Trip 10: Pateley Bridge Showground. Nidderdale , North Yorkshire
The journey to Pateley Bridge took just over 3 hours but some of that was a long hold up in Knaresborough with roadworks. After leaving Knaresborough we had 10 miles of narrow roads before reaching Pateley.
We had to go down the high street which is narrow and then over the river Nidd to the show ground. The steward said there was plenty of room and there was so we picked a spot and got set up.
Once we had set up camp, eaten our sandwiches, we sat in the sun reading until I started to fall asleep. It was time to get up and go out and about.
We headed for the park across the road from the show ground , passing a sculpture at the entrance. There is also a very pretty cottage that is the Nidderdale Agricultural Society offices.
The whole town is meticulously maintained with flower displays everywhere. The children’s park has a sculpture of a badger, there is a bowling green and an ornate bandstand.
We followed a path alongside the river Nidd until we came to a bridge to cross the river and then followed the route of the old railway line back to the town.
We walked up the high street, which is on a fairly steep hill. Every building had something of interest from the old ornate banks that are now shops. The Pateley bridge club building that used to be a coaching inn, you can see where the flagstones have been worn by horse drawn coaches in days gone by.
There are a couple of butchers, a bakers, coffee shops, takeaways, a shop selling drinking chocolate, you choose which chocolate to use and they make your drink. The oldest Sweet Shop in the country is also on the high street. We will visit it later and get some sweets for the grandchildren.
We walked to the top of the town and then along various streets admiring the old terraced houses. We eventually ended up at the museum but it was close to closing so we will come back another day.
We made our way back down to the high street, the sun was out and it was an ideal opportunity to call in at the Crown Inn to sample an ale, sit out in the sun. We joined a fellow drinker outside and he told us of all the places where we could walk and what to see, so it ended up as an educational visit with beer – marvellous.
Day 2:
We set off to walk along the river Nidd this morning after calling in at the butchers for a couple of huge sausage rolls.
The path follows the river but also the path of the old LNER railway. Our first stop was at the sight of the engine turn table, here there are three sculptures to represent the history of the town, Lead miner, a Monk from the monastery and a Sheep Farmer.
We followed the river and came across an ornate metal bridge which we later found out belonged to a house on the hill. The house was Bewerley Hall which overlooked a weir that also diverted part of the river to a millrace. We followed the mill race past a reservoir to where the race disappeared under a road to a mill.
The next stop was at Glasshouses, an old mill which has been converted to flats & houses. Here the river ran alongside the mill and we could see where the water left the mill race and rejoined the river.
Further along we saw typical stiles built into the walls, some had steps while others were small gaps , big enough for humans but small enough to keep cattle and sheep from escaping.
The path continued by the river and passed under the ramparts of a railway bridge.
We continued until we came to a footbridge over the river. My idea was to cross the river and head up into the hills but Sue was put off by the thought of crossing a field of cows. In the end we decided to follow the river back to Pateley Bridge.
Once back in the town we headed for the park where we sat by the bandstand and ate lunch. We left the park and headed back to the van but there was a cricket match in progress so we sat and watched for nearly an hour. Pateley Bridge we’re playing a touring side from Australia.
We would have stayed much longer but the sun was behind the clouds and the wind chill eventually drove us back to the warmth of the motorhome. However I did go back for Australia to field and then Sue joined me with drinks. We stayed until the last Pateley Bridge wicket, and Australia won by 18 runs.
Katsu curry for tea in the quest room which is much warmer now the sun is out from behind the clouds.
Day 3:
We left Iona and headed straight for the bakers on the high street, the idea was to get a couple of Danish pastries to take with us on our walk. We got carried away and ended up with Flapjack and Chocolate brownies.
We had to detour back to the van because it was much warmer than we thought and we had overdressed.
The first part of our walk was up a steep hill to the first footpath across a small field to a lane and the main footpath. This took us across a field of sheep on our second hill. The next part was in a forest climbing up towards the moors.
We left the forest behind and climbed up onto the moor, we had several options but we wanted to find Yorke’s Folly so we kept to the Edge of Cliff path and followed it through the bracken until the folly appeared.
The Stoops were built by unemployed men from the area and John Yorke (1733 -1813) paid them 4d a day and a loaf of bread. In November 1893 a storm hit Pateley Bridge, and the third (and most substantial) stoop was ‘blown down’. The folly is now two individual towers. From the folly we could see the show ground and our motorhome in the far distance.
We had a rest and continued along the Edge of Cliff path which in places was so close to the vertical drop that you had to watch where you put your feet.
We met another major path by a telecoms tower, then we headed down the hill towards a small lake, know as Guisecliff Tarn. We stopped here, sat on the rocks and ate our lunch.
The rest of our walk was downhill all the way to the Glasshouses mill. We were here yesterday so we followed the footpath beside the river Nidd back to Pateley Bridge. By the time we arrived back at Iona we had walked 7.5 miles.
Day 4:
Today we walked into town to visit the Oldest Sweet Shop in England. We bought some sweets for Louie & Jack and some Cinder Toffee for Sue.
We then went to the butchers to get a couple of pasties and then to the bakers for more flapjack and cheese scones. Then back to the van for the rest of the day.
The lady in the bakery said her favourite walk was to the lead mines but apparently, after checking the map, we did not go near the lead mines so another trip is called for. Sue was quite content to stay by the van and sit in the sun. We will be back.
Iona’s Travels 