Dales to Lakes

Andy, Kel and Millie the greyhound were our next visitors! They were staying in a B&B in Bellerby, the next village up from us, so when they arrived, and we sat outside and lit the Barbie for an array of burgers, sausage and veg as well as a few beverages!

The next morning we jumped in the cars and headed over Bishopdale and into Wharfedale where we parked on the road just outside Buckden. Andy and Phil had brought their bikes, so before we went on our walk they went off to do a 10 mile route Phil had plotted the day before. The route took us up a very big climb over Moor End Fell (1,000ft in 1 mile) then down an awesome descent into Littondale. Rocky and unpredictable, we often found ourselves going off track just to stay on the bikes! Phil came a cropper at one point and Andy came round the corner to find him getting up off the floor and checking for wounds! We made it down in one piece though and then had to climb back up. This time the climb was steeper and more than 1,000 ft to take us to the trig point at 2,000 ft above sea level, the views were fantastic and we were looking down on Wharfedale. Another great descent followed and Phil picked up a puncture, which was quickly repaired and we were rolling into Buckden where Linda and Kel were waiting. In the meantime they had been for a walk with the dogs from the village up through Rakes Wood and on to the National Trust Land at Buckden Out Moor, they kept going for an hour until they reached the road bridge, then turned back and headed to the village. Once back they got an ice cream from the local village shop and while sitting on the green saw a paraglider swoop down and land in a nearby field! He quickly packed up his stuff and wandered past them with a swift “hello”! Once Phil and Andy were back and suitably ribbed for being late, we had our picnic and locked the bikes on the car before heading out for our walk. It was a 6 mile route that took us up a 700ft climb on to Knuckle Bone Pasture which looks down on Wharfedale, the walk involved only one big climb, then it was downhill all the way into the village of Starbotton, a tiny place with a pub and a phone box! We carried on until we were at a footbridge over the river Wharfe, we stopped here and the dogs had a play in the water, with Millie lying down in it and Prince swimming around, even Smudge had a go at getting across (but gave up when her belly got wet)! To finish the walk we carried on up along the Wharfe until we were back in Buckden, where we stopped at the local for a mandatory pint before heading home. That evening, Andy and Kel came over again and we got an Indian takeaway! Suitably stuffed we said our goodbyes and waved Andy, Kel and Millie off into the dark. It was lovely to see them and we had a great time.

The next day we moved to Low Park Wood, an old favourite site of ours in the Lake District, we have been here many times before so it was the first site on our trip where we knew what to expect, and we were looking forward to arriving! Once everything was packed and we were hitched up we headed off after saying bye and thanks to the owner, and speaking to our neighbours from Leeds (who had a pet rabbit in their awning!). The neighbours had warned us against towing down the A684 towards Hawes as it is so tight and twisty, but after the site owner said it wasn’t too bad we decided to risk it. It turned out to be a bit narrow in some places, but the road was quiet and we made it without any drama, it was a lovely scenic drive and Tonks pulled us along no problem.
We arrived on site at about 1:00 and found a pitch hidden away in a corner of the woodland.

We had another visitor the next morning, Sarpea is coming to visit and Linda is very excited! Before she arrived Phil had his hair cut outside the awning, and as our neighbour was leaving he said if he’d have known Linda did hair he could have saved himself 6 quid! We took the dogs down to meet Sarpea, and then came back to the van for a good old chinwag and a cup of tea. Afterwards we headed out to Low Sizergh Barn, a farm shop and craft centre which also has tea rooms, and we had our lunch there and had a nosey around the shop as well as a look at the cows being milked as we were lucky enough to time it right (they have a viewing gallery in the café which looks down on the dairy!). By the time we had got back Sarpea had been here for a few hours and had to carry on her journey north to visit her friend in Hexham, so we waved her off and took the dogs for a little walk around the site. The Low Park Wood site is set in acres of National Trust Woodland and includes some lovely walks in the wildflower woods as well as around the ruins of the former gunpowder works. Looking at the ruins you can still see the trench where they used to divert the nearby River Kent into the site to the huge waterwheel which powered the machinery. We walked down the river where we played skimming stones and Prince enjoyed a swim before we continued up into the woodland. Lovely deciduous trees are surrounded by a mass of Wild Garlic, Bluebells and Orchids, and as the sun came out the whole place became a beautiful array of colour.

