Named after the River Eden, which flows from Mallerstang Common in the south of Cumbria to the Solway Firth, in the north, the Eden Valley provides a contrast in walks to the fells surrounding it. The river is beautifully clear, running through farmland mainly given over to sheep and cattle. It is placid in places and swift with rapids elsewhere, such as near Nunnery. Its main tributary is the River Eamont, which runs out of Ullswater and is itself fed by the River Lowther joining it near Brougham, south of Penrith. A smaller tributary is the River Lyvennet, which, starting as Lyvennet Beck, drains the land to the west of Appleby.
Besides the market towns of Penrith, with its old narrow side streets, and Appleby, there are many other visitor attractions. Below is a list of the more permanent ones, which should give the visitor an idea of what is on offer. Eating places, which are more likely to change, have been omitted, though a few tea rooms are included.

Walk leaders will try to include some of the attractions, mentioned here, in their walks and with the views of the Pennines to one side and the Lakeland fells to the other, walkers should find a lot to interest them.

Note: since the web-site was first started, the diversification of farmers in the area into other activities has been noticed. Because of this some significant omissions are possible.

Adventure playground,

• The Maize Maze, Tel 01768 885488, is open from end of July to end of October on a farm situated at Hay Close, Calthwaite, There are 3 graded mazes, made from growing maize, for you to try and traverse. There is also a picnic area, an indoor children's play area and a tearoom with a selection of homemade cakes. It lies to the west of the section of the M6 between J41 and Southwaite Services.

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Ancient churches,

• Chapel of Christ and St Mary at Armathwaite - 12 th century chapel rebuilt in 1688.
• St Lawrence at Appleby - early English and Perpendicular with fine gargoyles and battlements.
• All Saints at Bolton - fine Norman relief over north door - 18th century screen with open tracery.
• St Andrews at Crosby Garrett - mainly Norman on hill with good views.
• St Lawrence at Crosby Ravensworth - originally 12th century in Early English style - fine setting.    
• St Wilfred at Eamont Bridge - chapel first restored 1658 - opulent gilt oak reredos with fine 15th century altarpiece.
• St Cuthbert at Edenhall - mediaeval sandstone with squat tower and stunted spire - 14th century glass.
• St James at Great Ormside - Fortified tower - Norman nave arcade and chancel arch - 17th century furnishings.
• Kirkby Stephen Parish Church - (often wrongly called 'St Stephens' according to the vicar) - founded in the 8th century - has 16th century tower - splendid monuments.
• St Oswald at Kirkoswald - spring flows through it -19th century tower stands on hill 200 yds away.   
• St Andrews at Penrith - Norman tower - 1720 Tuscan doorway - saxon crosses in church yard.
• St Ninian on a curve of the River Eamont - 17th century built on Saxon and Norman site.
• Shap Abbey of the Premonstratensian order founded in 1201 - detailed layout of cloister buildings.
• St Leonard at Warwick - Norman with 12th century apse and tower arch.

Animal centres

• The alpaca centre - near Ullswater you can view the rearing of alpacas from the paddocks. (See also Exhibition centres, craft centres).
• Eden Ostrich World, 5 miles east of Penrith on A686 - meet ostriches, rhea, emu, wallabies, goats, donkeys, sheep and pigs.
• Lakeland Bird of Prey Centre - set in Lowther Castle parkland south of Penrith - see hawks, eagles, falcons and owls.

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Country parks.

• Talkin Tarn, east of Carlisle - has boating facilities with woodland walks in nearby Low Gelt Woods,
• Stenkrith Park, Kirkby Stephen - turbulent stretch of River Eden passes through wooded gorge.

Exhibition centres, craft centres, galleries.

• National Mountaineering Exhibition - at Rheged, west of Penrith - dedicated to mountains and mountain adventure. It is houses 12 special shops displaying local goods and a cinema which puts on 7 movies daily featuring mountaineering human drama.
• Upfront Gallery- wood user's exhibition near Hutton-in-the-Forest.
• Red Barn Gallery houses original works in glass, ceramics, jewellery, sculpture and fine art on two floors. It is located on Melkinthorpe Road off the A66. See also Larch Nurseries on same site. ( Garden centres, nurseries).
• Kirk Neuk Studio & Gallery is located by the village church of Lazenby, 7 miles north east of Penrith. It has a regularly changing exhibition of ceramic animal figures alongside figures of tall African ladies.
• Wetheriggs Country Pottery, - see pottery making, glass blowing and painting in action and a steam engine worked on by the late Fred Dibner.
• The Alpacsa Centre, houses the Just Wood Gallery and G & S Timber Crafts workshop. (See also Animal centres).
• Station House Pottery. See Station House Tearooms (Tearooms).
• Greystoke Gill pottery is situated just south of Greystoke, which is 6 miles due east of Penrith. There is a showroom and you can visit the workshop and see work in progress. On certain days you may try your hand at throwing your own pot.
• The Pot Place is 5 miles north of Penrith. Take A6 northbound and turn left at Plumpton. The factory outlet, which has water features, statues, garden pots and ornaments, is on the right beyond the main railway line.

