Wimp Hill

The walk up Wimp Hill, near Leyburn, is a proper little leg-stretcher with genuine views that justify the climb. It's not a particularly high peak - nothing that will leave you gasping - but the moorland around it opens up in a way that makes you feel like you've actually gone somewhere, not just wandered round a car park.

The ascent takes about forty minutes from Leyburn itself, depending on your pace and how many times you stop to look back. The moorland vegetation changes as you climb, and on a clear day the Wensleydale landscape spreads out behind you in layers. It's the sort of walk that appeals to families with children old enough to manage an uneven path without constant complaints, and to anyone who fancies a genuine bit of exercise without needing specialist gear.

What makes this work as part of a Dales holiday is the proximity to proper infrastructure. If you're staying at Yorkshire Dales Holiday Park or Eastfield Glamping Farm - both within a few miles - this becomes an easy afternoon activity rather than a major expedition. You can knock it off between lunch and tea, grab a pint in Leyburn afterwards, and still have energy for something else.

The peak itself isn't dramatic - no trig point, no summit shelter - but that's rather the point. It's genuine walking country, the sort of thing locals do on a Friday evening rather than tourists queuing for a photo. Worth the trip if you're in the area? Absolutely. Worth planning your entire holiday around? Probably not. But as part of a Wensleydale stay, it hits the mark.