Pendle Prospects Wild Camping

Sally out to Skipton (half an hour's drive) and its Norman castle, a Royalist stronghold in the English Civil War with an intriguing shell grotto. After history-tinged times surveying the castle keep, jump aboard a narrowboat in the town centre and take a cruise on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. (Afternoon tea cruises run between March and October if you feel like something fancy.) Both the Yorkshire Dales and the Forest of Bowland can be reached within about half an hour; Pendle Hill is a similar distance away. With centuries-old connections to witchcraft, the hill is a must for fans of all things occult – drop by the Pendle Heritage Centre (20 minutes) to learn more about what really went down at the famous witch trials of 1612. Kids not sufficiently spooked? Drive out to the coast and take them for a spin on the white-knuckle rides at Blackpool Pleasure Beach (an hour) instead. On the other side of town, Blackpool Zoo is home to some chilled-out animals that can help you calm down after all that adrenaline; Blackpool Model Village (arguably even more sedate) is just over the road in splendid Stanley Park.