Roadtrip to York - April 2025
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| Roadtrip to York - April 2025 | |
| We set off southward and drove from Edinburgh to York. It took us 4 hours and 42 minutes to do 332 km. Average speed was 70.5 km/h. | |
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While Hild was driving, Rob was checking maps for the most interesting route
and also where to stop for lunch. The choice fell on taking route A68 through
the hills and Northumberland National Park - rather than the faster but longer A1 along the coast.
Somewhat early lunch was enjoyed at the Scotland-England border. While it was a quiet day on the border today, that was not always the case. We learnt about lawless families also known as Border Reivers or "moss troopers" who raided back and to across the border. Mind you, that started back in 1286 when Alexander III died and continued with 3 centuries of conflict. It took until the Union of 1603 and 1707 before there was an end to military conflict between the two countries. Hild is dizzy with all the dates and kings; she fears that one day there will be a test! | |
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We did not linger anywhere until we got to Bishopthorpe, but we did catch a glimpse of the
"Angel of the North". It is a sculpture by Antony Gormley completed in 1998. It is so close
to the A1 that we didn't bother to stop for a photo. It is 20 meters tall and has a wingspan
of 54 metres. So it isn't like you'll miss it. Having said that, the trees are trying
their best to hide it. I wonder why?
As also pointed out by JR: "As seen on Vera" the sculpture is familiar to those who watch that detective TV series. | |
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| Going for one of several walks around Bishopthorpe we came across St. Andrew’s Old Church. It was built in 1842 and was damaged from a major flood from River Ouse in 1892. A new church was built elsewhere and now only the west front is retained in the old one. | |
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| At the Riverfront York camp site we saw this cute Chestnut Cabin for rent as well as a weather-proof pod to enjoy a dinner – come rain or shine. | |
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| Downtown York was just a local bus trip away from where we were staying. We had a good look around and enjoyed the many old buildings and watching the river boats on the Ouse. Somehow, the name isn't very appealing, but the river is. | |
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| This remaining bit of Roman wall is from circa 300 A.D. and was built by Roman Emperor Constantius Chlorus. The wall is in pretty good shape in light of being so old. | |
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| We got to marvel at the architecture of the Cathedral: York Minster on several occasions during our walk around town. It is just too big for one photo. | |
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| The medieval city walls originally included 4 main gates or "bars": Bootham Bar, Monk Bar, Walmgate Bar and Micklegate Bar in addition to 6 postern or secondary gates and 44 intermediate towers. That's a lot for one day. So we climbed the walls at Bootham Bar. | |
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| From the wall we could see many old buildings including York Minster (the Cathedral) and Grays Court Hotel. Great venue for a wedding and a cup of tea - although we kept walking. | |
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| There was also a new workshop at for hightech stonemasons at the new Heritage Quad got its roof on in July in 2024 and it looks like they are already in there working. The high tech part includes a continuous diamond wire to cut smoothly through blocks of stone. | |
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| These scary-looking gargoyles are a bit of a worry though! One has a frog coming out of its mouth... The information tells us that, in medieval art a frog jumping from its mouth symbolizes a demon. | |
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| Enjoying a day walking around York with Vanessa and Gary. It was time for another rest, and we stopped by a very old and also very cozy Royal pub. | |
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| The pub offered pints of beer and lessons about York history. York is a town of confectionary companies: Rountree’s (Fruit Pastilles) and Terry’s (Chocolate Orange). Terry’s first started with chocolate apples but thankfully moved on to the orange version - our favourite. | |
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| In one shop window we spotted these nice models of characters from Wind in the Willows: Mole, Ratty, and Mr. Toad. Cute! | |
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During our walk around York we spotted several amusing signs:
"Trembling madness apartments" which may refer to the symptoms of
alcohol withdrawal, while down the street the shop was
"Licensed to sell intoxicants with restrictions".
