Which UK walk would you do?

Being a Yorkshire Lass, there is no choice - Yorkshire all the time!!!

If you have the time and energy consider the Wainwright Coast to Coast (C2C) from St Bees on the Irish Sea across northern England to Robin Hood Bay on the North Sea. A true cross section of England - Lake District, Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors.
http://www.coastto.co.uk/

Our inspiration for the walk was the Smithsonian article: Michael Parfit "A Walk Across England" 2003

In the 1970s, British accountant Alfred Wainwright linked back roads,
rights-of-way and ancient footpaths to blaze a trail across the
sceptered isle.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/a-walk-across-england-89547636/

We used Contours Walking Holiday for our B&B bookings and luggage transport. Contours suggest trip options from 12 to 18 walking days. We did the 14 walking day option with a rest day in Kirby Stevens after 7 days of walking: https://www.contours.co.uk/coast-to-coast-walk#CCW3

The alternate title to the "Coast to Coast" walk is "Pub to Pub" in that typical evening meals were taken at the (often only one) local pub. We woud reconnect with the other walkers doing the C2C in a time of bonding and sharing the joy (or misery) of the day.

BTW doing half the C2C walk is an option. (Contours offeres West Section and East Section optons). During our Kirkby Stevens layover, we discovered fellow Oregonians lodging in our B&B. They cought a glimpse my Oregon driver's liscense when at the pub. The were starting the Eastern section of the C2C having completed the Western Section (St Bees to Kirkby Stevens) the previous year.

Being a Yorkshireman and avid hiker.
The Dales ,every single time.Much grander scenery and Black Sheep beers and Timothy Taylors too.

Be near criminal not to go via Malham too maybe duck Grassington to make this work.Lovely walk over to Kettlewell via Kilnsey Crag
Old Hill Inn.
White Lion at Cray highly recommended

I much prefer northern England to the Cotswolds region.

Top end if Wharfedale is as pretty as it gets
Consider routing a bit further west from there via Dales way.
Ingleton waterfall walk.
jordas Cave and thence Dentdale.

As you’ve done the Cotswolds go North!

Richard's comment about Black Sheep beer brings back fond memories. While overnighting in Reeth, an American friend met us and took us to dinner at a Black Sheep pub. Had a Black Sheep ale named "Rigwelter":

Riggwelter Ale takes its name from a local Yorkshire Dales farming
term which has Norse roots; “rygg” meaning back, and “velte” meaning
to overturn. A sheep is said to be rigged or ‘riggwelted’ when it has
rolled onto its back and is unable to get back up without assistance.

Just don't overindulge in Old Peculier..a Theaksons beer.
Had a lenghly night in Hawes with a pal recently after a day Pennine Waying ,visted all 4 pubs twice and that was after a visit to the Green Dragon

My choice would be Yorkshire, even though I’m a Lancashire lass! Wensleydale cheese from Hawes. York really needs 2 full days as there is plenty to see - it was very busy when I was there 2 weeks ago.

Thanks everyone for your recommendations. We had previous looked at the C2C but this is more than what we want to commit to for this trip. It looks like the Yorkshire Dales is clearly the choice to make. We are now focused in on doing the Dales Way, and adding a few extra days during and/or after to allow us the opportunity to fully explore the surrounding area. We would love to hear of any other recommendations for inns or pubs along the Dales Way....

As an alternative to a long-distance walk, you can simply base in one village/town and do day walks.

The Pathfinder guidebooks are very good and have numerous suggestions

http://www.pathfinderwalks.co.uk/product-category/1-pathfinder-guides/north-of-england/

Another alternative would be a circular route such as Contours "Herriort Way" wak. (Think All Creatures....):
https://www.contours.co.uk/herriot-way-clockwise

The Herriot Way is a delightful walk around the northern Yorkshire
Dales of Wensleydale and Swaledale. It is based on a holiday taken by
James Herriot with his son, which he described in his book 'James
Herriot's Yorkshire'.

The trail winds through the valleys of Wensleydale and Swaledale, each
filled with pretty wildflowers and amazing wildlife. The views from
atop Great Shunner Fell are far-reaching and spectacular, while the
famous waterfalls of Aysgarth and Hardraw Force can also be admired
along the way. There are also plenty of quaint villages and hamlets to
explore, such as Hawes, Keld and the ‘Capital of Swaledale’ Reeth,
each offering a warm welcome to walkers.

This itinerary lists our preferred overnight stops for this tour.
Sometimes there may be a shortage of available accommodation in a
preferred location, in which case we will transfer you from the trail
to your accommodation and back again at no extra charge. Overnight
stops marked with a (T) will always require transfers as standard.

