Our seven stories of the vault are now out and about on benches around town. Start at the bench in Jubilee Field at Devils Bridge. Follow the pedestrian pathway into town and you will find another, this time a sad story  outside The Royal Hotel. If you would like to find more walk across the road to the bench outside Read more...

White Scar Cave in the Yorkshire Dales National Park is the longest show cave in Britain. Deep beneath Ingleborough hill, lies this hidden world which has been sculpted by nature over thousands of years. Imagine a subterranean landscape, beautifully lit, with gushing streams and waterfalls, exotic cave formations, and a huge ice-age cavern adorned with thousands of stalactites. This is Read more...

In the Yorkshire Dales the Ribblehead Viaduct carries the Settle–Carlisle Railway across Batty Moss in the valley of the River Ribble. Spanning 400 metres across, with 24 huge stone arches reaching 32 metres above the moor, it is breathtaking Victorian engineering and a great photographic opportunity. Built by the Midland Railway, the Ribblehead Viaduct is situated 14 miles east of Read more...

Those who visit Lowther Castle travel into the historic county of Westmorland. Cumbria as a county was formed only in 1974. The building itself was created in the late 17th Century when the then Lowther Hall was rebuilt. It was requisitioned for tank development during the Second World War, but fell into disrepair and was an abandoned ruin for more Read more...

Visitors often take home unexpected details about their holiday destination.. Windermere is a case in point. There is a lake called Windermere – not Lake Windermere nor Windermere Lake, simply Windermere. Then there is a town called Windermere, which is about a mile from the lake itself. The only town actually on the lakeside is Bowness-on-Windermere, a bustling small community Read more...

Whittington is a small village to the south of Kirkby Lonsdale. You can walk to it from Kirkby Lonsdale and then go on to explore Hutton Roof and Farleton Fell; a beautiful limestone wilderness. The village is the birth place of William Sturgeon who invented the electro magnetic motor.  He was born in the village in 1783. Read more...

Just four miles north of Kirkby Lonsdale, a ten minute drive will bring you to Barbon, an idyllic village. Whilst still in Cumbria, Barbon is technically part of the Yorkshire Dales. Barbon Beck is a tributary river to the Lune, and runs close to the village of Barbon, with lovely walks running along it. Near the footbridge, there are large Read more...

Holker is the home of Lucy Cavendish and her husband Tor McLaren. The land was originally owned by Cartmel Priory, by local landowners, the Preston family who then passed it to the Lowther family by marriage. In 1756 it passed to the Cavendish family by marriage. The Estate has gardens that merge into parkland, all framed by the Lakeland fells. Read more...

Ambleside is an attractive small town at the head of Windermere which has been popular with visitors, particularly walkers and climbers, for many years. It has a good range of shops, hotels, guest houses, pubs and restaurants. Visitors must visit Bridge House, built more than 300 years ago as an apple store. It is now a listed building, used as Read more...

The four and a half mile Ingleton Waterfalls Trail boasts some of the most spectacular waterfall and oak woodland scenery in the UK, truly encapsulating nature at its best. As a year-round attraction, it offers abundant opportunities to view seasonal landscapes and to experience a walk in a waterfall wonderland, whatever the weather. The Waterfalls Trail is an ideal day Read more...

Grasmere In the very heart of the Lake District is a village with a unique atmosphere which attracts visitors from far and wide, not just once, but again and again. The location is gift to photographers, both amateur and professional. The drive to and from Kirkby Lonsdale offers you an opportunity to see the best of the Lake District in Read more...

Kendal is the largest town in the area, just 14 miles west of Kirkby Lonsdale. Known as the Auld Grey Town because of its local limestone buildings, it is a gateway to the Lake District. It lies close to the M6 and is on the main West Coast railway line. Famous for snuff and mint cake (don’t think about climbing Read more...

One of England’s most historic locations, the Red Rose City is a half hour drive from Kirkby Lonsdale. The River Lune links the two places. History virtually nudges you on the shoulder as you explore Lancaster’s cobbled streets. Its castle dates back to Roman times when it was a barrier to assaults by the Picts and Scots. Today, guided tours Read more...

With a history going back around a thousand years (the Domesday Book of 1084 has a mention), Ingleton has a mining and textiles background. There are also links to famous authors Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Michael Moorcock, both of whom lived locally and wrote fiction set in the town. Set in the Yorkshire Dales, just a 15 minute drive Read more...

The small market town of Sedbergh (pronounced Sedberr) has moved administratively over the years. It was at one time part of The West Riding of Yorkshire. Then it was drawn into Cumbria where it is today, but it lies in the Westmorland and Lonsdale Parliamentary constituency, and is also within the Yorkshire Dales National Park. No wonder the town pops Read more...

Unlock the Vault today and discover Kirkby Lonsdale’s hidden stories! The Vault is currently closed due to COVID-19 restrictions and will open again as soon as government guidelines allow. Enter through the iron gate inside the Tourist Information & Gift Shop and discover an interactive experience called the Vault… Step back in time and meet the historical characters with their stories of Read more...

For a hands-on taste of history, a visit to Leighton Hall at Carnforth, a 30-minute drive from Kirkby Lonsdale, must be on your bucket list. Its earliest records date from 1246 and as you step inside the Hall you take a step back in time. The house is often busy with visitors, but it still retains the atmosphere of a Read more...

The Three Peaks, Whernside, Ingleborough and Pen-y-ghent, lie, or rather soar, in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. Each year, thousands of visitors take up the challenge to reach the summit of one, if not all three. The Three Peaks Challenge is to walk 24 miles in 12 hours, reaching the top of each, in a circular route. Rich in historical Read more...

The National Trust looks after this beautiful medieval house, which lies just four miles south of Kendal, and is within the extended Lake District National Park. The Grade 1 listed building is a ‘lived in’ home, which can affect opening times. The earliest part of the building is a tower of 14th or 15th Century origin. Oak-panelled interiors include the Read more...

Levens Hall is a magnificent Elizabethan mansion built around a 13th Century pele tower, which was expanded and rebuilt towards the end of the 16th Century. It is the family home of the Bagots, and contains a collection of Jacobean furniture, fine paintings, the earliest English patchwork and many other beautiful objects. Levens has a celebrated and large topiary garden which dates back Read more...