Although technically outside of the Yorkshire Dales national park boundary, Nidderdale has been designated as an "Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty" and has every right to be included in any definition of the "classical" Yorkshire Dales.
Rising on the wild moors on the eastern flank of Great Whernside, the infant River Nidd feeds into the desolate and expansive moorland reservoirs of Scar House and Angram, and further down the valley, Gouthwaite.
Below this is Pateley Bridge, from where the dale becomes much gentler in character as the River Nidd flows onwards to Knaresborough and an eventual union with the River Ouse near the historic English Civil War battlefield at Marston Moor in the Vale of York.
Attractions in and near Nidderdale include How Stean Gorge near Lofthouse and Middlesmoor towards the head of the dale, Stump Cross Caverns near Pateley Bridge, Brimham Rocks near Summerbridge, Plumpton Rocks near Knaresborough, and Ripley Castle near Harrogate.
As a matter of convention, Nidderdale is often divided into what is arbitrarily known as "Upper Nidderdale" and "Lower Nidderdale" - lying upstream and downstream of Pateley Bridge, respectively.
For more information about Nidderdale and the surrounding area, please also visit the following externally maintained website(s):
[N.B. Please mention the Eagle Intermedia Yorkshire Dales website when making your enquiry.]Return to Yorkshire Dales Main Page
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