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The Yorkshire Dales is a beautiful area which was designated a National Park in 1954, and  on a personal note, is a favourite destination for me. I never tire of its landscape, and many unspoilt villages and pubs. Did I mention the pubs? The area lends itself perfectly to a day, weekend, or even longer out, with some fantastic walking to be had, over and among its rolling hills.

The Dales Pack 2 is the perfect guide to accompany the visitor. This is one of a series of packs covering various parts of the UK including: the Lakes, North Yorkshire Moors, Peak District and Snowdonia. This is my first experience with these publications, and I have to say I am impressed. The Dales Pack 2 comes [as do the other packs] neatly boxed, containing a user guide, a card holder, and laminated walking cards.

The user guide has several sections containing useful information on topics such as: weather, clothing, safety, map reading and the country code. The twenty walking cards cover walks ranging in length from five to fifteen kilometres, and are graded from easy to difficult. The grading however, is subjective; one man’s easy is another man’s hard etc. Nonetheless, many people find this useful.
Each card is packed with detailed information, not only on the walk itself, but also of the surrounding area, and other places of interest you may choose to visit.

The walks are broken down into legs, which are then described in great detail. On the reverse of the card, the route is clearly highlighted on OS mapping. Useful stuff. However I am pleased to say that the authors stress that a FULL map should be carried, and they include some handy tips for the novice, on reading a map and using a compass. Again, useful stuff.

The walks themselves are a nice selection, with something to suit all tastes, and time constraints. An afternoon round Brimham Rocks? A  longer day on one of the Yorkshire 3 Peaks? Or how about Arkengarthdale from Reeth? I am familiar with most of the walks in this pack, the ones I am not so familiar with, I will most certainly be checking out soon.

All in all, this an excellent, and slightly different slant on walking guides. Recommended.