Sizergh Castle and Gardens are only up the road from our site and as they are owned by the National Trust we thought we’d go on our bikes and have a look round. As we have now come to expect, when we got to the gate we discovered that the place is closed on Fridays and Saturdays, it was Friday, so our plans were scuppered!
We then headed out in the car to Asda, where we got 18 litres of vegetable oil. It was on special offer, 2 bottles for £5 and we just couldn’t resist stocking up because you never know when it might be useful. Not really, the real reason is even stranger.. Linda saw a chap the day before outside his caravan filling his Isuzu Big Horn up with vegetable oil, of course she stopped to ask him about it, and he said he’d been doing it for 4 years now. As long as you mix it with a bit of diesel the car will run fine and the emissions are even reduced, so we’re gonna put the 18 litres in Tonks and see what happens! I have read about this many times previously so it’s not as random as you may think!
That afternoon we went for a play in the river near the site. It was such a warm sunny day we all ended up in there! Prince loved it, swimming around constantly, Smudge was a little less enthusiastic, but she reluctantly had a swim 3 times as we carried her in! We both ended up in the river up to our necks with soaked shorts and T Shirts, but it was great fun and the van wasn’t far away. We slopped our way back to the van where we lit a barbeque and enjoyed the last of the days sun sat outside.

The next day we jumped in the newly fuelled Tonks and headed out towards Coniston, we parked in a National Trust car park at Tom Gill. We were, once again, armed with a route from Country Walking magazine which would take us towards Coniston through Tarn Hows Woods and then back up the hill to the Tarn Hows lake which we walked around, then back down the Gill to Tonks. We saw lots of other people out as it was a weekend, and it was very busy at Tarn Hows, on the way around we had fantastic views of the Old Man of Coniston, and at 2,600ft it really made us feel that we were amongst the mountains. Princey played in the lake, as well as in a waterfall, and passed through some water tunnels which went under the road. We passed a big rock covered in moss which we had a sit on as it looked very comfy, and we saw lots of Belted Galloway cattle, which look a bit like mint humbugs due to the white stripe on their sides. That evening we went into Kendal and had a meal at Pizza Express which was paid for by a voucher Jenny and Mike had bought us before the trip, thanks!


Moving again today. Before we left we took the dogs for a final visit to the river. We all went in again and Smudgie was made to have a swim again, more of this practice and she’ll soon learn to like it! After our paddle we hitched up and set off, we went via the M6 to the north lakes where we went through Keswick and onto a minor road which then turned into a narrow lane over an extremely narrow bridge (careful with that ‘van). Eventually we arrived at Low Manesty Caravan Club site, set in woodland on the edge of Derwent water and overlooked by Cat Bells, towering 1,450 feet above the site. Once we were set up we decided to head out in Tonks to Whinlatter Forest Park, just north of Keswick. Phil took his bike and rode the 10.5 mile red/black route which was great fun and had some fantastic views on the way round. Linda did a 3 mile walk in the woods following the waymarkers, and meeting some alpacas along the way. We timed it right and both arrived back at the car at the same time.

