Catch a trout for your BBQ at Bessy Beck Trout Farm. Here's a great recipe for the campfire.

  • Visit the goats and the wildflower meadows at Piper Hole Goat Farm and Coronation Meadow - locally produced meat, cheese and other goats' milk products.

  • On market days, ride on the Classic Bus from Ravenstonedale to Kendal or Barnard Castle. See CAR FREE DAYS OUT below for timetables.

  • Visit the ruins of  Pendragon Castle in the Mallerstang Valley, via the scenic Tommy Road. There are few castle ruins left so much to themselves as this is - you almost feel as if you discovered it yourself! No entry fee.

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WALKS FROM THE CAMPSITE

Directly from your tent there are many hill and valley walks to choose from:

Our booklet "Nine Great Walks from Low Greenside" (£3) gives a route description and map for each walk. All walks are circular from the campsite, from 4 to 9 miles. Includes field and fell walks, family walks with pub en route, a Nature Reserve and a walk to Paradise! Download this pictorial pdf guide to help you identify Wildflowers of the Westmorland Dales.

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  • Invent your own route using OS Explorer Map OL19, Howgills and Upper Eden Valley.

  • A favourite walk, suitable for families, is to Smardale Gill - a National Nature Reserve with wildflowers, rare Scotch Argus butterflies, red squirrels, deer, huge lime kilns, and a high disused railway viaduct to walk across. 'Nine Great Walks' gives the route from the campsite. There is also an accessible route for wheelchairs and push chairs, with benches along the way.

  • Cumbria Wildlife Trust's Nature Reserve at Bowber Head is 2 miles from the campsite along quiet country lanes. A traditional farm small-holding, home to one of the rarest and most threatened wildlife habitats in the UK: northern upland hay meadows. Lovely at any time of year and at it's flowery peak from mid-May to mid-July.

  • Walk up our lane and, a few minutes from your tent, you are straight out on the Howgill Fells where you can walk all day with only sheep and ponies to keep you company. Great views from Green Bell, the high rounded hill you see from the campsite.

  • A circular walk on footpaths through fields and farmyards will take you to the Fat Lamb Inn and back. 4 miles.

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​OUR LOCAL TOWN IS KIRKBY STEPHEN (5 miles). It's a 'Walkers are Welcome' town, attractive and friendly, with very pleasant shops and cafes.

We encourage you to do your shopping in Kirkby Stephen. It has all that you're likely to need, you'll meet some of the locals, and you'll be helping to keep our small independent shops viable, busy, and vibrant. See SHOP LOCAL below for a guide to shopping.

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There's a Visitor Information Centre near the Market Square. Tel: 017683 71199.

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St Stephen's Church (known as the Cathedral of the Dale) is worth visiting and has some unusual stone carvings and tombs giving an insight into local history.

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If you like feeding ducks or want somewhere to picnic, leave the Market Square on foot by the small road at the top left corner, and continue ahead through a high walled passage leading down to Frank's Bridge. Here be ducks. If you have wellies, a fishing net and a jam jar, here's a great guide from Eden Rivers Trust to identifying mini-beasts in the river.

Cross Franks' Bridge and turn right to follow the Family River Trail alongside the River Eden.

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At the top end of the town is Kirkby Stephen East historic railway station with steam engines and displays about the railway and its influence on the town. Free and nicely quirky. Open weekends.  Access info. The volunteers are pleased to answer your questions and may even let you get up on an engine. Have a cup of tea in the old buffet car (very 1950s) and take a short trip on a steam train.

Directions from the campsite: Go to Kirkby Stephen and, immediately after crossing the bridge at the entrance to the town, just before you reach the first buildings turn left and keep bearing left to the station car park.

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Next to Kirkby Stephen East is Platform 3 Play soft play centre with a viewing cafe and home made cakes. Great on a wet day for simultaneously tiring out kids and resting parents!

 

Stenkrith Park is highly recommended, a native woodland bordering a spectacular stretch of the River Eden and a great place to go in any weather. The Poetry Path circular walk starts here (printed guide available from the Visitor Centre in town), as does the interesting, accessible Viaduct walk along an old railway track crossing 2 high viaducts. Look out for the 12 carved poetry stones in Stenkrith Park and on the Viaduct walk.

