North Yorkshire

城市概覽

The terrain is a broad fertile plain running north-south, with moorlands either side that are scenic national parks: North York Moors to the east, and Yorkshire Dales to the west within the Pennine hills. It's always been agricultural. In the Middle Ages when wealth was founded upon agriculture, that made the area important, dotted with abbeys to farm that wealth and castles to defend it. When industry came, its towns grew but were largely unspoiled. Smokestack industry went elsewhere: to the textile towns of West Yorkshire, to the coal-mining areas to the south, and to the metal-bashing cities around the north and south fringes of Yorkshire. The towns of North Yorkshire haven't escaped modern sprawl and the hollowing out of high streets, but retain their pleasant character.

如何抵達

By plane If you intend to fly in and hire a car (which you'll need for the Dales and North York Moors) then best choice is Manchester Airport (MAN IATA). It's the other side of the Pennines, but it has excellent global connections and competitive fares. A couple of hours motoring from there will get you most places in the county. Leeds-Bradford Airport (LBA IATA) has a decent range of flights from western Europe and is closer. If you want to base in the north end of the county near the border with Durham or Cumbria, then consider flying into Newcastle (NCL IATA). The other nearby airport Durham Tees Valley (MME IATA) had few flights.

By rail The central vale is on the East Coast main line. Trains from London Kings Cross take two hours to York. They continue north through Thirsk and Northallerton to Darlington, Durham, Newcastle and Edinburgh. From York, one branch line runs east to Malton, Scarborough, Filey and Bridlington, while another runs west to Knaresborough, Harrogate and Leeds. A branch line from Northallerton cuts north via Yarm to Thornaby (for Stockton) and Middlesbrough. Other rail routes to Teesside are mostly via Darlington: from Middlesbrough trains continue along the coast through Redcar to Saltburn and down the Esk Valley to Whitby. From Leeds, a very scenic route runs northwest through the Dales to Skipton, Settle, Ribblehead, Appleby and Carlisle.

By road The north-south artery is the A1 motorway. The main east-west route is M62. National Express coaches run to the larger towns, with at least a daily direct coach from London Victoria.

當地交通

The individual towns are all small enough to see on foot, and buses link the towns, though not very frequently once you get into the Dales and Moors. Beyond that, you start to need a car: from Harrogate to Harlow Carr Gardens is 3 miles, from Ripon to Fountains Abbey is four. You don't want to be tired and drenched before you even start. Scenic spots such as Malham Cove, and the trail-heads for most hiking, are further still from public transport. The Moors are traversed by the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, running from Pickering to Grosmont and Whitby.

必看景點

Visit York Pass is a 1-3 day visitor pass for 35 attractions in the county, mostly in the city of York. See York#Understand for its pros and cons – you need to see three or more a day to benefit, so you have to gallop along. Seven sights are beyond the city, widely separated so you could only see one per day, even if the roads weren’t congested. Those are Beningbrough Hall 8 miles north of York, Yorkshire Air Forces Museum at Elvington 7 miles southeast, Birds of Prey Centre within Duncombe Park near Thirsk, Castle Howard near Malton, North Yorkshire Moors Railway between Helmsley and Whitby, Captain Cook Museum in Whitby, and Stump Cross Cavern near Pateley Bridge. Yorkshire Dales are valleys, with the best scenery in Yorkshire. The principal Dales are Wharfedale, Wensleydale, Swaledale, Ribblesdale, and Airedale within the National Park, Nidderdale which is outside the Park but designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), and Lonsdale (added to the park in 2016) is in the county of Cumbria. If you've only time to see one, head up Airedale above Malham.

Abbeys in North Yorkshire grew rich on agriculture but fell derelict after the Dissolution under Henry VIII. Parts have survived where they became the local parish church.

Fountains Abbey near Ripon is the most impressive, along with the adjacent Studley Royal water garden. Bolton Priory is beautifully situated by the River Wharfe near Skipton. Byland Abbey is near Thirsk on the edge of the North York Moors. Easby Abbey is near Richmond. Jervaulx Abbey is in Wensleydale below Leyburn. Rievaulx Abbey near Helmsley was a great Cistercian abbey. Castles here all ended up on the losing side: Yorkshire was mostly Royalist during the 17th-century Civil Wars. The castles weren't much damaged in the conflict, but the victorious Parliamentarians then had them "slighted" — partly demolished — to prevent rebels using them in future. So mostly they're just hollow masonry shells, some still imposing, many scr

體驗活動

Lightwater Valley near Ripon is a theme park with Europe's longest rollercoaster The Ultimate. The Pennine Way long-distance footpath runs along the west of the county. The southern part around Skipton and Gargrave is low-lying, following the valley. Then it heads up over moorland towards County Durham. It's never technically demanding and seldom far from a road, so you can easily do it section-by-section as a Sunday stroll. Other notable paths are the coastal route between Bridlington, Scarborough and Whitby, and the Cleveland Way looping round the North York Moors. Go to the races: Yorkshire has nine racecourses with regular fixtures, and five of them are in North Yorkshire: York, Ripon, Thirsk, Catterick and Redcar. (The others are Beverley in East Yorkshire, Pontefract and Wetherby in West Yorkshire, and Doncaster in South Yorkshire.) Most of the events are flat-racing in summer, but Catterick is among those with jumps races in winter. Fossil hunting: the coast has many relics of the Jurassic period, but Speeton near Filey has the later Cretaceous.

美食

York has the best choice of eating places, both for variety and price-range. You'll always find something in the towns listed here, but the best restaurants are often out-of-town: you'll need a car, and a prior conversation about who's driving back. All of Yorkshire does breakfast, but North Yorkshire does the best dinners.

飲品與夜生活

Beer: there must be a paperback novel and TV costume drama in this somewhere: rival breweries of the Smith family cheek-by-jowl. John Smith took over a long-established brewery in Tadcaster in 1847, then moved the business next door, eventually leaving the old building to his nephew Samuel. John Smith's grew into a large brewing combine, later acquired by Scottish & Newcastle and now part of Heineken. Meanwhile young Sam Smith started his own brewery in the old building, and this firm remains independent. You'll find the products of both Smiths everywhere. Wine: Yorkshire has three commercial vineyards. They're at Ryedale (with sites at Westow and Howsham); Yorkshi