Phil was out the next morning at 6:45am on a 15 mile ride from the site which took him down Borrowdale past the Bowder Stone, a 2,000 tonne, 30 foot boulder which historians think was carried down from Scotland by a glacier (as it is not local stone) and the National Trust have put a set of stairs up to the top! The ride continued onto the Cumbria Way, a very rocky bridleway which became extremely steep in places up to Langdale Combe at 1,600 feet. On the way up I met a shepherd who was sending his flock up the mountain, he had 4 sheepdogs with him who were doing a very good job of keeping the sheep in check, after following him for a while he stopped at a gate and let me pass through. On the way back down the mountain the path was already getting busy with walkers, so I’m glad I went out early.. After getting back and having a well earned brew we headed out towards Buttermere. The drive took us over the very steep but very scenic Honister Pass, luckily Tonks had no trouble getting up the hill with his new chip fat fuel to keep him going! Buttermere was lovely and we vowed to return another day we stopped at Wilkinsyke Farm where we saw a sign for their own ice cream which they make on site, so we had one each while sat on the grassy rocks opposite. A huge ice cream in a chocolate cone each was yummy, and Linda even said the best she’d had! After that we continued on past Crummock Water to Cockermouth. We wanted to visit the town because we had heard so much about it since it was flooded in November 2009, and we wanted to spend a bit of time and money there. We parked up and had an interesting walk through the town centre. The majority of shops are still empty, some with work going on, some without and some with “dangerous structure” notices on them, the main street is lined with skips and builders vans. In some of the shop windows the owners have put their stories of what happened the day of the flood, most describing that apart from the heavy rain there was no warning that the town was soon to be under 6ft of water. People were going about their daily business in the morning, and having to evacuate the town in the afternoon. It was very sad to see, especially as the clean up was still going on. We walked down to the river, and were both surprised what a small, calm river it was, it looked more like a brook than a river that could do so much damage. On the way back through town we called in at the butchers which was one of the few privately owned shops to have been reopened (a lot of the major chains, like boots, were open) and got some meat supplies. The drive back took us over the much less dramatic Whinlatter Pass where we stopped in the forest and had our picnic, while sat there Phil felt a scratch on his leg and noticed that he had picked up a tick. Luckily he had a pair of tweezers in his Swiss Card (thanks James) and Linda saved the day by pulling it straight out. We popped into Keswick on the way back and Phil bought a new bottom bracket for his bike before we headed back to the campsite. When we got back Phil suggested taking the dogs for a walk up Cat Bells, and after a bit of convincing Linda agreed and we headed out. The path up to the 1,450 foot summit is on the south side of the mountain, and is a well laid path which even has a hand rail in places. As we rose up the hill the view got more and more dramatic, we could see further with every step, and were looking down on Derwant Water and the valley below. We passed a few walkers on the way but when we got to the top we had the place to ourselves, so we took in the view and took some photos before someone else arrived (a weird skinny man who didn’t say anything to us). We headed down the north side of the mountain, and were very glad we didn’t come up that way. Extremely steep in places it was more of a climb than a walk, and the heights made Linda a bit nervous. On the way down we saw some other walkers who we overheard saying “there’s someone on the top” so had a joke about how grumpy we are about wanting these places all to ourselves! We headed down the hill and into the woodlands of Brandelhow Park next to Derwant Water and the footpath from there took us back to the site. 3.5 miles with all that climbing meant we were tired out, so we lit the barbeque straight away and enjoyed sausage baps from the Cockermouth butchers before calling it a night.

Lealholm to Leyburn

We’ve been for another walk recommended in our Beautiful Countryside book. It took us to a place called Falling Foss in the heart of the North York Moors National Park, we parked in the car park and followed the footpath down the course of a small river called May Beck where the woodland was beautifully lit by the afternoon sun, and Prince was enjoying dipping in and out of the water. Eventually we came to Falling Foss which is a lovely waterfall cascading over a 30 foot drop. On the top of the waterfall is a remote house called Midge Hall, until 2008 it was derelict and in a bad state of repair, the new owners, a family from Wales have made a wonderful job of the restoration and have opened up the garden as a tea garden, they have some lovely outdoor seating and even a large yurt for functions which has a huge table and chairs inside, as well as a wood burner and a cd player.. We had a lovely pot of tea and slice of cake before following the footpath through the woods back to the car.
That evening Linda went to the local WI meet in Lealholm where they were having a talk from Graeme Aldous about Nell the sheepdog who made 2 films for the York Moors national park, she met a very nice group of ladies who were very welcoming and chatted about our adventures the whole night. By the time she got home phil was tucked up in bed!

The day before we left Lealholm we headed out on a walk from the site, we walked up to the trig point up on Glaisdale Rigg where we had fantastic panoramic views of the moors and dales and could even see as far as the coast by Whitby to the east. To the south we could see the radar base at RAF Flyingdales, part of the US controlled Ballistic Missile Early Warning System, it is a huge square tower that sits on top of Snod Hill. We’ve seen it from many angles while on this trip as it is such a prominent feature in this part of the moors, so much so that we keep thinking it is following us! After having our picnic sat on a grass verge we continued our walk down into Great Fryup Dale where we passed lots of lovely houses as well as a couple of friendly horses, and then as we were passing Fryup End Farm we saw one of Linda’s WI ladies having a chat with a friend, she recognised Linda straight away so we said hi and she introduced her 'man friend' to us!

