Yorkshire Dales National Park Things to Do

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This is a beautiful garden to visit and a great day out.

Originally we were going to visit Thorp Perrow Arboretum, just a few miles away from the site we were staying on but as we had a two for the price of one voucher for Newby Hall, it made better economic sense to go there.

The drive is impressive enough but the hall and gardens are something else. We didn't visit the Hall, as it was guided tours only and we were happy enough spending the whole day wandering the grounds.

The 25 acres of award winning gardens were created in the early 1920's and continue to evolve. The double herbaceous border of 140 metres is one of the longest in Europe and make an impressive visual impact as they lead up to the hall from the river Ure. In front of the house is a pond with a rather elegant statue, another fine photo opportunity.

There are various gardens within the garden including the Autumn, the Rose, Sylvia's, Water, Tropical, White and our favourite, the Rock garden. This is a fascinating and mysterious place, with wierdly shaped, huge rocks jutting out of the landscape, plants clinging to them and growing from every nook and cranny. The best feature here is the old stone bridge, which is in fact an aqueduct, from which tumbles a lovely waterfall,recently restored.

We were fortunate to coincide with the daffodils in full bloom which really were a delightful sight.

A lovely avenue of lime trees complete with green sward leads down to a clearing by the River Ure and this is where you find the little railway that runs through the garden. There is a station further along the riverside and it certainly seemed a popular activity. It was nice to wave to the passengers as the train passed by!

We broke off for lunch and returned to walk the woodland walk where we were deeply impressed by the variety and size of the trees.

We thoroughly enjoyed our time at the gardens and were really pleased we had made this choice. There are the usual visitors amenities like cafe, toilets, playground, pedaloes, picnic area and a large car park. There are also boat trips across the river but didn't appear to be running on our visit.

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Jervaulx Abbey comes as a pleasant surprise, not over-hyped or full of forbidding notices. It is actually on private land and admission is by honesty box.It is reputedly the second largest privately owned cistercian church in the UK.

Parking is across the road outside the tearooms.

The ruins sit in beautifully kept park-like grounds, cultivated and wild flowers mingling amongst the ruins, creating colourful splashes amongst the grey stone.Over 180 species of flowers have been noted amongst the ruins.

It was built as a cistercian monastery in 1156 and like so many others,was later severely ravaged and pillaged during the dissolution of monasteries.

It is a wonderfully peaceful place to while away time, drinking in the atmosphere.

There is also a certificated caravan site here.

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Our Easter break 2011 was spent in Wensleydale, on a small site in the village of Thornton Steward, between Leyburn and Bedale.

We were booked on to a 5 van only site which was well off the beaten track and completely away from any roads. The site offered perfect peace and quiet with stunning views to the Jervaulx valley.

We had looked at visiting Thorp Perrow Arboretum, a few miles away but in the end, we gave this a miss and opted to visit Newby Hall Gardens, east of Ripon, as we had a "two for the price of one ticket!"This proved to be an excellent day out and with such wonderful gardens and grounds we spent the whole day wandering around, often completely on our own.

The following day we spent touring the minor roads on the motorbike, thoroughly enjoying the "motorbike" experience on the empty roads. After the long, cold winter indoors, it felt good to have the spring air rushing passed us once again.

The village is a gem of a place,it's population of around 200 residing in quaint old properties tastefully renovated. There is a Thornton Steward trail, which tells the story of some of the village's buildings.

The largest property is Manor Farm, where the caravan site we stayed on is situated. This also is sited on a footpath to nearby Danby Hall and the very old church of St. Oswalds.The village itself is a cul-de-sac and is by-passed by a minor road, making the village a tranquil haven.
Please look at my Thornton Steward page.

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Another waterfall we couldn't miss, just off the Pennine Way, in ideal conditions.This fall is walked to from the village of Hardraw, north of Hawes. You have to enter through the Green Dragon Pub and pay an entry fee as the grounds belong to them. It is a short walk along a paved path, passing an arena type area where the annual brass band concert is held in September. It all looked a bit bleak on this occasion!
Fossdale Beck pours over a narrow limestone lip and cascades down into a plunge pool, forming England's highest singl-drop waterfall. It then tumbles down to join the Ure at Hawes.The fall was in full spate and spray was rising everywhere so as to make photography tricky. In dryer weather, we have actually walked behind the fall. Unimaginable on a day like today. We have also walked on the top of it, when we were camped at Simonstone. That was quite hairy and strictly speaking we shouldn't have been there.
There were signs for camping here, I think belonging to the pub.

The last photo shows the fall in dry weather.

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Set in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales, on the banks of the River Wharfe, the historic estate of BOLTON ABBEY is the Yorkshire home of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire. Visitors are drawn to its breathtaking landscape - just under 30,000 acres of countryside. You can explore the ruins of the Priory, wander along the woodland, walk along 80 miles of footpaths and heather moorland.

Open every day from 9:00 a.m.

Only 5.50 pounds per day for a group of up to 7 people in one vehicle
Your ticket can be used for all three Estate Car Parks on the date of purchase

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Monday September 8, 2008
Situated on a hill overlooking Summerbridge and Lower Nidderdale, BRIMHAM ROCKS are a series of shaped millstone grit outcrops, sculpted by erosion during the last Ice Age.
The curious rock formations are scattered over some 50 acres on Brimham Moor and provide a great variety of weird and wonderful shapes. Many of the rock formations suggest all manner of things, including elephants, hippos, bears (Dancing Bear), Mushrooms and some are said to have an association with the Druids. Most of the rocks owe their bizarre shapes to erosion during and after the Devensian Glaciation Period.
Brimham Rocks, which is in the care of National Trust, is near Summerbridge and located 4 miles east of Pately Bridge, 10 miles north west of Harrogate and 10 miles south east of Ripon.
Open all year round from 8:00 a.m. until dusk
There are no entrance fees, but it cost 3.50 pounds to park (park & display)

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I first heard of Wensleydale cheese through "Wallace and Gromit", a famous claymation cartoon duo. Wallace is a huge fan of "real Wensleydale cheese". So when we were in the Yorkshire Dales, we wanted to find out what was so special about this cheese. The cheese is made at a creamery in Hawes, in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales.

At the Wensleydale creamery you can visit a small museum, watch the making of cheese, taste and buy the different sorts of Wensleydale cheese at their shop, or have something the eat in the restaurant.

The museum portrays the history of the Wensleydale cheese. You can also watch a video which goes in-depth into the processes involved in the production of the cheese.

At the viewing gallery you can watch milk being converted into cheese. Everything is done by hand and is fascinating to see how the cheeses are made, moulded and then wrapped in muslin. Please note though that they only make the cheese between 10.00 am and 3.00 pm

Admission charge to museum and viewing gallery is £2

There is ample free parking.

We bought Wallace's cheese, but also some blue cheese and cheese with caramelized onions, which was my favourite.

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Bolton Abbey is a quaint village adjacent to Bolton Priory. Once Bolton Priory was a powerful 12th century Augustinian monastery, now only ruins remain. It is set on the banks of the river Wharfe. From the priory you can make lovely riverside walks through the woods to the Strid, a notorious stretch of water where the River Wharfe is forced into a deep thundering channel.

Access to the ruins is free.