Wharfedale
Wharfedale is one of the famous Yorkshire Dales; the dale formed by the River Wharfe coursing through the West Riding of Yorkshire.
Towns and villages in Wharfedale (in order, travelling downstream, from west to east) include Buckden, Kettlewell, Conistone, Grassington, Hebden, Ilkley, Burley-in-Wharfedale, Otley, Pool-in-Wharfedale, Arthington, Collingham, and Wetherby.
Beyond Wetherby the dale opens out, and becomes part of the Vale of York.
Upper Wharfedale
The section from the river's source to around Addingham is known as Upper Wharfedale and has a rather different character to the rest of the area. It is high in the Pennine hills. The first fifteen miles or so is known as Langstrothdale, including the settlements of Beckermonds, Yockenthwaite and Hubberholme, famous for its church, the resting place of the writer J B Priestley.
As it turns southwards, the Wharfe then runs through a green and lush valley, characterised by limestone outcrops, such as Kilnsey Crag, and woodland, generally quite unusual amongst the Dales.