On move day we awoke to rain and hail showers and so we were up around 9, we made a start at tidying and getting the awning down. This had to be done quick, between all the showers, and proved to be a success packing into its bag no problem, we packed the van and hitched up before going off in search of Martin to say our goodbyes. We found him in his barn, he had been busy that morning inoculating all his calves ready for turning them out into the fields opposite, we got talking about internet and he told us a story about how he accidentally damaged his phone line with his tractor, only for BT to install a new cable which improved his speed by 4 times! We gave him our blog address, and before we left he showed us into the farmhouse to show us the impressive fireplace.. We walked through the lovely kitchen which and through into the lovely comfy sitting room where there was a huge fireplace taking up the whole of one wall, it had a wood burner in its centre and above that engraved in the stone were the names John & Elizabeth Robinson and the date 1777. Martin said the farmhouse had been around longer than that, and prior to the farm there was a manor house on the site, it was really lovely to see, and very kind of Martin to allow us in, we were sad to leave Wild Slack Farm.

We then headed off to Cow Close Barn CS in the Yorkshire Dales. When we arrived we knocked on the farm door and the owner popped out to show us to our pitch which was between 2 other vans, but in a lovely mown flat field with beautiful views from the west round to the east. The farm itself was very tidy and the site well kept, and the welcome was great. We got on with setting up, Linda in the inside and Phil putting the awning up, this was the 3rd time with the new awning and it went up much easier and faster than the first time (which took the two of us 3 hours with the instructions, and 2 attempts at assembling the frame, thank goodness no one was watching then).

Phil got up at 7am the next morning to do a local ride he’d plotted on the gps. It was a lovely clear morning, and looked like being a nice dry day. The 18 mile ride took me over Preston Moor, next to the military firing range, and then down towards a small village called Grinton. The views down to the village were fantastic, and typical of the Yorkshire Dales, the ride then climbed sharply up to Greets at 1,600 feet and had great views over Wensleydale, then it was down a fantastic, fast, descent that had me whooping down to Castle Bolton. This quaint little village is dwarfed by the huge castle at one end which is half ruin and half inhabited, it is now used for functions and weddings as well as being open to the public. After a few photos it was a big climb and some road riding that took me back to the van.

We then decided to head out to Hawes armed with a Country Walking map and description. Hawes is a nice little Yorkshire town with lots of small shops and a few pubs, we parked on street just outside the town centre and walked back through the town before heading out over the bridge and into the dales, we were soon to be heading through fields with plenty of squeeze styles and ladder styles. After a lot of climbing we were well above Hawes and looking down the length of Wensleydale, this is where we decided to stop for our lunch admiring the view while watching a few jets fly by. We then continued along the track where we stumbled upon an open disused mine entrance, ever curious we both went in for a look, using brief blips of 2 second mobile phone camera flash to have a look, about 30 meters in the mine was blocked, so we about turned and carried on our walk. We walked past High Shaw caravan park and through some nice woodland until we came to the Green Dragon Inn, Our guide sheet said that through the inn was the highest single drop waterfall in England, Hardraw Force, so we had to go through to have a look, to our surprise there was a £2 charge each (which we later realised we could have avoided by sneaking down the alley!) but we paid and went for a walk up to the falls. While very impressive, and the overhanging rocks and trees were amazing, the falls weren’t as big as we were expecting. Prince enjoyed it though and had a swim in the clear water. On the way out we stopped and had a pint while sat out the front of the pub, and then headed back across the fields to Tonks.
That evening we met up with Julian and Carol who we first met when we stayed in Wareham (in the New Forest) and had since been reading each others blogs when we realised our paths crossed nearby again, so I emailed and we arranged to meet at their motorhome. We had a lovely evening and ended up chatting until 11:30, comparing notes on caravan sites and talking about how great life on the road is! It was really good to catch up with them and share notes with someone doing a similar thing to us.