Our C2C walk took us thourgh the northern section of the Herriot Way loop with overnights in Keld and Reeth. Our booking service found us a real B&B in Keld (host lived on property with only two rooms to hire). At the time of our walk Keld did not have a nearby pub or resturant. We booked dinner from our B&B host. Reeth had a "real" hotel, Kings Arm. Challenge of self-booking is sequention accomodations in small villages.

Absolutely choose Yorkshire Dales. It is just gorgeous and offers wonderful walking. Grassington is a delightful town; it's where the new All Creatures is set.

Keld not noted for it's nightlife..
Tan Hill is not too far out of the way and despite it's upgrades still a pretty unique night out .
My pal had his stag night there and they were out playing cricket in the road at midnight

Just don't overindulge in Old Peculier..a Theakstons beer.

The problem is, it's difficult not to overindulge...it's so moreish!

I'm going to agree with the consensus, go to Yorkshire. In my opinion it is more spectacular and has more to offer than the Cotswolds.

There are so many walks you could try. I would be inclined to finish the Cotswold Way down to Bath. Coming over the hill and seeing the City of Bath below you is a special experience. Two other walks I have done and would recommend are the Offa's Dyke path North from Chepstow to Prestatyn, and the West Highland Way. Neither have any steep ascents, and both offer a range of interesting places to stop overnight or for a meal and a drink.

there are a number of videos you can rent on Amazon Prime in the "Footloose" series by the husband and wife team Debra and David Dixon. Two of them are set in the Cotswalds. They do exactly what you are proposing, traveling on foot between and in villages. A few years ago they were free, at present they appear to be $2 apiece (or maybe they've figured me for someone that'll pay and they're still free to others).

Hi glgeiger90 -

Now, be honest, you really didn’t expect my vote to be anywhere other than the Dales, right?!

That said, the Dales Way is a wonderful walk, one which I’ve done several times, although when I first did it many years ago when it was in its infancy, it’s fair to say we were only on nodding terms with the latter stage or two of the route.

Recommended watering holes along the way include The Flying Duck in Ilkley (although you are spoilt for choice there really), the two pubs in Appletreewick, The Red Lion at Burnsall, The Devonshire Arms in Grassington (although the one higher up the street is also good, name escapes me for the minute), The George at Hubberholme, The White Lion at Cray (not strictly slap bang on the route, but…), The Sportsman's Arms at Cowgill, The George and The Sun in Dent, Sedbergh is another ‘take your pick’ place, and there’s the Hawkshead Brewery and Wilf’s Cafe at Staveley. Oddly can’t recommend anything in Windermere at the end as we usually move straight on somewhere else!

If you did to go with a more circular route as you originally described you’ll still find it hard to go far wrong. The Dales is more rugged, feels more remote and is less ‘pastoral’ for want of a better word, than the Cotswolds. While I enjoyed walking the Cotswold Way, I recall it climbed and descended the escarpment seemingly wilfully, and Cheltenham was on our right for three days as we circled round it. It’s such a long time ago since we walked it, any hostelry recommendations are better left to those with more ‘on the ground’ local and recent experience!

Wherever you end up I’m sure, weather permitting, you’ll have a great walk. Any further information on northern ramblings you might need, feel free to ask. I’ll be happy to answer with specifics if I can.

Ian

P.S. I was thinking of the Foresters Arms in Grassington and there are also pubs on, or just off, the Dales Way route at Kettlewell, Starbotton, and Buckden, none of which I have visited in recent times thanks to Covid and a couple of other issues, now largely resolved.

I am somewhat bemused by stuartcumella's comments about the West Highland Way not having any steep ascents. The stretch along Loch Lomond is fairly flat, but the rest does involve some quite steep climbs... Have a look a the gradient map here.
https://www.westhighlandway.org/the-route/

Yorkshire Mother, so it has to be the Dales!
There has been a lovely series this winter on BBC4 called Winter Walks, alot are in Yorkshire, very beautiful and very calm.

Hey wasleys -

I was puzzled by the notion that both the West Highland Way and Offa’s Dyke Path were largely flat. Not my recollection at all. However I just assumed I done them both wrong!

Ian

Clarification: the West Highland Way and the Offa's Dyke Path do not involve climbing or scrambling, but do invoice trudging up hillsides. No problems for people of average fitness. I remember that when I was walking the West Highland Way, I met a group of Scottish mountaineers, who sneered at me for only walking on hills.

If that’s the case, then they are unrepresentative of the bulk of climbers I’ve met and not worthy of your time and consideration. I say that as a scrambler out of his depth when attached to a rope! Each to his own in my view, but we more usually have more common ground between us than divides us. If I were you I’d have written them off as elitist idiots and moved on. I hope you did!