The Orton Fells is an upland area in

Northern England Northern England, also known as the North of England, the North Country, or simply the North, is the northern area of England. It broadly corresponds to the former borders of Angle Northumbria, the Anglo-Scandinavian Kingdom of Jorvik, and the ...

, mostly consisting of limestone hills,

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ha ...

s and

moorland Moorland or moor is a type of habitat found in upland areas in temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands and montane grasslands and shrublands biomes, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils. Moorland, nowadays, generally ...

s. Historically in

Westmorland Westmorland (, formerly also spelt ''Westmoreland'';R. Wilkinson The British Isles, Sheet The British IslesVision of Britain/ref> is a historic county in North West England spanning the southern Lake District and the northern Dales. It had an ...

, the area lies within the modern county of

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumb ...

and is bounded by the

Lake District The Lake District, also known as the Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous for its lakes, forests, and mountains (or ''fells''), and its associations with William Wordswor ...

to the west, the Eden Valley to the north and east, and the

Yorkshire Dales The Yorkshire Dales is an upland area of the Pennines in the historic county of Yorkshire, England, most of it in the Yorkshire Dales National Park created in 1954. The Dales comprise river valleys and the hills rising from the Vale of York w ...

and

Howgill Fells The Howgill Fells are uplands in Northern England between the Lake District and the Yorkshire Dales, lying roughly within a triangle formed by the towns of Sedbergh and Kirkby Stephen and the village of Tebay.

to the south. The area mostly falls within the boundaries of the

Yorkshire Dales National Park The Yorkshire Dales National Park is a national park in England covering most of the Yorkshire Dales. Most of the park is in North Yorkshire, with a sizeable area in Westmorland (Cumbria) and a small part in Lancashire. The park was designa ...

while a small part of the western fells is in the Lake District National Park. The fells are one of 159 National Character Areas defined by

Natural England Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, ...

Most settlements are in the lower land of the central upland region and the area is bounded by the villages of

Orton Orton may refer to: Places England * Orton, Eden, Cumbria, a village and civil parish * Orton, Carlisle, Cumbria, a parish * Orton, Northamptonshire, a village and civil parish *Orton, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire * Orton, Staffordshire, a hamlet ...

Great Asby Great Asby is a village in Cumbria, England. Historically part of Westmorland, it is located approximately south east of Penrith and approximately south of Appleby-in-Westmorland. Its name is said to be derived from the non, askr, meaning as ...

Little Asby Little Asby is a small village in Cumbria, England. Historically part of Westmorland, its name is said to be derived from the Norse words ''askr'', meaning "ash", and ''by'', meaning "farm".

Crosby Ravensworth Crosby Ravensworth is a village and civil parish in the Eden district of Cumbria, England. The village is about 4 miles (6.4 km) east of the M6 motorway, and Shap. At the 2001 census the parish had a population of 538, decreasing to 517 at ...

and

Crosby Garret Crosby Garrett is a hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set ...

. Other settlements in the area include

Ravenstonedale Ravenstonedale is a village and large civil parish in Cumbria, on the watershed between the River Lune and River Eden. The village lies south west of Kirkby Stephen. The parish includes the village of Newbiggin-on-Lune and several smaller sett ...

, Soulby,

Maulds Meaburn Maulds Meaburn () is a village in Cumbria, England. It is located in the Lyvennet Valley and Yorkshire Dales National Park and is 13 miles from Penrith. Its origins are connected with the nearby village King's Meaburn. Lankaber is a group of ...

, King's Meaburn, Morland, and Cliburn, and many of the settlements have conservation area status. Abrasion by glaciers and natural weathering of the limestone has created deep fissures, breaking the pavement into blocks, most of which was damaged by mining over the centuries. The

Great Asby Scar Great Asby Scar is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and National Nature Reserve in Cumbria, UK. It is an area of limestone pavement, south of the village of Great Asby. History A "scar" is the local name for a limestone pavement⁠ ...

, near Great Asby, and Orton Scars, near Orton, are two remaining examples in Britain. The rolling hills contain improved pasture with limestone walls or fences with some hedgerows and farming in the area is usually sheep with some other livestock while grass is grown for hay and

silage Silage () is a type of fodder made from green foliage crops which have been preserved by fermentation to the point of acidification. It can be fed to cattle, sheep and other such ruminants (cud-chewing animals). The fermentation and storage ...

in the valleys. Heather is found on the moorland and tree cover is mostly sparse except in small groups with a mix of broad-leaved and coniferous trees, with Ash trees being quite common. Archaeological remains are located in the area and include ancient villages, stone circles, burial mounds and a Roman road.

References

External links

Orton Fells, Cumbria
{{coord, 54.499, -2.587, type:landmark_region:GB_dim:20000, display=title Mountains and hills of Cumbria Lake District Pennines Natural regions of England