Next day we decided that we should head into Leyburn first this morning to do some shopping and get the car tyres seen to as one of them was suffering uneven wear. First stop was a small industrial unit up the road where there was a tyre shop and a brewery, the tyre shop was useless, and he didn’t even know what tracking was (he seemed more clued up for motorbike tyres), so we gave up on him and went over to the Wensleydale Brewery. There a young lad was on duty and in a very uninterested but friendly fashion gave us a whistle-stop tour of the brewery before showing us the shop where we bought a couple of bottles. We went on into Leyburn where we parked the car in a very steep car park (field) and did our shopping in the market which had sprung up in the centre of town. On returning to Tonks we discovered we were completely blocked in by a cattle trailer and a tractor, so we decided while we were waiting we’d pop across the road to the cattle market for a nosey. After walking round we spotted all the farmers heading into a nondescript door and decided to follow, inside we discovered 2 auction areas in full swing so we watched for a while. The cattle were hearded in one by one, and prodded with a stick round the ring, meanwhile the auctioneer shouted a load of unrecognisable nonsense before the cow in question was chucked out again and the next one arrived. It was hugely entertaining and most of the farmers there seemed more interested in chatting to each other than bidding, we were very careful not to scratch our heads because at one point I think we nearly bought a Limousin! When we returned to Tonks we were free to leave, so we stopped at another garage in Leyburn which was much more successful and Tonks was booked in for a tracking check on Monday. Then we went on to Masham, another lovely little town and the home of the Black Sheep and Theakstons Brewerys. We had picked up a leaflet from the site which gave us a great town walk to do with lots of history attached to the area, we had ice creams on the way round and even went into the church to admire the stained glass. Afterwards we went into the very impressive Black Sheep Brewery where they have tours, a shop, restaurant and a pub on site. We had a pint in the pub before heading home to await the arrival of Phil’s friend Gav who was visiting for a couple of days. Once he had arrived and we had eaten the two boys headed into Leyburn for a few scoops. We went to the first pub we came to which was a busy place with lots of the local kids, we managed to get on the pool table, so had a few games of pool before heading on to the next pub. We went in round the back where we saw people coming out, and the back bar turned out to have a disco! No-one was dancing, and the bar area was much more crowded, so we had one in there before heading to the Sandpiper. This was a lovely place, much quieter and more of a food pub, so we had a pint at the bar before deciding to sample some of the vast selection of whisky they had on offer.. This meant we were suitably oiled for the walk back up the hill!

We were all up early the next day and headed out to Hawes to do another walk from Country Walking magazine.

This was another 6 mile walk that took us up the other side of the valley to the top of Ten End, a climb of over 1,000 feet where we had fantastic panoramic views of the Dales. On the way up a particularly rocky track, just after we had stopped for our lunch we saw a group of motocross riders making their way down a very rocky track. The last rider was making sure everyone got down ok, so he stopped for a chat and told us they had done over 100 miles so far and still had a way to go before returning to base! Not surprising some of them looked knackered! On the way round we took lots of photos and had a really nice time before emerging in Hawes by the Wensleydale Creamery, so Linda and Gav went in and bought some cheese before we headed into Hawes and got some ice cream. We ate it by a nutty horse that tried to nibble Linda’s clothes before heading to the Crown for a pint!
On the way back home we were commenting how inviting the river alongside the road was looking, so Phil pulled over the car and announced that we were all going in for a paddle. We found a great spot where the rocks on the river bed were worn flat and were comfy under foot. We took our shoes off and all ended up in the freezing cold water up to our knees, very invigorating! When we got back to the van Gav realised he had lost his sunglasses, so Phil and Gav headed back to the spot and were up to their knees in the icy water again! Luckily, the return trip was a success, and we found the shades sitting on a rock at the bottom of the water, phew! That evening we headed out to the Sandpiper for a meal, and finished it off with whisky and Grand Marnier at the bar.

Gav was heading off the next day. We walked into Leyburn and Gav brought his car down so we could have a coffee before saying our goodbyes and waving him off.
In the afternoon Phil went off to Hawes with his bike and rode the route that we had walked the day before, but backwards. Up the steep grass climb, then back down to Hawes via the very rocky track that was great fun, but was only ridden at the same speed as the motorbikes, after claiming the day before that he’d go faster!
Meanwhile Linda took the dogs across the local fields where she was harassed by a flock of aggressive sheep and a herd of young cattle, only to reach a high stile that Prince refused to go over, so she had to turn round and be followed back again by the assortment of farm animals!

