We had a delightful sleep in our lovely little home away from home in York, and headed downstairs to a lovely meal in the breakfast room. We then hit the road for a day of exploring in Yorkshire!
We drove west to Harrogate, really for the sole purpose of stopping in at the original Bettys Tea Rooms. We found a parking spot just down the street and walked to the corner shop, enjoying the delicious-looking window displays as we neared the door. I simply wanted to buy tea from Bettys (which is part of the same company as my favorite tea brand, Taylors of Harrogate). I got myself a bag of loose leaf to bring home (still have plenty left a year later) and we walked back to the car to get out in to the country a bit.
I planned this road day to be able to drive through the Yorkshire Dales and take in the beauty of those valleys. We started with a quick stop in the market town of Skipton, to see the town (and to get Mom some coffee!) before heading north into the Yorkshire Dales National Park. Our drive took us through Wharfedale, driving up a narrow road and passing by some beautiful villages. One of the villages we passed, Kettlewell, was where the film Calendar Girls was filmed!
We passed over Kidstones Bank and Tomgill Bank into Wensleydale (alas, I did not actually eat any Wensleydale cheese while we were here – it completely slipped my mind!) in search of the village of Askrigg. For anyone familiar with the old BBC show (thus, PBS show) All Creatures Great and Small, about the vets in a Yorkshire village, you will be familiar with the sights of Askrigg and it was precisely because of the show that I wanted to visit.
Our journey in and out of Askrigg included a small lane big enough for one car to drive down – always great fun. But we soon found ourselves in the center of fictional Darrowby, home of James Herriot and the Farnon Brothers of Skeldale House. We stopped briefly in at the Drover’s Arms (The King’s Head) and genrally enjoyed being in this quaint village. We then headed back out the tiny lane to the highway and down the road to Aysgarth Falls and our first NP Visitor Centre. Instead of heading into the Visitor Centre first, we walked down the trail to the see the middle cascade of the falls from the north bank of the River Ure. What a lovely sight! Got quite a few pictures from slightly different angles along the bank and enjoyed the extended walk after being in the car so much.
Our journey then took us to Thirsk, where we visited the World of James Herriot. Here, in the actual home and veterinary practice of Alf Wight (aka James Herriot), there are rooms set up as they would have been during his life along with sets from the television show, culminating in a lovely statue in the back garden. It was a great little museum!
We drove from Thirsk to Ripon, wanting to get a glimpse of the market town and also planning to do some laundry! (Yes, we had been driving around all day with our dirty laundry in the trunk.) So, after parking near the laundrette, we first walked down to the market square to Appleton’s to buy dinner to go: steak pie, sausage roll, and a scotch egg. The food went in our bags and we headed back to the laundrette to get our washing done. We ate while we waited and then struck up a conversation with the sweet couple who ran the place. She suggested that we visit Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal park. We knew that getting to visit the abbey wasn’t happening as it had already closed to tourists for the day and we would be leaving the next morning. But, when our laundry was done, we still drove there to visit the surrounding Studley Royal park.
As we drove up the road into the park, a small part of me wondered if we were allowed. However, there was hardly a person to be seen, so Mom kept going up the path. We did end up turning down a path I am not sure we were supposed to be on, but it meant that we were suddenly surrounded by deer on either side of the path! Such a memorable moment – I am so glad we listened to the kind woman at the laundrette!
We drove back through Ripon for a quick pass at the cathedral (I will definitely go back to visit both the cathedral and Fountains Abbey!) and then we headed further east into the North York Moors National Park. Had we planned one more day in Yorkshire, this NP would have been our other day trip, taking us out to the coast to Scarborough. However, we only really got as far as the Sutton Bank Visitor Centre. It was closed by the time we arrived, so we took a quick gander from a high trail head by the parking lot and then hit the road back to York to turn in early.
It was a beautiful day filled with beautiful sights and we took a good amount of photos. Please click through… you even get to see the deer!
La Voce Vivace 