For wild swimming, there's a tiny beach and a wide pool at the far end of the park. There's another swimming spot upstream of the road, via a small footpath next to the road bridge. Don't be tempted to swim in the Devil's Mustard Pot below the Millenium Bridge, which is dangerous!

Directions from the campsite: Go to Kirkby Stephen and take the first road on the right as soon as you reach the town. Ahead at the T junction is the entrance and a sign to the car park.

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A nice little town with plenty of character is Sedbergh, England's only book town. 12 miles.

It has a Wednesday market, monthly artisan markets, and a number of festivals each year, all very entertaining. Lots of second hand books on sale around the town. The drive there is really pretty, and passes Cautley Spout waterfall and the Cross KeysTemperance Inn. (See below MORE WALKS NEAR THE CAMPSITE.)

Don't miss Far Field Mill near Sedbergh, a Victorian woollen mill, now a community managed heritage, art and craft centre. Visit the workshops of 16 resident artists and craftspeople; fascinating displays on social history and the bygone role of wool in the dales; programme of very good art and textile exhibitions; gorgeous displays of some of the best arts and crafts on sale in the dales; and a cafe. Turn left onto the Garsdale road shortly after reaching the outskirts of Sedbergh. Far Field Mill is about a mile further on, on the left.

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MORE WALKS NEAR THE CAMPSITE

  • Accessible circular walk from Orton to Gamelands Stone Circle.

  • Explore Little Asby Scar, Sunbiggin Tarn and lonesome Potts Valley, both reached by the road heading north from Newbiggin on Lune. Open access land.

  • See the extraordinary limestone pavements on Great Asby Scar. Open access.

  • Cautley Spout, England's highest waterfall. Take the A684 Sedbergh road and park near the Cross Keys, a 400 year old temperance inn owned by the National Trust and full of character. Take a step back in time at the Cross Keys with a well deserved cuppa and cake after your walk to the waterfall. Ring 015396 20284 for opening hours.

  • The Other Borrowdale. Take the Kendal bus from Ravenstonedale (timetables below) and ask to be put down after Tebay, at the turning to Borrowdale (2nd right turn after crossing over the M6). If you go by car, there is plenty of parking space near the gate into Borrowdale. Continue on foot to walk this scarcely used road along a remote and pretty valley with a 'forgotten' feel. Linear walk by road, with a gentle incline. Suitable for most abilities, wheelchairs and pushchairs.

  • Take a 12 mile linear walk across Wild Boar Fell with a train ride to take you back to the start. Click here for inspiration on this and Great Asby Scar.

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WALKING IN THE YORKSHIRE DALES

  • Walks in the Yorkshire Dales National Park - long walks, short walks, and Miles without Stiles accessible routes for wheelchair users and familes with pushchairs. The nearest of these are Smardale Gill Nature Reserve (nr Ravenstonedale, see above), River Rawthey (Sedbergh), and Killington (south of Sedbergh).

  • More walks in the Yorkshire Dales 

  • See OTHER CAR FREE DAYS OUT below for walks using the Settle-Carlisle Railway

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WALKING IN THE LAKE DISTRICT

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CYCLING

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OTHER CAR FREE DAYS OUT

A comprehensive set of links for exploring the Eden Valley and the Lake District by train, bus, bicycle, boat, taxi, hire car/electric car, or even an electric 'sheep' can be found here.

 

Cumbria Classic Coaches runs heritage bus routes from Ravenstonedale to Kendal, Kirkby Stephen and Barnard Castle. Bus pass holders go free.

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Settle-Carlisle Railway and railway walks

Kirkby Stephen railway station (4 miles) is on the very scenic Settle-Carlisle Line. Free parking at the station. Possibly the best train ride in England! It's very well organised for walkers and cyclists.

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​​WET DAYS

  • The easiest to reach of the Lake District towns, Keswick is less crowded than Windermere, Bowness or Ambleside and has lots to do. There are several good quality indoor attractions to interest people of all tastes and ages. Lakeside access and parking at Theatre by the Lake. Good outdoor shops. 45 mins by car.