Tonks had to go to the garage in the morning so that they could look at why there was uneven wear on the tyres, so we dropped him off at half 10 and went for a walk. We went up to Leyburn Shawl, a long limestone escarpment with a footpath running all the way along the top which had lovely views down Wensleydale, and looked down on the town of Wensley itself. When we got back they still hadn’t looked at Tonks, and asked us to give them another hour, so we popped back into town and had a pint sat outside in the sun! Back at the garage again they had looked at Tonks and made adjustments to the tracking, apparently he needed his wheel bearings adjusting, but they hadn’t done that. He charged us £25 “for cash” and we felt we might have been ripped off, luckily when driving Tonks he was no longer pulling to the left when we released the wheel, so they definitely did something!

North York Moors National Park

We have now moved to a wonderful little farm campsite in Lealholm in the North York Moors National Park. Arriving at the site we could tell straight away we’d found a gem, the owner, Martin was straight out to greet us and he walked us down the site and let us choose a pitch, and once we had picked the perfect one with breathtaking views he helped us level the van with some of his blocks! I asked him if we could take some photo’s on the farm sometime, and he quickly said ‘come now and have a look at the geese I’ve got hatching!’ In his utility room he had an incubator with around 9 goose eggs waiting to hatch and one newly hatched gosling sitting there! While we were there Martin said he needed to check one of the eggs to see if it was live or dead as it had not been moving at all, so he filled the sink with warm water and floated the egg to see if it would move, after a while of no movement he said it must be dead, and would have to get rid, it promptly started wiggling round the bowl as if trying to get out, so had earned its reprieve!
We went back to the van to continue setting up when our next door neighbours came back, she was very, very chatty and told us all about the goings on at the site over the past 2 weeks! No sooner was the awning up, and before it was pegged, she was out again saying how well we did and inviting us into her van to meet their parrot “Blue”. She was a rose coloured cockatoo and was very talkative even though you couldn’t understand a word (similar to its owner)! Eventually we made our excuses to finish pegging the awning and left. After taking the dogs a little walk in the woods behind the van we went into Lealholm in the car to have a pint and get some chips for tea!

Phil got up at 6:30 next morning to go for a ride! Riding from the site and heading on a circular route to Scaling Dam, a total of 17 miles, it was a route downloaded from the internet, and despite having GPS there were a couple of occasions where the track on the moor disintegrated to nothing and I had to take an alternative route. The scenery was brilliant on the ride, and on the way back into Lealholm I clocked 41mph in the 30 limit (what speed camera!). We then went over to Glaisdale, the next village where there is a great butchers who gave us a huge bone for the dogs.

Back at the van we headed out for a walk. We did a 3.7 mile loop that included the hills surrounding our site and gave a great view of the van, also lots of stiles which we had to lift Prince over because of a bruised back (he bumped it while jumping in the car a few days ago). The walk included 2 lovely sets of stepping stones crossing the river Esk, one in a field and one in Lealholm village. After we got back we were sat outside the van when Martin came over to tell us he had someone coming to give his bull a pedicure, and if we wanted to watch we could. The guy turned up in a big 4x4 with a large hydraulic contraption attached to a trailer, they manoeuvred it into place and unfolded it, then after a bit of wrestling with the gates and a lot of wrestling with the bull he was in. Once he was trussed up the whole thing tilted and lifted the bull up onto its side! He didn’t look amused, especially when the contractor took a grinder to his toes.. 3 more cows followed the bull into the pedicure torture, and while they were being done I got chatting to the contractor about bikes, it turns out his 3 young lads do downhill and they have been to Shropshire for races a few times, he’s even heard of Rave Racing!

Next day Phil’s bike had to go to the bike shop in Guisborough, as it needed a service on the forks and shock. We then headed in Tonks over to Grosmont where we hoped to see the steam train on its 6 mile journey into Whitby, when we arrived there was a train arriving at the station, so we took some photos of the engines from the platform.


We drove on to Whitby where we parked on top of the hill on the headland so that we could explore the impressive ruin of the Abbey. After we had a walk around the grounds and the visitor centre we headed down the 199 steps into the town, but not before we stopped at an old Land Rover Series 1 which had been converted into an ice cream van, we both had a 99 each for the journey down the steps! We had a wander around the town, and had a brief stop outside a pub to sample an ale and enjoy some chocolate cakes we had picked up!

