On our South Yorkshire
Dales tour we stay in at
a lovely old country estate called Malhamdale. We are here for
seven nights and each day travel by minibus to explore both the
countryside and the historic towns - the elegant spa town of Harrogate and
the incomparable City of York with its cathedral and fabulous
"Minster". Across the lonely dales and remote moors are scattered once grand abbeys
like the haunting Fountains Abbey.
Itinerary: The
following are just some of the highlights. Our back-roads
touring will include lovely scenery, visits to interesting
villages and many historic sites.
Saturday: Arrive at Malhamdale in time for
afternoon tea. (travel to Malhamdale not included)
Sunday: We start our explorations with a visit to see some
of the gems of the Wharfedale area with its typical Yorkshire
scenery with white scars of rock marking the hillsides. During
the 6th and 7th centuries Anglian pioneers established today's
village settlements - Bolton Abbey, Appletreewick, Hebden,
Burnsall, Thorpe, Linton, Threshfield, Grassington and
Kettlewell. Tenth-century Norse settlers created the
farm-hamlets of the upper valley beyond Buckden. In medieval
times Fountains Abbey and Bolton Priory owned great estates in
Wharfedale and their monks evolved the pattern of roads and
green lanes on the surrounding limestone uplands. From Embsay
station, built in 1888, we take a steam train to Bolton Abbey
station through picturesque Yorkshire Dales scenery. This is the
start for an optional one and a half mile walk to the ruins of
the 12th century priory. Bolton Abbey area has many
interesting sights such as the Money Tree, the Hey Diddle Diddle
Tower (remember the nursery rhyme).
After lunch we continue through small dales villages and stop at
Grassington, one of the most
delightful of the towns and villages in the Yorkshire Dales.
Grassington was granted a charter
for a market and fair in 1282, which continued to be held
regularly until about 1860. There is a cottage museum of life
from by-gone days, showing exhibits from its farming and lead
mining past.
We return to Malhamdale in time for afternoon tea.
Monday: Our first stop is Aysgarth where we stroll to
see the spectacular staircase waterfalls. Then its on to
Jervaulx, a most haunting Cistercian abbey ruin and romantically
overgrown. This was one of the great Cistercian abbeys of
Yorkshire, founded in 1156. It was dissolved in 1537 and today
it is an enlightening reminder of the simplicity of life and the
harsh conditions endured by the strict order of Cistercians.
After lunch we continue to Middleham and its impressive castle
that dates back to William the Conqueror's nephew. The castle
was home to some of the most powerful lords of the 15th century,
including Richard, Duke of Gloucester, later King Richard III.
Richard was trained in chivalry here and he was particularly
fond of Middleham, preferring it to any of his other castles.
The round tower at the south-west corner of the curtain wall,
traditionally known as the Prince's Tower, is said to be where
Richard's son Prince Edward was born.
Tuesday: This
morning we start by exploring the spectacular scenery right on
our doorstep with a visit to Malham village - a pretty place,
surrounded by limestone dry-stone walls. Mentioned in the
Domesday book as 'Malgun', Malham has been a settlement for at
least a thousand years and traces of Iron age boundaries are
still visible today. We walk to view the awe-inspiring gorge of
Gordale Scar and the pretty waterfall of Janet's Foss. We then
continue to the pretty village of Arncliffe and the market town
of Settle. The town is at its liveliest
and most colourful on Tuesdays, when the weekly market takes
place attracting traders from far and wide. Settle's centre is
dominated by the Shambles, a historic 3-storey building with
shops on two levels and houses above, and the Town Hall, built
on the site of what was once the old toll-booth.
Wednesday: This is a rest day - or there is an
optional excursion to York which takes a little over an hour
each way by train. A
visit to the City of York is a tour through history - the town
changed its name many times - from the Celtic name "Brigantes"
to the Roman "Eboracum", to Anglo-Saxon "Eorforwic",
to the Viking name "Jorvik". The castle-building
Normans came in 1069 but in the 1400's the Wars of the Roses
started the city's decline. Prosperity returned due to the wool
trade and with the Industrial Revolution came the railway. Here
we are free to explore the many historic sites.
There are ghost walks, a Viking Museum and the York
Dungeons where you are taken back in time to see the
plague-ravaged streets of 14th century York, watch Guy Fawkes
gunpowder plot unfold and see 'Witch Trials' of the 16th and
17th century. See York's Medieval Guildhall, built
1357-61, where merchants conducted business and feasted in
the superb timbered Great Hall.
After cramming
two thousand years of history into one day one needs a stop at a
pub just to contemplate it all before returning to Malhamdale for
dinner.
Thursday: Today we head west over the remote moorland of
the Forest of Bowland to Slaidburn and the Tatham Fells with
spectacular views across to the sea and the Lake District,
before dropping down into the historic town of Kirkby Lonsdale.
Mentioned in the Doomsday Book of 1086, Kirkby Lonsdale is a
market town of 17th and 18th century buildings. It has a 13th
century charter for fairs and a school dating back to Queen
Elizabeth I. Dignified ivy clad Georgian buildings and quaint
cottages are all around the narrow alleys and cobbled courtyards
have interesting names such as Salt Pie Lane and Jingling Lane.
On our return we go via the "roof of England" to view
the Ribblehead railway viaduct built in the 1800's for the
famous Settle to Carlisle Railway. We return via Horton
under the shadow of the "Three Peaks".
Friday: This morning we start with the World Heritage Site of
Fountains Abbey with its most complete medieval Cistercian monastery
in Britain along with Studley Royal Estate with its formal and
idyllic water gardens. The abbey, Britain's
largest monastic ruin, was founded in 1132 by Benedictine monks.
Following the Dissolution of the Monasteries Henry VIII, the
Abbey buildings were sold and the new owners used stone from the
abbey ruins to build Fountains Hall. Today it is a spectacular
site hidden away in a remote and very beautiful setting.
After lunch we visit Ripon. Here we see the Cathedral, a place
of worship since the 7th century when Saint Wilfrid built one of
England’s first stone churches on this site. We also can visit
the Yorkshire Law and Order Museums - a trail of historic
"law and order" sites such as the Debtors' Prison and
the Workhouse.
Saturday: Tour ends after breakfast.
Cost per person: (based on double occupancy) 729 GBP
(Great Britain pounds)
Sole Occupancy Supplement: 257 GBP
A few small single rooms are sometimes available with a
supplement of 49 GBP.
Extra charges for admissions to museums approximately 50 GBP |
