This scenic bus route, featured on BBC4's All Aboard! The Country Bus, links the North East with scenic Swaledale and Wensleydale in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, continuing past Ribblehead viaduct to Ingleton and Kirkby Lonsdale.
Perfect for walking or sightseeing in the Yorkshire Dales – England’s favourite National Park.
There’s no need to book in advance, tickets are available from the driver, so you can simply turn up and go!
Catch Northern DalesBus 831 direct from the centres of Middlesbrough, Stockton and Darlington (picking up at Darlington rail station and all X66/X26 bus stops) to Richmond, then travel through Swaledale, regarded by many people as one of the most sublimely beautiful of all the Yorkshire Dales – through the iconic villages of Reeth (National Park Centre) , Gunnerside and Muker, to the remote hamlet of Keld at the head of the Dale, close to several waterfalls and perfect starting point for hikes along either the Pennine Way or Wainwright’s Coast to Coast Path – pick up the bus at any point down the Dale for your return journey.
The bus then ascends one of the most spectacular mountains passes in the British Isles – Buttertubs, of Tour de France fame. There are breathtaking views from the bus windows down Swaledale or, once over the 526 metre summit, across to Yorkshire’s famous Three Peaks, before descending to the busy market town of Hawes.
Hawes’s many attractions include the wonderful Dales Countryside Museum with the celebrated Hartley-Ingleby collection of lead mining and farming artefacts from the Northern Dales, and Wensleydale Creamery, where the world-famous Wensleydale cheese, rescued from oblivion by the legendary Kit Calvert, is made. There is a visitor centre where you can see cheese being made and a restaurant and shop. Hardraw Force, England’s highest single drop above ground waterfall, is little more than a mile’s easy walk away.
From Hawes you can continue on Northern DalesBus 831 past the famous Ribblehead Viaduct to Ingleton or Kirkby Lonsdale. Get off the bus at Ribblehead Station Inn to visit Ingleborough National Nature Reserve and the Visitor Centre at Ribblehead Station.
Buy a Dales Rover ticket from the bus driver for a day’s unlimited travel on the Sunday and Bank Holiday DalesBus network. Dales Rover: Adult: £10 Group: £18 (for any group of up to two adults and three children)
Concessionary bus passes for the elderly and disabled are not valid for free travel on Northern DalesBus 831, except for outward journeys on from Middlesbrough, Stockton and Darlington. Standard fares to a maximum of £3 single/ £5 day ticket are payable by passholders.