Parking
Skipton Castle and town car parks serve the start. This is a point-to-point walk, so arrange transport between Skipton and Penrith or use staged day walks.
Overview
About Lady Anne’s Way
A point-to-point long-distance walk from Skipton to Penrith, with the standard six-day version totalling 99.5 miles (160 km). Allow around 48 hours of walking time overall. Sampled heights along the way run from about 107 m to 542 m, starting near 114 m and finishing near 133 m.
Why go
- Historic castles and villages
- High moorland views
- Long-distance challenge
Heads up
- Point-to-point logistics
- Exposed and wet moorland
- Route-finding required
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Yorkshire Dales map
Full mapElevation107–542 m
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
1 active Yorkshire Dales alert
- ClosureTemporary closures on public rights of wayAvoid the listed sections of public rights of way while their temporary closures or pedestrian prohibition are in force. - Public Bridleway No. 52 (05.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Yorkshire Dales Tour Guide
Your drive to Lady Anne’s Way, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Yorkshire Dales National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this area
Life Inside the Walls0:00 / 0:28
“Those dry-stone walls do more than divide fields. They are built without mortar, leaving small passages between the stones. Wrens sometimes slip into those gaps to nest, and mice or voles can shelter deeper inside.”
Plays on the road 1.7 km from the trailhead in the Parkwolf Yorkshire Dales Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- The Yew Inside Skipton Castle
- The Mill Beside the Reservoir
- The Villa Beneath the Meadows
- The Coffin That Changed Date
- 298 audio storiesacross Yorkshire Dales’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Eurasian Otter, Atlantic Salmon, Short-eared Owl, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 99 trails, 63 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Lady Anne’s Way
Access and logisticsThe walk begins at Skipton Castle, with the castle and town car parks serving the start, and…
The walk begins at Skipton Castle, with the castle and town car parks serving the start, and finishes near Brougham Castle and Penrith. Because it is a one-way route, plan your return travel between the two ends before you set out.
Route characterFrom Skipton the way passes Embsay and Eastby, Barden Tower and the Wharfe valley, then…
From Skipton the way passes Embsay and Eastby, Barden Tower and the Wharfe valley, then Grassington, Kettlewell and Buckden. It climbs over Stake Moss to Askrigg and Hawes, follows Lady Anne's Highway through Mallerstang, and reaches Kirkby Stephen, Brough and Appleby before tracing the Eden Valley to Brougham Castle and Penrith. It is a mix of dale-bottom walking, riverside miles, historic buildings and high open moorland.
Terrain and hazardsThis is a demanding journey rather than a day stroll.
This is a demanding journey rather than a day stroll. Expect exposed moorland sections, stretches where route-finding matters, wet or rough ground, limestone hazards and livestock including cattle. Carry proper navigation, and be ready for the weather to change on the higher, open ground.
DogsDogs are welcome.
Dogs are welcome. Keep them on a short lead near livestock and from March to July, keep them under close control at other times, and stay on public rights of way throughout.
A shorter alternativeIf 99.
If 99.5 miles is more than you want, a shorter and more river-focused section of the Dales Way makes a gentler option with a similar valley feel.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Yorkshire Dales
10 sightingsEurasian OtterMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
11 sightingsAtlantic SalmonMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
12 sightingsShort-eared OwlMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
22 sightingsWestern Barn OwlMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
27 sightingsTawny OwlMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
34 sightingsCommon KingfisherMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Yorkshire Dales. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
