The River Ure in

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

, England is approximately long from its source to the point where it becomes the River Ouse. It is the principal river of

Wensleydale Wensleydale is the dale or upper valley of the River Ure on the east side of the Pennines, one of the Yorkshire Dales in North Yorkshire, England. It is one of only a few Yorkshire Dales not currently named after its principal river, but th ...

, which is the only major dale now named after a village rather than its river. The old name for the valley was Yoredale after the river that runs through it. The Ure is one of many rivers and waterways that drain the Dales into the River Ouse. Tributaries of the Ure include the

River Swale The River Swale in Yorkshire, England, is a major tributary of the River Ure, which becomes the River Ouse, that empties into the North Sea via the Humber Estuary. The river gives its name to Swaledale, the valley through which it flows. Th ...

and the

River Skell The River Skell is a tributary of the River Ure in North Yorkshire, England. Its source is in boggy ground on moorland north of Pateley Bridge. For its first the river is known as Skell Beck. Descending from the moor the river enters Sk ...

Name

The earliest recorded name of the river is in about 1025, probably an error for , where represents the Old English letter

wynn Wynn or wyn (; also spelled wen, ƿynn, and ƿen) is a letter of the Old English alphabet, where it is used to represent the sound . History The letter "W" While the earliest Old English texts represent this phoneme with the digraph , ...

or 'w', standing for ("water"). By 1140 it is recorded as ''Jor'', hence Jervaulx (Jorvale) Abbey, and a little later as ''Yore''. In Tudor times the

antiquarian An antiquarian or antiquary () is an fan (person), aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artifact (archaeology), artifac ...

s John Leland and

William Camden William Camden (2 May 1551 – 9 November 1623) was an English antiquarian, historian, topographer, and herald, best known as author of ''Britannia'', the first chorographical survey of the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, and the ''Annal ...

used the modern form of the name. The name probably means "the strong or swift river". This is on the assumption that the

Brittonic Brittonic or Brythonic may refer to: *Common Brittonic, or Brythonic, the Celtic language anciently spoken in Great Britain *Brittonic languages, a branch of the Celtic languages descended from Common Brittonic *Britons (Celtic people) The Br ...

name of the river was ''Isurā'', because the Roman name for Aldborough was '' Isurium''; intervocalic ''s'' is known to have been lost in Brittonic at an early date. This explanation connects the river name with an

Indo-European root The roots of the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European language (PIE) are basic parts of words that carry a lexical meaning, so-called morphemes. PIE roots usually have verbal meaning like "to eat" or "to run". Roots never occurred alone in the lang ...

''is-'' meaning "strong" and the names of the

Isar The Isar is a river in Tyrol, Austria, and Bavaria, Germany, which is not navigable for watercraft above raft size. Its source is in the Karwendel range of the Alps in Tyrol; it enters Germany near Mittenwald and flows through Bad Tölz, Munic ...

in Germany and the

Isère Isère ( , ; frp, Isera; oc, Isèra, ) is a landlocked department in the southeastern French region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.Mickley. Here it returns east and then south to Ripon. A little way after Ripon it flows east again to Boroughbridge. To the east of Boroughbridge, the Ure is joined by the River Swale. About downstream of this confluence, at Cuddy Shaw Reach near

Linton-on-Ouse Linton-on-Ouse is a village and civil parish in the Hambleton District of North Yorkshire, England, about eight miles north-west of York. It lies on the north bank of the River Ouse. History The village is mentioned in the ''Domesday Book'' ...

, the river changes its name to the River Ouse.

Water levels

* Low and high water levels are average figures.

Geology

Upper Wensleydale is a high, open and remote U-shaped valley overlying Yoredale Beds. The gradient is gentle to the north end of the valley, becoming steeper further south. Glacial

drumlins A drumlin, from the Irish Gaelic, Irish word ''droimnín'' ("littlest ridge"), first recorded in 1833, in the classical sense is an elongated hill in the shape of an inverted spoon or half-buried egg formed by glacier, glacial ice acting on und ...

lie either side of the river, which is shallow but fast flowing. The river is fed from many gills cutting through woodland and predominantly sheep farmsteads. The

Settle to Carlisle railway Settle or SETTLE may refer to: Places * Settle, Kentucky, United States * Settle, North Yorkshire, a town in England ** Settle Rural District, a historical administrative district Music * Settle (band), an indie rock band from Pennsylvania * ' ...

runs along the western side of the valley here. Mid Wensleydale is made of Great Scar limestone under Yoredale beds that make up the valley sides, which are marked with stepped limestone scars. The valley floor is made from glacial drift tails and moraine. The river here is broad and gently flowing in meanders in a stony channel. There are four tributary valleys that contribute to several waterfalls in this area. Lower Wensleydale is a broader version of mid Wensleydale with the river gently meandering until it drops significantly at

Aysgarth Aysgarth is a village and civil parish in Wensleydale, in the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire, England. The village is in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, about south-west of Richmond and west of the county town of Northallerton. ...

over the platformed waterfalls. The valley sides become increasingly wooded. From Middleham onwards the river is a typical mid-age river and meanders in wider arcs as it flows south-east.

