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Moon over Langstone Fell in Garsdale

Dark Skies in Garsdale

Garsdale is a remote valley in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, and it has some of the darkest night skies in England. There is no street lighting anywhere in the dale, and the nearest towns - Sedbergh about six miles west, Hawes about nine miles east - are far enough away that very little of their light reaches up here. On a clear night the Milky Way is visible to the naked eye from the gardens of our self-catering holiday cottages, with the bulk of Baugh Fell making a black horizon to the north.

At a Glance

  • No Street Lights

    No street lighting anywhere in the dale and very little light pollution from the surrounding fells.

  • The Milky Way

    The Milky Way is visible to the naked eye on clear nights, along with thousands of stars you will never see from a town.

  • Protected Dark Sky

    The Yorkshire Dales National Park, together with the North York Moors, forms the largest area of protected dark sky in England.

  • From the Garden

    Stargazing from the cottage gardens - no drive, no crowd, step outside and look up.

  • More Than Stars

    Meteor showers, passing satellites and, occasionally, displays of the aurora visible from the dale.

  • Best in Winter

    Winter brings the darkest nights of the year, with darkness falling from late afternoon.

Why the Night Sky Here Is So Dark

The Yorkshire Dales National Park, together with the North York Moors, forms the largest area of protected dark sky in England, and Garsdale sits towards the remote western edge of it. The dale runs for roughly seven miles between Sedbergh and Hawes, and the population is small and scattered - stone farms and cottages spread along the valley rather than gathered in a lit-up centre. With no street lighting at all, the only lights you will see on a clear night are the odd farmhouse window, a passing car on the A684 and the sky itself.

The fells do the rest. Baugh Fell closes off the northern end of the view, and the surrounding high ground keeps the horizon dark in every direction, so there is nothing for your eyes to adjust against. Anyone used to town skies notices the difference within a few minutes of stepping outside - first the bright planets and the band of the Milky Way, then steadily more stars as your night vision settles.

What You Can See

On a clear, moonless night the Milky Way runs visibly across the sky over Garsdale, from one side of the dale to the other. Where a town sky shows a handful of stars, the dale shows thousands, and the patterns are dense enough that constellations take a moment to pick out from everything around them. The winter nights are very dark - on a clear night, every star can be seen.

Meteor showers pass through the year and are worth planning around, and on any clear evening you can watch satellites moving steadily across the sky - steady points that cross without blinking are satellites rather than aircraft. There have also been occasional displays of the aurora visible from the dale during periods of strong solar activity, which is not something you would expect from northern England but does happen.

Stargazing From the Cottages

All three cottages - Roger Pot, The Old Cart House and Farrier's Cottage - have gardens you can stargaze from, and the darkness is the same whether you stay at the western or eastern end of the dale. Roger Pot sits up its own farm track with open ground around it, and The Old Cart House has a rear patio garden; either way, the practicalities are the same. Wrap up properly, as a Dales night gets cold even in summer, take a blanket and a hot drink, and let your eyes adjust for ten minutes or so before you judge the sky.

The best nights are clear and moonless, and the nights are longest between October and March. A torch with a red light mode preserves your night vision if you need to walk about, but mostly you will not need light at all - the dale is quiet and safe to stand out in, and the sky does the rest.

Stay Under Dark Skies in Garsdale

Our three self-catering holiday cottages in Garsdale all have gardens for stargazing, with no street lighting anywhere in the dale. Book direct with the owners.

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