On the way back to collect the bike the next day we took a call from the bike shop to say the forks were scored by grit and would need new legs, the mechanic said it may last the remainder of the trip before it comes to that, so keep riding them until they go, then send them off for repair seemed the best option. We picked up the bike, and on the way back we went over the moors for a stop at Danby Beacon, where Phil had been on his bike a couple of days before. The view was panoramic, and the wind was howling up there, we let the dogs out and all had a run around before dashing back into the car.

We then carried on towards Goathland, a village a few miles away from us which is where the TV series Heartbeat was based. We drove up hills and down dales on some very steep, winding roads, and passed through the lovely villages of Glaisdale and Egton Bridge on the way. When we arrived we parked in the car park for free as the attendant had just packed up for the day, walked down to the local shops and took some photos by some of the old cars they had on display, then we went past Scrip’s garage and funeral directors, and called into the Goathland Hotel (Aidensfield Arms) for a pint and a packet of crisps!

Robin Hood’s Bay is a historic fishing village just south of Whitby which hugs the cliff side, the top of the village is made up of more modern houses and shops, and the bottom of the village is the historic fishing port with much older buildings which are making a good job of not sliding into the sea. We parked on street at the top of the village before heading down the steep hill into the old village, the road is on a 30% descent and the houses and shops are all squeezed in together like sardines in a tin. It’s quite a sight and a lovely little place to visit, we headed down to the bottom where the road turns into a causeway for fishing boats to access the sea, we had a look round the visitor centre and Phil had a walk up the stream exit tunnel which heads under the village houses and was once used by the smugglers to hide their contraband as they brought it into Britain. We had a pint in the pub which overlooks the causeway before heading back up the hill. On the way back up the hill Linda popped into a little shop where local childrens author, James David was doing book signings, he was a lovely frielndy chap and very interested in our travels!

We then headed over to Ravenscar to do a 7 mile walk which took us through Ravenscar, the 1880’s holiday resort that never was, there are roads, drains and even a deserted railway station there, the infrastructure for the resort was all built before the developers went bust, and the resort was never finished. Some of the plots were sold, and there is the occasional house dotted around the area, the houses look a bit lonely as they look like they were meant to be terraces, but ended up as detached. We also walked past the WW2 radar station which sits on top of the cliffs, built in 1941 to listen out for German planes, you can still go in the lookout tower and see the old nissen hut in the field. On the return leg of the walk we followed the disused Ravenscar railway line which took us to the abandoned railway station which opened in 1885 and was last used in 1965. We continued our walk down the hill to the site of the old Alum works. Alum was the chemical used to fix dye in materials, and the site at Ravenscar (or Peak, as it was called then) produced Alum between 1640 to 1862 before cheaper synthetic based materials were found that could do the job for less. We were both exhausted after the walk back up to the top, so headed home for tea!

We had seen the previous day a notice board on the side of the road for a motocross event happening today, so we drove over and stopped in a layby near the event. We walked into the woods next to the event and sneaked around until we were right next to the track with an excellent view. It was Round 3 of the British Masters Series, and the action was great! Lots of noise, huge jumps and loads of riders meant we were entertained for quite a while, oohing and aahing as the riders flew overhead! Definitely good value for money as we got to see it for nothing (apparently spectator entry was £10 each!) and we were probably closer to the action than the paying spectators! After a while we had a walk through the woods and back to Tonks, where we headed home.

When we got back Phil had to go out on his bike after all that excitement, so he did a short ride from the site up to Fairy Cross Plain, a 309 ft hill which is one of the main hills we can see from the site. While he was there Linda got out the binoculars and gave him a wave from her comfy seat with a glass of wine! Once back and showered we both sat out the front of the van in the sun with a drink in hand and a barbeque on the go. Perfect.

The next day Phil got up at an ungodly hour to go and ride the red route at Dalby! When I got there it was too early for me to get a ticket so I had to park on the road outside the forest and ride in. The red route is quite entertaining, mainly singletrack, they have kept it quite fast and flowing. On the way round it links up with the black route, and I couldn’t resist doing a loop of that too while I was there so early! This meant that by the time I got back I had done 32 miles and was exhausted! Not too exhausted to appreciate the silence of the woods at that time in the morning, spotting 4 deer as well as the sun coming up through the lovely green spring leaves on the deciduous trees, it was great, and so was the track!