Lady Anne Way …..Day 2: Burnsal to Kettlewell
Categories UK 2017.....Walking The Lady Anne Way and Touring Cities & Sights, United Kingdom 2024, 2017September 5, 2017
Very classy breakfast served by a t….all blonde in a short dress……the B&B breakfasts are hearty, beginning with muesli and other cereals, yogurt, fresh fruit, buckets of tea or coffee and followed by eggs, bacon, toast, the full Yorkshire breakfast includes canned baked beans, grilled tomatoes and mushrooms, 3 eggs any way you want them….sure beats the Days Inn continental breakfast !
Today we will be walking roughly the same distance as yesterday …..the weather is in a word UGLY and the locals are not optimistic…hmmm. Well time to go, true enough it is pouring rain and we opt for the low route following the Wharfe River, as route finding on the high route could be tenuous in the rain and mist.
Before leaving, we observe the shooters staying at the hotel preparing for the hunt …the pic below is from the internet but if anything these guys looked even more the image of “British Hunter”, complete with multi colored ties!
Apparently this is a big business as estates organize shoots on their lands employing locals as beaters to flush the game to the shooters. Per a local I spoke to, this can cost each shooter 5,000 STG not including accommodations etc. After they set off in their requisite Land Rovers, we left at a more measured pace. It was actually not so terrible with some shelter provided by the trees along the bank of the river, and even in this weather there some nice sights…
…after crossing a suspension bridge over the Wharfe River…
…and 2 miles after passing the village of Hebden, we headed up from the river to Grassington which we reached at Milepost 13.
It is the largest settlement in Wharfedale, although rather a small place, with quaint corners and alleys. It was formerly a centre of lead mining, and has reasonable tourist facilities. Feeling decidedly wet, we stopped at the Vintage Tea House on High Street, enjoying the warmth and scones with cream & strawberry compote, more a meal than a snack but providing much needed fuel for the next segment, btw the cream in that scone must have had a fat content of 100% >>>> YUMMY!
…the tea room owner however was not optimistic about the weather and suggested that a bus would soon arrive, which could take us to our destination……yes/no >>> no, after all we are Canucks from the Wet Coast……we were assured it would be a mere 3 hours more to get to Kettlewell, so being the trusting sort, onwards we trekked. This town is truly cute, without being cloyingly touristic:
Weatherproofs on and we climb above the village, the track is wet but soon the rain turns to drizzle then to mist and finally patchy cloud…..YES !!!
…for the next bit we climb out of Wharfedale and from above the valley there are great views of the limestone, ‘Karst’ scenery. We are now into a good rhythm, meandering through lovely, soft green pastures and waltzing through the never ending stiles….we pass some elderberries and in turn some young guns, dash past us…the sun peers out from time to time but also some mist sprays us to remind us of our good fortune!
It is fun now as we enjoy huge vistas to the valleys and dales around us:
Apart from rock walls and sheep, there are seemingly thousands of rabbits (very shy), pheasants and grouse as well more basic critters such as slugs…
…. 3 miles more miles to Kettlewell as the last of Ella’s energy gummi blocks are consumed, chased down with lime Gatorade …leading us to a gradual descent to the pretty village of Kettlewell, another ancient market town with pre-Roman origins. Annie the consummate map-reader checks to make sure we are on course…
Did I mention the walls …..it is impressive to see the effort given to building the dry stack walls >>> there are literally thousands of miles of these wall and the time involved in constructing these is mind blowing …..if you are interested in learning how it is done there are vacation packages which include several days of hands on instruction/construction:
At Milepost 21 we reach Kettlewell, a small village which is situated at the foot of Great Whernside, one of the ‘Three Peaks’ just north of in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. This is also ‘Calender Girls’ country – the hit movie having been filmed here and at other locations in the Yorkshire Dales during the summer of 2002…..saw it prior to coming here and thought it was a rather modest affair. In any event, our day is done as Zarina’s Tearoom Bed & Breakfast comes into view >>> pleasant hosts and excellent internet:
Had to have an early dinner at the King’s Head Inn, as it was fully booked….on the way a few pics of this pleasant village:
…as for dinner, the Kings Head has great ambience and foodwise we lucked out again > a nice red and the memories of the day made it all taste the better…
We are not as tired today…but Annie has some blisters, so Doctor Doctor aka me, is in attendance…we will see how it all looks tomorrow morning, as a hefty day is on the menu. As for the weather the local forecast is clear:
