Hawes: the beating heart of upper Wensleydale

Hawes has a fair claim to being England's highest market town, sitting around 850 feet up at the head of the dale where the road splits towards the Buttertubs Pass and Garsdale. It is the busiest of Wensleydale's towns and the obvious first port of call for anyone staying in the upper dale. Tuesday is market day, with a general market in the main square and livestock sales drawing farmers in from the surrounding fells — arrive before 10am if you want a parking space in the main pay-and-display car park.

Beyond market day, Hawes rewards a slow wander. Cobbled yards hide independent shops, a proper old-fashioned hardware store, tearooms and a couple of good butchers. There is a museum of Dales life beside the car park and a well-known cheese-making visitor centre on the edge of town. Half a mile south, the hamlet of Gayle is worth the walk: a cluster of stone cottages around Gayle Beck, with a footpath dropping back into Hawes along the water.

Leyburn: the gateway to the middle dale

Leyburn sits above the valley on the A684, roughly halfway between Northallerton and Hawes, and works as a base for almost everything the dale has to offer. Its square hosts a market on Fridays, and the town has a practical, year-round feel: butchers, a bakery, a hardware shop, a couple of small supermarkets and a well-stocked deli. It is not a chocolate-box village, and that is precisely its appeal — you can buy a screwdriver, a Sunday roast and a pair of walking socks on the same morning.

Do not leave without walking the Leyburn Shawl, a limestone escarpment path that climbs out of the town and runs along the top of the dale with long views across to Pen Hill. The walk to the end and back takes about an hour and is gentle enough for most abilities.

Middleham and the racing country

A few miles south-east of Leyburn, Middleham is a small town with a huge presence. Its ruined castle, managed by English Heritage, was the childhood home of Richard III and still dominates the skyline; the climb to the top of the keep is worth the steep steps. Parking is available beside the castle, though the lanes into the town are tight.

Middleham is racing country. Around 500 horses are trained in and around the town, and if you are out early you will see strings of them crossing the roads on their way to the gallops on the moor above. Two market squares, a handful of pubs and tearooms, and excellent walking along the River Cover towards Coverham and East Witton. Neighbouring Jervaulx Abbey, a tranquil ruin set in a meadow, makes a lovely combined afternoon.

Askrigg, Bainbridge and the quiet villages

Askrigg has one of the finest main streets in the dale — broad, lined with eighteenth-century houses, with an old market cross and a church containing Saxon stonework. It is familiar to many visitors as the setting for a much-loved television series about a Yorkshire vet, and the village still has a shop, a pub and a genuine lived-in feel.

A mile and a half downstream, Bainbridge is built around a large green with original stocks and a village pump. Look for the low earthworks of a Roman fort just beyond the village, and the old forest boundary marker. From Bainbridge you can walk to Semerwater, Yorkshire's second-largest natural lake, in under an hour, passing the hamlets of Countersett and Marsett. Other villages worth seeking out include Wensley, with its impressive church, and Redmire and Preston-under-Scar for quiet lanes and big views.

Aysgarth, West Burton and Bolton Castle

Aysgarth Falls is the dale's best-known natural attraction: three stepped falls on the River Ure, reached by easy riverside paths from a National Trust car park and visitor centre. The lower falls are a short, level stroll; the whole circuit takes around an hour and is ideal for families.

Nearby West Burton is many people's idea of the perfect Dales village — a vast green with a market cross, a stream running along one side and a waterfall, Cauldron Falls, tumbling into a pool at the village edge. Bolton Castle, a fourteenth-century fortress where Mary Queen of Scots was held in the 1560s, offers walled gardens, falconry displays and a tearoom, with fine views down Wensleydale. Hardraw Force, a single unbroken drop of around 100 feet reached through the yard of the village inn at Hardraw, is a short drive away and well worth the small admission charge.

Getting around and choosing your base

Wensleydale is about 25 miles from end to end, and driving times are modest outside market-day mornings. Hawes to Leyburn takes around 30 minutes; Leyburn to Aysgarth about 15. Roads are narrow in places, so allow extra time for passing places, livestock and the occasional tractor.

If you would rather leave the car behind, the heritage railway running from Leeming Bar through Bedale to Leyburn (and occasionally on to Redmire) is a lovely car-free option, and seasonal bus services link the main villages.

• Hawes — best for walkers, high fell scenery and a lively Tuesday market.
• Leyburn — best for amenities, shops and a central position.
• Askrigg or Bainbridge — best for village life and riverside walks.
• Aysgarth or West Burton — best for waterfalls, family days and shorter strolls.

When booking a self-catering cottage, check the parking situation carefully — many village properties have on-street parking only, and market-day spaces vanish quickly. Fuel is available at Hawes and Leyburn, and larger supermarkets are in Leyburn, so stock up before heading deeper into the dale. Changeover days are commonly Friday or Saturday, and cottages in the popular villages book up many months ahead for school holidays and the autumn half-term. Bring layers, a decent pair of boots and a torch for dark lanes, and the dale will look after the rest.