History

The valley has been inhabited since prehistoric times. Examples of earthworks and other artifacts from the Bronze and Iron Ages can be seen in the Dales Countryside Museum in

Hawes Hawes is a market town and civil parish in the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire, England, at the head of Wensleydale in the Yorkshire Dales, and historically in the North Riding of Yorkshire. The River Ure north of the town is a touri ...

and the Romans built a fort at Bainbridge. Place-names in the valley denote the different types of settlers, such as Angles and Norse with typical suffixes like 'ton' and "sett". During medieval times, much of the upper dale was sheep country belonging to

Middleham Castle Middleham Castle is a ruined castle in Middleham in Wensleydale, in the county of North Yorkshire, England. It was built by Robert Fitzrandolph, 3rd Lord of Middleham and Spennithorne, commencing in 1190. The castle was the childhood home of Ki ...

and Jervaulx Abbey. In 1751, the

Richmond to Lancaster Turnpike The Richmond to Lancaster Turnpike, was a road that was opened in the second half of the 18th century between Richmond, in the North Riding of Yorkshire and Lancaster in Lancashire, Northern England. The turnpike was built to allow goods to b ...

was created and originally followed the Roman road from Bainbridge. In 1795 it was diverted along the valley to Hawes and took the Widdale route, now the B6255 to Ingleton. More recently in 1990,

Aysgarth Falls Aysgarth Falls are a triple flight of waterfalls, surrounded by woodland and farmland, carved out by the River Ure over an almost stretch on its descent to mid-Wensleydale in the Yorkshire Dales of England, near the village of Aysgarth. T ...

was used as a location in ''

Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves ''Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves'' is a 1991 American action adventure film based on the English folk tale of Robin Hood that originated in the 12th century. It was directed by Kevin Reynolds and stars Kevin Costner as Robin Hood, Morgan Fre ...

'', in the scene where Robin Hood fights Little John. It also featured in the 1992 film of ''

Wuthering Heights ''Wuthering Heights'' is an 1847 novel by Emily Brontë, initially published under her pen name Ellis Bell. It concerns two families of the landed gentry living on the West Yorkshire moorland, moors, the Earnshaws and the Lintons, and their tur ...

'' and the 1984 TV

miniseries A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format h ...

, '' A Woman of Substance''.

Economy

Farming (including dairying), tourism and quarrying are the mainstays of the modern economy of the valley. The dairy at Hawes produces Wensleydale cheese. Brewing takes place in Masham at the Black Sheep and Theakston Breweries. There are many waymarked footpaths and open countryside. The Pennine Way passes through Hawes.

Navigation

The River Ure is navigable upstream as far as its junction with the

Ripon Canal The Ripon Canal is located in North Yorkshire, England. It was built by the canal engineer William Jessop to link the city of Ripon with the navigable section of the River Ure at Oxclose Lock, from where boats could reach York and Hull. It open ...

, south east of

Ripon Ripon () is a cathedral city in the Borough of Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England. The city is located at the confluence of two tributaries of the River Ure, the Laver and Skell. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, the city ...

, a distance of . There are locks at

Milby Milby is a hamlet and civil parish in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. It is situated to the immediate north of Boroughbridge. History The Roman road, ''Dere Street'' crossed the River Ure at Milby. Until the mid 19th cent ...

, where a short cut bypasses the weir at

Boroughbridge Boroughbridge () is a town and civil parish in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is north-west of the county town of York. Until a bypass was built the town lay on the mai ...

, and at Westwick. Navigation to Swale Nab, at the confluence with the River Swale, was opened in January 1769 as part of the River Ouse Navigation. Navigation to the Ripon Canal was opened in January 1772. The

Leeds and Thirsk Railway The Leeds Northern Railway (LNR), originally the Leeds and Thirsk Railway, was an English railway company that built and opened a line from Leeds to Stockton via Harrogate and Thirsk. In 1845 the Leeds and Thirsk Railway received permission for ...

bought the navigation in January 1846. The navigation was neglected, and the lack of dredging resulted in boats having to be loaded with less cargo. There was a brief upturn in trade in the 1860s, but the decline continued after that. By 1892, no traffic proceeded past Boroughbridge, and the North Eastern Railway took action to prevent the waterway above Boroughbridge being used. Until 1999 the

navigation authority A navigation authority is a company or statutory body which is concerned with the management of a navigable canal or river. Rights of a navigation authority Whilst the rights of individual authorities vary, a navigation authority will typically ha ...

to Swale Nab was the Linton Lock Navigation Commissioners. The Commissioners had insufficient income to maintain the navigation, and in 1999 it was transferred to

British Waterways British Waterways, often shortened to BW, was a statutory corporation wholly owned by the government of the United Kingdom. It served as the navigation authority for the majority of canals and a number of rivers and docks in England, Scotland ...

