Sedbergh

Sedbergh is a small market town at the foot of the Howgill Fells, on the north bank of the River Rawthey. It was historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and lies inside the Yorkshire Dales National Park, but it is in Cumbria, in Westmorland and Furness, and has been since 1974.

It is England's official book town, in the manner of Hay-on-Wye, and its Main Street has several secondhand and specialist bookshops among the cafes and outdoor shops. Sedbergh School, the public school founded in the sixteenth century, dominates the edge of town, and its pupils' fell runs are famous. Farfield Mill, a restored Victorian woollen mill just outside town, has artists' studios and exhibitions.

The Howgills begin right behind the houses. Winder is the short, steep fell above town, and from it a long grassy ridge leads to The Calf, the highest point. On the eastern side of the range, Cautley Spout falls in a series of cascades down a deep ravine, one of the highest waterfalls in England. The Dales Way also passes through, following the Rawthey and the Dee. Late spring and autumn are the best seasons for the Howgills, when the grass on the tops turns from green to gold and the light is clear.

Sedbergh is quiet and buses are infrequent, so it suits people with a car or the patience to use the community buses. The Howgills are confusing in mist, with few landmarks on the rounded tops. The weekly market stands on Wednesdays.