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Fortifications, ruined, still visible,

• Armathwaite Castle - a four storey 15th century pele tower,
• Kirkoswald Castle - 13th century moated castle with scattered masonry and a 60' high tower on its northern edge,
• Penrith Castle - 14th century with south wall and the remains of two towers - parking at nearby superstore.

Fortifications, more substantial.

• Appleby Castle - moated with ruined outer walls and 80 ft high keep dating from 1170 AD - spiral staircase,
• Brougham Castle - dating from 12th century once owned by Lady Anne Clifford, situated by river Eamont, Apply to English heritage for admission charge details.
• Dacre Castle - 14th century pele tower still habited.

Garden centres, nurseries.

• Hazel Dene Garden Centre and Tea Room is midway between Penrith and Appleby. From the A66, take the B6412 for about a mile. Besides the tea room, there is a large selection of garden plants and giftware.
• Larch Cottage Nurseries has a unique garden nursery with meandering paths and rose covered pergolas and has over 15,000 varieties of rare and unusual plants.See also Red Barn Gallery on same site (Exhibition centres, craft centres, galleries).

Gardens

• Acorn Bank - National Trust - walled herb garden of 250 species of culinary herbs - the largest collection in the north of England - , mixed borders, shrubs, herbaceous plants - riverside walk to a water mill,
• Corby Castle - early 18th century grounds plus woodland walks beside river Eden,
• Winderwath Gardens is 4 miles from Penrith. Take the A66 east bound and its on the left before Temple Sowerby. There are mature trees, rockeries, herbaceous borders with a large collection of Alpine and Himalayan plants and a picnic area
• Dalemain- old fashioned roses plus many rare plants. (See also Historic Houses).
• Hutton-in-the-Forest- walled garden, topiary terraces and woodland walk.(See also Historic Houses).

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Historic houses, e.g.

• Hutton-in-the-Forest - home of Lord and Lady Inglewood - features fine furniture, portraits, ceramics and tapestries, (See also Gardens).
• Dalemain - mediaeval to early Georgian - from 1679 home to the Hassell family - ceramics, furniture, old toys. (See also Gardens).

Iron age and Roman remains,

• settlements at Ewe Close and Ewe Lock near Crosby Ravensworth.

Limstone pavements

In the south of the valley, near Great Asby you are more likely to walk over moorland and even limestone pavements than farmland. The pavement is a rare and endangered habitat made up of clints (blocks of limestone) and grykes or fissures, which are caused by water erosion. Plants, more associated with woodland, inhabit the micro-climate within the grykes, including green spleenwort, hart's tongue and limestone fern in the deeper grykes with heather , blue moor grass, nettles and tormentil in the shallower ones. Unfortunately, by removing the stone and selling it to the public, the pavements are being destroyed by some unscrupulous stone merchants and garden centres.

Local view point,

• The Beacon, Penrith, built of local sandstone in 1719 - views of Lakeland fells, Eden Valley, north Pennines and Solway Firth.

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Nature reserves,

There are more than 30 nature reserves (including 11 National Nature Reserves) and woodlands throughout Cumbria which are open to the public. 9 of these are in or close to the Eden Valley.
Three examples of nature reserves are:

• Smardale National Nature Reserve near Newbiggin on Lune, which occupies over 3 miles of disused railway line and has an abundance of wildlife and flora, ( For further information contact Cumbria Wildlife Trust.)
• Murthwaite Park - a relic of the original forest that once covered most of Britain. It is an SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest), managed by English Nature,
• Finglandrigg National Nature reserve on the Solway plain, which is an area of semi-natural woodland with abundant wildlife such as red squirrels and roe deer. It is also managed by English Nature.

Railways,

The Carlisle to Settle railway runs through the Eden Valley and trains make stops at towns in the area, including Kirkby Stephen, Appleby and Langwathby. In the south the railway runs along the route taken by the upper reaches of the River Eden, between Wild Boar Fell and Mallerstang Edge, both worth a visit. The railway is sometimes used by the Penrith Ramblers to get to the start of a linear walk.
You can get unlimited travel on all main Cumbrian Railways including this line using the 'Lake District Railrover ticket'. For example: a family of 4 can travel anywhere in Cumbria for a week as often as they want for less than £160. (Price: as of late 2006)
A railway, now dismantled, used to run from Tebay to Kirkby Stephen and on to Darlington. The line was designed to carry goods - coal and coke to Barrow and iron ore to Teeside. It was noted for steep gradients (up to 1 in 59) as its route went over Stainmore at 1370'. A branch line also ran from Kirkby Stephen to Appleby. This railway was originally known as the South Durham and Lancashire Union Railway, (also known as the Stainmore Railway). It was closed in 1962. Some of the A685 between Tebay and Kirkby Stephen runs on the bed of the old track, while other parts are now footpaths, such as the Hartley-Stenkrith footpath, south-east of Kirkby Stephen, which crosses two viaducts, (see below).

