Wensleydale's a popular and busy place, and on walks like this you can see why: Aysgarth Falls, the banks of the River Ure, Bolton Hall, Redmire, Bolton Castle, Carperby, Aysgarth.

This is a bit longer than most, but good for a summer’s day, with little climbing and lots of gentle meadows.

You have to pay to park at Aysgarth, but £3 for a full day isn’t bad really, and it IS a national park.

Go to the far (west) end of the car park and follow the footpath down to the road and over the bridge across the river, with a good view of the falls to your right.

Carry straight on between the buildings, up stone steps to the churchyard, and past the church. Turn left in front of it and out of the churchyard through a gate (or it might have been a stile). The path is easy to follow through fields until it reaches the main A684, where you cross the bridge over Bishopdale Beck and then turn left over a stile signed for Wensley.

Again, if you use the map, the path is easy to follow as it stay close to the river for more then three miles, when you reach a very minor road. Turn left and cross the Ure on Lord’s Bridge, with Bolton Hall looking impressive in its parkland in front of you. As soon as you’ve crossed the bridge, turn left and follow the path on an embankment until it leaves the river and heads for a wood on the right. With the trees and a wire fence on your right, keep going as the path curves right, and turn left onto a track which climbs through West wood in a north west direction.

Stick with it as it leaves the trees, and you’ll eventually reach scattered cottages and then Redmire itself, where refreshments at the Bolton Arms will be welcome after quite a morning’s hike (well, it’s a long way for us).

REFRESHED: some of the Raggylads, after the pub.

Turn left from the pub and follow the road that goes north west out of the village, and after going under the railway bridge, turn left for a short distance alongside the former track, then cut away towards Bolton Castle, which can be seen from miles away anyway.

Walk past the Castle on your left, heading east, and before going through a farm gate, bear left across a field and follow the path that goes through field after field, crosses Beldon Beck and goes through West Bolton farm, eventually giving access to the road from Redmire. Turn left and follow the road into Carperby.