. The navigation authority for the whole navigation is now the

Canal & River Trust The Canal & River Trust (CRT), branded as in Wales, holds the guardianship of 2,000 miles of canals and rivers, together with reservoirs and a wide range of heritage buildings and structures, in England and Wales. Launched on 12 July 2012, the ...

Natural history

The differing habitats of the area have their own populations of flora such as

cranesbill ''Geranium'' is a genus of 422 species of annual, biennial, and perennial plants that are commonly known as geraniums or cranesbills. They are found throughout the temperate regions of the world and the mountains of the tropics, but mostly in ...

, bistort,

pignut Hognut or pignut can mean any of a number of unrelated plants: * ''Bunium bulbocastanum'' (black cumin) or ''Conopodium majus'' (kippernut) of the Apiaceae * rushpeas, particularly ''Hoffmannseggia glauca'' (Indian rushpea) and ''Hoffmannseggia den ...

and

buttercup ''Ranunculus'' is a large genus of about almost 1700 to more than 1800 species of flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae. Members of the genus are known as buttercups, spearworts and water crowfoots. The genus is distributed in Europe, ...

. Other species that can be seen in the area are wood anemones,

violets Violet identifies various plant taxa, particularly species in the genus ''Viola'', within which the common violet is the best known member in Eurasia and the common blue violet and common purple violet are the best known members in North America ...

, primroses, purple orchids, cowslips and herb paris. Some plants, such as

spring sandwort Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season), a season of the year * Spring (device), a mechanical device that stores energy * Spring (hydrology), a natural source of water * Spring (mathematics), a geometric surface in the shape of a he ...

, have managed to grow where the lead mining took place. There are large populations of

badgers Badgers are short-legged omnivores in the family Mustelidae (which also includes the otters, wolverines, martens, minks, polecats, weasels, and ferrets). Badgers are a polyphyletic rather than a natural taxonomic grouping, being united by the ...

roe deer The roe deer (''Capreolus capreolus''), also known as the roe, western roe deer, or European roe, is a species of deer. The male of the species is sometimes referred to as a roebuck. The roe is a small deer, reddish and grey-brown, and well-adapt ...

red fox The red fox (''Vulpes vulpes'') is the largest of the true foxes and one of the most widely distributed members of the Order (biology), order Carnivora, being present across the entire Northern Hemisphere including most of North America, Europe ...

es and

rabbits Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit specie ...

in the valley. Among the variety of birds that can be seen in the valley are golden plovers,

curlews The curlews () are a group of nine species of birds in the genus ''Numenius'', characterised by their long, slender, downcurved bills and mottled brown plumage. The English name is imitative of the Eurasian curlew's call, but may have been i ...

and

oystercatchers The oystercatchers are a group of waders forming the family Haematopodidae, which has a single genus, ''Haematopus''. They are found on coasts worldwide apart from the polar regions and some tropical regions of Africa and South East Asia. The e ...

. Fish populations along the river include:

brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a European species of salmonid fish that has been widely introduced into suitable environments globally. It includes purely freshwater populations, referred to as the riverine ecotype, ''Salmo trutta'' morph ...

, grayling,

barbel Barbel may refer to: *Barbel (anatomy), a whisker-like organ near the mouth found in some fish (notably catfish, loaches and cyprinids) and turtles *Barbel (fish), a common name for certain species of fish **''Barbus barbus'', a species of cyprinid ...

, chub,

roach Roach may refer to: Animals * Cockroach, various insect species of the order Blattodea * Common roach (''Rutilus rutilus''), a fresh and brackish water fish of the family Cyprinidae ** ''Rutilus'' or roaches, a genus of fishes * California roach ...

and

perch Perch is a common name for fish of the genus ''Perca'', freshwater gamefish belonging to the family Percidae. The perch, of which three species occur in different geographical areas, lend their name to a large order of vertebrates: the Percif ...

