Leaving Kirkby Stephen, the Coast to Coast climbs steadily towards the Pennines, crossing open moorland as it approaches the watershed at Nine Standards Rigg. The gentler limestone country to the west gives way to a higher, more exposed landscape of peat, rough grassland and broad horizons, marking one of the great transitions along the route.

Beyond Nine Standards, the route crosses the remote uplands towards the head of Swaledale, where the landscape gradually begins to change again. Moorland gives way to the upper reaches of the dale, with becks, enclosed pastures and scattered farms accompanying the descent towards Keld and the first distinctly Yorkshire landscape of the journey.

The articles below explore the moorland, archaeology, historic routes and natural features encountered along and around this stage of the Coast to Coast. Together they provide a closer look at the crossing from Kirkby Stephen into Swaledale, where the route leaves Cumbria behind and enters the Yorkshire Dales.