Keld

North Yorkshire

Keld is a village in the Richmondshire former district of North Yorkshire.

Keld is situated just above the River Swale and is the highest village of Swaledale, 7 miles (9 miles by road) north of Hawes and 17 miles (23 miles by road) to the west of Richmond.

There has been a village in Keld since Scandinavian settlers arrived there between the 9th and 10th centuries, its name deriving from the Norse word for spring or well.

In addition to farming, lead mining played an important part in village life and the village grew to a larger community than exists today. Its school, Methodist Church and an inn have all closed, but its United Reformed Church survives and its Literary Institute, opened in 1861, is now the Keld Resource Centre including a Countryside and Heritage Centre with displays about the area.

The attractive village is popular with walkers and is on the route of Alfred Wainwright's Coast to Coast walk.

Village features

Keld is in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

The village is on the River Swale.

Keld is on the Coast to Coast walk, a mostly unmarked 192-mile walk from St Bee's in Cumbria to Robin Hood's Bay in North Yorkshire, created from the guide book of renowned hill-walker Alfred Wainwright.

Keld has a community centre.

Restaurant dining can be found in Keld.

Places to stay in Keld include hotel, guest house, holiday home, camping accommodation.

There are public toilets in the village.
Locations of toilets and opening times can be found at this North Yorkshire Council - Public toilets web page.

Place of worship: United Reformed.

Travel

Bus travel

The village has an infrequent bus service.

Road travel

Keld can be reached via the B6270

Places to visit

Bolton Castle

Castle Bolton, near Redmire, North Yorkshire
One of Britain's best-preserved medieval castles was built as one of the finest homes in the land and is still in the ownership of a descendant of the castle's original owner. With a commanding view over Wensleydale, the castle is situated near Redmire, about 5 miles west of Leyburn and 6 miles east of Askrigg. Although partially slighted by Oliver Cromwell during a Civil War siege it has been preserved in excellent condition. The castle is opened to visitors daily except on dates when weddings are being held. Visitors can access much of the castle and its gardens and daily displays include birds of prey, archery and wild boar feeding. Full details can be found on the owner's website.

More information at the Bolton Castle website.

Find on map: Bolton Castle

Leeming Bar station

The Wensleydale Railway

Scruton - Leeming Bar - Bedale - Finghall - Leyburn
A railway service into Wensleydale running from Scruton and Leeming Bar, near the A1(M) , towards Bedale, Finghall, Leyburn and, if reopened, to Redmire at the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park. It operates a heritage diesel service and steam on some dates. The line was extended eastwards to Northallerton West, but the effects of flooding on a bridge at the end of 2015 resulted in that section of line remaining closed to passenger services. The railway company currently has aims of restoring a section of the track westward from Leyburn into the National Park at Redmire which has also been closed in recent years.

Further information at the

Wensleydale Railway website

Aysgarth Falls

Aysgarth
Aysgarth Falls have been a much-visited Wensleydale beauty spot and a tourist attraction for more then two centuries. The River Ure falls down a series of rocky steps near to the village of Aysgarth. The falls provided a dramatic film location for the 1991 film "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves", starring Kevin Costner. A woodland nature reserve alongside the falls is run by the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, which also runs a National Park Centre, cafe and car park there. Nearby is the Yore Bridge across the river and the Yore Mill, a grade II listed watermill on the site of a medieval fulling mill. The present mill dates from 1854 and was built to produce both woollen textiles and corn. It replaced an earlier 18th century cotton mill which was damaged by fire. There is now a tea shop and craft shop at the mill.

Find

Aysgarth Falls on map.

Hardraw Force

Hardraw, near Hawes
Situated about a mile north of Hawes in Wensleydale, this waterfall visitor attraction claims fame as "England's highest single-drop waterfall". The fall is around 30 metres (100 feet) high and was used as a backdrop to scenes in the 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. There is now also a Heritage Centre in the grounds of the falls, access to which is usually open from 10am to dusk with an admission fee.

Details can be found on the

Hardraw Force website.

Dales Countryside Museum

Station Yard, Burtersett Road, Hawes
The Dales Countryside Museum is located at the former Victorian station in Hawes and tells how the landscape and people of the Yorkshire Dales have evolved over thousands of years. An old locomotive and carriages are preserved at the platform as a reminder of the days that train services connected the isolated Wensleydale town to the rest of Yorkshire. A Yorkshire Dales National Park Centre is also housed at the museum.

Find out more at the

Dales Countryside Museum website.

Yorkshire Dales National Park

The western half of Richmondshire is all within the Yorkshire Dales National Park. Leyburn is the gateway to the Wensleydale area of the National Park, the wide and beautiful upper valley of the River Ure into which many tributaries flow. There is a National Park Centre in Hawes. Find out more on our Yorkshire Dales National Park page.

Emergency services

North Yorkshire Police

North Yorkshire Police website.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service website.

Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust

Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust website.

Local government

Civil parish council

Muker Parish Council
Provides some local services in the area.

District authority Abolished

Richmondshire District Council

Richmondshire District Council ceased from April 1, 2023. From 1974 it was a shire district covering 509 square miles of the mainly rural area of the north west of North Yorkshire with its administrative centre in Richmond. Much of the area is within the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

The North Yorkshire Council unitary authority takes over services previously operated by Richmondshire District Council. These included local planning, waste collection, street cleaning, parks and car parks, housing and markets.

Places in the former

Richmondshire district.

Unitary authority New

North Yorkshire Council

The North Yorkshire Council is a new unitary authority formed from the previous County Council from April 1, 2023. It covers the existing county duties including highways, schools, libraries and transport planning over an area of around 3,085 square miles while also taking over the responsibilities of the seven huge district authorities also created in 1974 — Craven, Hambleton, Harrogate, Richmondshire, Ryedale, Scarborough and Selby — these including local planning, waste collection, street cleaning, parks and car parks, housing and markets.

Councillors were elected to the County Council in 2022 and continue as councillors of the new North Yorkshire Council unitary authority. In that election, the Conservatives gained a slim majority gaining 47 of the 90 seats.

Places in North Yorkshire

Link to council website: North Yorkshire Council

Political composition:

4613119 NY Ind5411E

90 members

NY Ind = North Yorkshire Independents group E = By-election in Eastfield division pending on May 25, 2023.
Composition and groupings as at May 4, 2023

County authority Abolished

North Yorkshire County Council

North Yorkshire County Council was a shire county authority which existed between 1974 and April 1, 2023, covering duties including highways, schools, libraries and transport planning. It was transformed into the North Yorkshire Council unitary authority on April 1, 2023, while the seven huge district authorities within — Craven, Hambleton, Harrogate, Richmondshire, Ryedale, Scarborough and Selby — were also abolished.

Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner

Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner North Yorkshire
Covers the county of North Yorkshire and City of York.

Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner North Yorkshire website.

Ceremonial county

North Yorkshire

Historic

- 1974: Within the North Riding of Yorkshire.
1974 - 2023: In the Richmondshire shire district of the North Yorkshire county.

Also in Yorkshire.guide

New Places to visit Gazetteer