Читать книгу The Dales Way. From Ilkley to the Lake District through the Yorkshire Dales онлайн

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Dent, Sedbergh and Staveley are the principal settlements, and re-introduce a measure of urbanity but in a rather superficial way, as if they accept their role as the lifeblood of the surrounding farmlands.

Once Lakeland is reached, the Way does endeavour to find a route that makes the most of the undulating landscapes, avoiding settlements before skittering downhill to burst rather unexpectedly into Bowness-on-Windermere.

Geology

Limestone and sandstone very much prevail throughout the course of the Dales Way. The rocks that shape Wharfedale are sedimentary and date from the Carboniferous period (about 350 million years ago). Around Ilkley, the underlying rock is millstone grit and covered by crags and heather moorland. But as the route progresses up-dale it’s clear that the rocks are different, and form deep strata of limestone, sandstone and shale. Weathering of these strata has produced a stepped profile to some parts of the valley, while glaciers during the last Ice Age have fashioned the classic U-shaped landforms we see today.