Gallery

Image:The River Ure - geograph.org.uk - 186396.jpg, The River Ure near its source Image:River Ure - geograph.org.uk - 188096.jpg, River Ure west of Hawes Image:The River Ure near Worton Bridge - geograph.org.uk - 75564.jpg, The River Ure near Worton Bridge Image:River Ure - geograph.org.uk - 154107.jpg, River Ure near Aysgarth with Batt Island in view Image:The River Ure - geograph.org.uk - 116750.jpg, The River Ure at Hackfall Gorge near Mickley Image:River Ure - geograph.org.uk - 274596.jpg, River Ure near West Tanfield Image:Bridge over River Ure.jpg, Bridge over River Ure near Ripon Image:River Ure, Roecliffe - geograph.org.uk - 270848.jpg, River Ure, Roecliffe Image:B6265 road bridge over River Ure.jpg, B6265 Hewick Bridge over River Ure Image:River Ure - geograph.org.uk - 150944.jpg, River Ure taken from Arrows Bridge

Lists

Tributaries

From the source of the river: * Tongue Gill * Grass Gill * Scars Gill * Keld Gill * Johnston Gill * South Lunds Sike * Tarn gill * Scothole Gill * Carr Gill * Mossdale Beck * Cottersdale Beck * Widdale Beck * Hardraw beck * Thorne Sike * Gayle Beck * Blackburn Sike * Eller Beck * Nicholl Gill * Raygill Sike * Grays Beck *

River Bain The River Bain is a river in Lincolnshire, England, and a tributary of the River Witham. The Bain rises in the Lincolnshire Wolds at Ludford,J. N. Clarke, (1990), ''The Horncastle and Tattershall Canal'', Oakwood Press, a village on The Vikin ...

* Paddock Beck * West Mawks Sike * Newbiggin Beck * Craike Sike Gutter * Sister Ings Beck * Starra Beck * Wanley Beck * Gill Beck * Eller Beck * Low Beck * Bishopdale/Walden Becks * Kendall Beck * Belden Beck/Swan River * Mill Beck * Wensley Beck * Mill Beck * Harmby/Spennithorne Becks *

River Cover The River Cover is a river in the Yorkshire Dales in North Yorkshire, England. The Yorkshire Dales Rivers Trust has a remit to conserve the ecological condition of the River Cover. The river forms a limestone dale with ancient woodlands. Cour ...

* Harker Beck * River Burn * Black Robin Beck *

* River Tutt *

Settlements

From the source of the river: *

Blades A blade is the portion of a tool, weapon, or machine with an edge that is designed to puncture, chop, slice or scrape surfaces or materials. Blades are typically made from materials that are harder than those they are to be used on. Historic ...

* South Lunds *

Appersett Appersett is a hamlet in the Yorkshire Dales in the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire, England west of Hawes. It lies on the A684 road and an unclassified road runs alongside Widdale Beck to connect with the B6255 road between Hawes and ...

* Bainbridge * Worton * Woodhall *

* Wensley *

Spennithorne Spennithorne is a village and civil parish in lower Wensleydale in North Yorkshire, England. The village is situated 2 miles (3.2 km) south-east of the market town Leyburn, on a slight elevation above the River Ure, which forms the so ...

Middleham Middleham is an English market town and civil parish in the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire. It lies in Wensleydale in the Yorkshire Dales, on the south side of the valley, upstream from the junction of the River Ure and River Cover. ...

* Ulshaw Bridge *

Masham Masham ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 1,205 at the 2011 census. Etymology In Wensleydale, on the western bank of the River Ure, the name derives from the An ...

* Mickley *

West Tanfield West Tanfield is a village and civil parish in the Hambleton district of North Yorkshire, England. The village is situated approximately six miles north of Ripon on the A6108, which goes from Ripon to Masham and Wensleydale. The parish incl ...

* North Stainley *

Nunwick Nunwick is a village in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. It is about 1 mile north-east of Ripon. Nunwick was historically a township in the ancient parish of Ripon in the West Riding of Yorkshire. The township included two ...

Hutton Conyers Hutton Conyers is a village and civil parish in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. It is situated near the River Ure and north-east of Ripon. The parish extends from the River Ure to the A1(M) motorway, and includes the vil ...

* Roecliffe *

* Lower Dunsforth * Aldwark

Crossings

From the source of the river: * Green Bridge (foot) * How Beck Bridge * Footbridge * Blades Footbridge * Unnamed road * Unnamed road * Thwaite Bridge * A684 * Footbridge * A684 New Bridge * Footbridge * Haylands Beck, Hawes * Footbridge * Yore Bridge, Bainbridge * Worton Bridge, Worton * Footbridge * Footbridge * Footbridge * Yore Bridge * A684 Wensley Bridge * A684 Middleham Bridge * Ulshaw Bridge * Footbridge * A6108 Masham Bridge * Footbridge * A6108 Tanfield Bridge * North Bridge, Ripon * A61 Ripon By-pass * B6265 Hewick Bridge * A1(M) * A168 Arrows Bridge * Borough Bridge * Footbridge *

Aldwark Bridge Aldwark may refer to the following places in England: * Aldwark, Derbyshire Aldwark (Old English "the old fortification") is a small upland village and parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England, about WSW of Matlock by road ...

(Toll)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ure, River Wensleydale Ure Boroughbridge 1Ure