Yorkshire
England

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A little lost sheep checks his navigation in North Yorkshire county, England, a terrific location for orienteering as it happens...now, where's that Bo Peep lass?

North England hosts some superb hiking, biking and riding in magnificently satisfying expanses of rolling green scattered with old villages, ancient dry-stone walls and rampant sheep but can be wind and rain blasted so a certain tolerance of variable weather conditions - and clothing to suit- is useful for full enjoyment of this grand landscape.

The best outdoor action in North England - apart from the stunning Lake District or a stroll along Hadrian's Wall on the Scottish border - is in Yorkshire's Dales (pictured above and below) to the west or the bleak North York Moors on and around the east coast.

The Yorkshire Dales are a terrific activity base if ever-changing weather is not a problem - hiking, biking, riding, gliding....
Ingleborough Panorama © Stephen Whitaker

Yorkshire Dales, Clapham Village, a traditional northern habitat in the springtime.
© David Hughes

Haworth's blackstone village is a literary pilgrimage point on the moors, the Georgian home of the Bronte sisters and approximate setting of classics such as 'Wuthering Heights' and 'Jane Eyre'; Haworth and neighbouring moors give Bronte lovers a real taste of the environment that inspired the best sellers and films.

Ilkley Moor (the highest part of Rombalds Moor) in West Yorkshire, near the spa town of Ilkley, was the inspiration for the well-known Yorkshire song 'On Ilkla Moor Bah 'tat'. Apart from moorland hiking etc. there are prehistoric rock carvings in the neighbourhood.

Yorkshire's number one city attraction is medieval York, once England's second city.
Sheffield is another worthwhile large Yorkshire city, though not of the ancient sort, more of a well-regenerated industrial city with some terrific new architecture and exuberant nightlife.
Otherwise Yorkshire's best urban offerings are smaller, tranquil historic towns such as Whitby and Harrogate.

Harrogate spa town, North Yorkshire
© Davidgarry

Walking the Goredale Scar, Yorkshire Dales
© Gary Dyson

Scarborough seaside resort, Yorkshire. Next, Newcastle Pictures.
© Rob Ford