With Yorkshire being such a prominent part of my interest and desire for this trip, and with taking the time to see family still living in this part of the world, we dedicated 5 nights to this wonderful county of Yorkshire. I had heard of so many of the places here throughout my life, that my list of destinations to be fulfilled was always unrealistic.
Yet there was also a heaviness in my heart as we drove south, as the news had come through that my cousin’s husband had suddenly and sadly had an untimely death, succumbing to a serious infection of pneumonia. We had missed him by only 4 weeks. Seeing Dorothy and Robert again was to be a highlight for me, having not seen them since their trip to Australia in 1984, a mere 30 years ago. So to knock on their door and only be greeted by Dorothy was not the way it was meant to be. However, she was strong, she was positive, she was beautiful! We talked and talked, had a cup of tea and a biscuit, and talked some more. It was good.
The following day we took ourselves off to see York, the quirky and delightful capital of Yorkshire. This town centuries old, is still surrounded by city walls, and the maze of streets and tiny lanes, many of which are only for pedestrians, were attractive and enchanting to wander and absorb.
We did the ‘must do’ of visiting York Minster, and were able to climb the tower to get a great scene over the Cathedral Close and the rest of the city, even though the fog inhibited a clear view of too much further. With a variety of both the oddities of ‘The Shambles’ and the history of Clifford’s Castle, there was so much to keep us occupied for the whole day.
The next morning we woke up to fairly thick fog, but we continued with our plans of driving through the Yorkshire Moors to the east coast, passing through Scarborough and then on to Whitby via the amazing coastal village of Robin Hoods Bay, with some very steep gradient and extremely narrow lanes with rows of uneven tiny homes and shops. Seeing ‘Smugglers Inn’ certainly brought to life the inevitable history and stories of the place. Both Scarborough and Whitby are great fishing villages and we shared a fish and chip lunch by the Whitby Harbour, as recommended to us.
From there we travelled through the moors to arrive at Goathland, a tiny village sitting in the middle of the barrenness, yet this town is far from barren. It is the setting for the long running TV series Heartbeat, and we had a coffee in the local pub used in the series as The Aidensfield Arms, with the garage and funeral director’s opposite.
Our day concluded with a visit to the school that Captain James Cook attended as a child, and then on to Great Ayton where he was born. There is both sadness and acceptance by the locals in this place that the actual home where he was born has been transported to Melbourne and rebuilt in the Treasury Gardens, where we have seen it in pride of place on a number of occasions. We returned to pick up Dorothy and take her out for dinner, again talking and reminiscing about so much.
The next day being Saturday meant that we could spend it with other family members on their weekend, and Jon and Alison [Dorothy’s son and daughter-in-law] were kind enough to spend their day with us sharing the beautiful spa town of Harrogate where my mum and her sister were born. We had morning tea at Betty’s, an institution in Harrogate begun in 1919, a beautiful and traditional tea house, where silver and service are primary. Jon & Alison took us to the Harlow Car branch of this cafe as the original one in town always has a queue with at least a one hour wait to enter. Sure enough, when we were walking through the town centre later in the day there was a queue going round the corner of this central store.
We visited the old Pump Room, where the local waters were ‘taken’ in a bygone age, now a museum, and learnt of the rich and varied history of this famous town. A visit to the original Farrer’s Toffee shop was another must, along with a walk through the beautiful Valley Gardens. Driving the short distance to Knaresborough, the afternoon sun managed to dispel the mist, and a walk by the River Nidd and under the viaduct, brought some lovely views.
We concluded by passing the place where my great grandparents had a fish and chip shop, and then on to see my mother’s family home prior to my grandparents, mother and aunt leaving England for Australia in 1948. A lovely home-cooked dinner with more of the family finished off a very beautiful day.
![L to R - Sue, Lynda, Dorothy, Richard [Dorothy's son, married to Sue]](https://i0.wp.com/chrislyndajohnson.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/p1240040.jpeg?ssl=1 "P1240040")
![L to R - James [Dorothy's grandson], Lora [James girlfriend], Lynda, Dorothy, Alison married to Jonathan [Dorothy's son]](https://i0.wp.com/chrislyndajohnson.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/p1240038.jpeg?ssl=1 "P1240038")
Sunday was a much clearer day which was magnificent for a drive through the Yorkshire Dales, travelling west from our accommodation. Our first stop at the stunning Fountains Abbey near Ripon, gave us breathtaking views, and some inspiring ruins at this famous one-time Cistercian monastery prior to Henry VIII closing down most of the abbeys, priories and monasteries at the time of the reformation. This huge ruin is awesome, and such a privilege to walk around, touch and experience.
It is set alongside some magnificent 17th & 18th century gardens which have been beautifully maintained and restored all these years. There is no way I could describe it adequately so I share some words we saw on a noticeboard at the gardens with a description from a woman who visited the place in 1839, and who coincidentally stayed at the same village of Thirsk as we stayed for our five nights.
“Martha Holland visited from the United States in 1839 and wrote this letter to her brother in the USA …
Thirsk, Sept 15th 1839
‘… Sarah says it is useless to attempt to give them any idea of the beauties of the grounds and the old abbey, however I will attempt it … – the river winding through the grounds forms several beautiful falls. There is a beautiful lake with swans and Chinese geese, a variety of duck, pleasure boats, a canal and cascades in various parts of the grounds … Altogether it is one of the most interesting places a person could visit …” ‘
For our part, you could say that we just had a wonderful time!!
We then carried on a little more west through absolutely stunning villages filled with old stone buildings, through rolling dales with lush green hills, rock filled stream after rock filled stream and countless stone walls protecting and dividing the farms, dotted with sheep and cattle. The sun came out and enhanced our views, however no camera could do it justice, at least not one that we could afford! We drove through Pateley Bridge, Grassington and Kettlewell on our way back to Ripon to conclude our day worshipping with God’s people at Holy Trinity Ripon at their 6pm Cafe Church. A superb end to a superb day.
Is another visit to Yorkshire warranted? Without a doubt, it’s a resounding YES!!
Chris and Lynda Johnson 