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Railway Viaducts,

The Eden Valley is host to several viaducts. The 72 miles stretch of railway between Settle and Carlisle has 17 viaducts, five with 10 arches or more.
The longest, at 440 yds, (using old money) is the 24 arch Ribblehead Viaduct.   
The tallest, at 131', is the 12 arch Smardale Viaduct to the west of Kirkby Stephen, which crosses Scandal Beck as well as the dismantled Stainmore line. For more information on the viaducts on Carlisle - Settle line go to visitcumbria web site.
The dismantled Stainmore line still has has viaducts of interest intact in the region of Kirkby Stephen. To the west is the Smardale Gill Viaduct, which is south of the Smardale Viaduct. This also crosses Scandal Beck,
This was repaired by the Northern Viaduct Trust in the 1990's.    
The Hartley-Stenkrith footpath, using the bed of the old line, goes over the Podgil and the Merrygill viaducts, which are located to the south-east of Kirkby Stephen.
Even the Belah viaduct built, NE of Barras over Mousegill Beck, which was closed in 1962 and dismantled in 1953 is of interest, It was made of wrought and cast iron trestles, placed between two large stone buttresses and at the time of its construction in 1857, it was the tallest bridge in England at 196'. Only the two buttresses are now standing, though the bridge, built by Thomas Bouch, would probably be still standing now, if it had not been dismantled.
(The aclaim Bouch received did not last as it was he who later designed the calamitous Tay Bridge, which collapsed in a storm soon after it was built taking a train and 75 people with it.)   

Stone circles,

• Long Meg and Her Daughters, dating from about 1500BC. Its map reference is NY571372 and is just north of Little Salkeld. According to a survey by Professor Alexander Thom (1895 - 1985), there are 66 smaller stones in total, consisting of local porphyritic stone. However, some are covered in grass, so that only 59 tend to be visible. Long Meg is about 3½m high and is situated outside the 'circle', which is slightly elliptical, having major and minor axes measuring about 109m and 93m respectively. 2 further stones lie outside the ring. The site dates from the early Bronze Age, about 2500BC or earlier, and is 3rd only to Stonehenge and Avebury in prehistoric importance - a pity a farm track passes through the site.
• Gamelands, near Orton, map reference NY 640082, - remains of a stone circle about 90m in diameter,
• Mayburgh Henge near Eamont Bridge, map reference NY519284, - stone circle and large rampart enclosing an area roughly circular, 90m in diameter, in which is a standing stone 2.8m tall, whilst nearby on the other side of the B5320 is the smaller King Arthur's Round Table Henge. (See below.)
• King Arthur's Round Table Henge, near Eamont Bridge, map reference NY523283, - a prehistoric circular earthwork bounded by an outer bank with an intervening ditch 12m wide and 1.5 m deep - 2 standing stones reported in the seventeenth century have since gone.

(See also stone circles in North Lake District.)

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Tea rooms with something different.
There are far too many tearooms/cafes to list here. All the small towns will have several. Those that are listed are some used by the Penrith Ramblers, which you are not in the main towns and have a little extra to offer.
As it is possible some tea rooms may not be open every day, you might consider checking their web site for further details.

• Greystone House Farm Shop & Tea Room, Tel 01768 866952, is situated in the village of Stainton to the west of Penrith. The shop specialises in selling local produce
• Abbott Lodge, Tel 01931 712720, is a working dairy farm, which produces over 30 flavours of homemade icecream for sale in its tea room. It is situated 4 miles south of Penrith.. It is sign posted south of Clifton, on the A6 - take the Melkinthorpe turn.
• Kennedys Fine Chocolates Ltd manufactures handmade chocolates, which it sells at its tea room in Orton. Just look for the parked cars to find it!
• Station House Tearooms, Tel 015242 72847, has its own craft workshop, where you can decorate white ceramic items yourself with special paints which are then oven baked to be food and dishwasher safe. It is located just off the A65 past Kirkby Lonsdale travelling east Turn left just after Whoop Hall Hotel.
• Brief Encounter is a cafe at Lazonby Station on the Carlisle Settle Line, Tel 01768 881902. Large carpark but not much like Carnforth Station where the film was shot.

Water mills, e.g.

• Little Salkeld watermill - fully operational producing stoneground flour,
• Rutter Falls 3 miles south of Appleby towards Great Asby - millwheel and waterfall;

For further information and photographs go to Visit Cumbria website.