  • Itinerary for a Right Good Day out in Yorkshire - plenty of indoor options in Hawes and Sedbergh and lovely scenery all the way. Head to Hawes via the spectacular Tommy Road over to Mallerstang and stop at Pendragon Castle. Turn right and travel up the lovely Mallerstang valley until you reach the Moorcock Inn. Turn left here to Hawes where you'll find lots to see in this bustling little market town (make time for cheese tasting at the Wensleydale Creamery). On the way home, take a circular route back by continuing straight on at the Moorcock Inn and down scenic Garsdale. Visit Far Field Mill in time for tea before arriving at Sedbergh. From Sedbergh, take the Kirkby Stephen road home (A684), turning left at the Fat Lamb for Ravenstonedale.

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ADVENTURE...

INTO the OUTSIDE (based nearby at Tebay and run by some lovely people) offers: Guided Walks, Ghyll Scrambling, Wild Swimming, Rock Climbing, Mountain Biking,  Canoeing & Kayaking as well as overnight island stays in hammocks and mountain challenges ranging from 12hrs to 5 days. You can also design your own 'combo' where you can fit in two adventures into one day!

Check out their website or email info@intotheoutside.co.uk

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... OR YOU COULD JUST SIT BY YOUR TENT, watch the sheep, listen to the birds, smell the clover, see the light changing on the hills and wait for the cows to come home ....

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STARGAZING - totally free of charge, carbon neutral, infinitely sustainable late night entertainment on the campsite!

We are a designated Dark Sky Friendly campsite in an International Dark Sky Reserve, one of only 18 such reserves in the world. With no lighting in the camping field and minimal light pollution in the area, we are in one of the best locations in the UK for stargazing. On a clear night the Milky Way is glorious. You can watch the space station pass over and in August each year you can see shooting stars as we sail through the Perseid meteor shower.

Download this guide to stargazing in the Dales. Bring a blanket to wrap up in. Binoculars or a telescope will help you to see more and a torch with a red filter or red nail varnish painted on the glass will help your eyes to stay accustomed to the dark. Download a star chart.

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SHOP LOCAL

The attractive market town of Kirkby Stephen (5 miles) has good independant shops, cafes, pubs and take aways.

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On the Market Square and Main Street, you'll find a good butcher (yummy home made pies and cooked ham), greengrocer with wholefoods, bakery, bank with cash point, newsagent, launderette (behind the Horseshoe Chip Shop), Visitor Information Centre, Indian restaurant and take away, Chinese take away, 3 fish and chip shops, as well as several cafes, pubs, antique and bric-a-brac shops. The Church Gallery has great gifts, coffee and home made cakes.

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There are two outdoor shops on the main street selling camping gear, small gas cartridges and other necessities (Micmacs hardware shop and Eden Outdoors). JT Atkinson (behind the big Co-op) sells large gas bottles (closes at noon on Saturday).

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There're a good sized Coop supermarket and 2 petrol stations at the far end of town. The nearest petrol station travelling west from the campsite is at Tebay roundabout, just before the M6.

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FARMERS' MARKETS AND LOCALLY PRODUCED FOOD

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Just outside Kirkby Stephen is Owen's Farm Shop and Cafe. Locally produced meats, cheeses, bread, baking, crafts and gifts. Seasonal activities.

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Orton Farmers Market is on the 2nd Saturday of each month, 9.30am - 2pm. Good range of produce.

The Chocolate Factory at Orton has gorgeous handmade choccies. Silver Yard Cafe at Orton is good for light meals and home made cakes. Orton Village Shop and Post Office has a well provisioned shop and locally made pastries.

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Keep your food miles to the minimum - Piper Hole Goat Farm, Ravenstonedale, sells goat cheese and milk products. Visit the goats by arrangement.

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Brough Castle Ice Cream Parlour & Tearoom, Brough - a cornucopia of homemade ice creams plus free entry to the castle!

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Low Howgill Butchers & Deli in Appleby sells very fine locally produced, grass fed meats from traditional breeds. We recommend the Shorthorn flat-iron steaks - borrow one of our grills and BBQ on your campfire.

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The Wensleydale Creamery is a must if you're going to Hawes. A complete visitor experience for all the family and lots of lovely cheese samples to try.

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Westmorland Services Farm Shops on the north and south bound carriageways of the M6, north of Junction 38. Handy for stocking up on the way home! There is also a smaller outlet at the petrol station near the roundabout at Tebay.

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