A more modern reference is "The shop that must not be named". Harry Potter is everywhere. | |
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| The dangling sheep outside the Golden Fleece pub made us laugh – and feel a bit sorry for the poor animal... | |
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Hidden in a back alley, Barley Hall is a restored dining hall
from the 15th century. The tables were set for a feast as they
would have been way back when. The most important diners sitting
on a raised platform, and those of lower status sitting elsewhere.
There was also a brick & tile hearth in the middle of the room and a hole in the ceiling to let out some smoke. Still, would have been a smoky dining experience! Also stuck to the ceiling is what to us looked like a loaf of bread. Some research tells us that it is a wooden boss carved with the shape of barley corn in honour of Maurice Barley of York Archaeological Trust after whom the hall is named. | |
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| We enjoyed a lovely breakfast at the cozy “But First” in Bishopthorpe. Toast and bacon butty (sandwich) with tea.... ah! | |
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We went for a daytrip to Whitby – driving across the North York Moors.
We stopped at Saltergate car park to take in the view of the Hole of
Horcum. The hollow is 120 metres deep and 1.2 km across. We thought it
may have been created by glacial movements, but it was created by river erosion.
Way down the bottom there is a steam trainline, but we couldn’t spot it.
Legend has it that Wade the Giant scooped up a handful of earth to throw at his wife during an argument - and that left the hole in the ground. | |
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| Time for another selfie with Gary. | |
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| We parked on the North Terrace in Whitby. Handy for public toilets and for a good view of the beach and outer harbour. | |
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| St Mary's Church sits at the top of the hill across the harbour. We could also see the line of people walking up the steep stairs to Whitby Abbey. | |
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| The view from St Mary's Church Graveyard shows Whitby and its harbour and one of the yellow sightseeing boats. | |
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Rob was elated (or not?) to find more steps. In calm and determined
fashion we climbed the 199 steps to the top. Cardio!
There were kids around us counting steps, but they did not seem reliable: Heard from one child: 1, 2, 5, 9, 12, 15, 28, .... hmmm. Back down again we chose the slope – or the Donkey Road as it is known as. | |
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This was as close as we got to the Abbey since we did not have
enough time to explore the grounds and make the entry fee worth while.
Bram Stoker travelled to Whitby in 1890 and stayed for six years. He was inspired by a Russian shipwreck and a legend of a dog running up the stairs to the Abbey. And in 1897 he published his famous Gothic horror novel Dracula. We did not see any sign of Dracula, a shipwreck or a dog! | |
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| Our reward was a pint at Whitby Brewery at the top of the hill next to the Abbey. | |
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| Not being a lover of beer, Hild was more excited to learn that there is a saint named Hild! Her namesake founded the monastery here in the 17th century. | |
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As always, we spot fun things during our walks. This time there
was a shop sign featuring a monk in a deck chair. We could not determine what
they were selling, but it was probably a pub.
At "Arguments Yard" we were all surprised that Gary and Rob were not deep in another friendly argument! | |
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| Gary recommended Trenchers for our fish and chips lunch. It was very yummy, and we would go back there again. | |
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We did spot a monument for Captain James Cook.
He is popular around the world as we have come across monuments
on several continents. We are especially grateful for his maps.
Walking through the town we should have spotted many of these sculptures celebrating Whitby’s fishing heritage. We saw the ones called "Crows Nest" and "Net Mender". The others we could have found were: Penny Hege, Bridgender, Fishwife, Gansey Knitter, Frank Meadow, Skipper Dora, and Herring Girls. Next time we will search for them all. | |
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| We stopped briefly at Sandsend. This is one of Vanessa’s favourite spots. Very nice but not warm enough for us to fancy a dip in the sea. | |
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| Our drive home also crossed the moors, sometimes with sheep in and near the road. | |
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| We were fascinated by the very green farmland in the valleys. Some research online tells us that farming is integrated in the protection of the moors. Twenty percent of farmland on the moors is arable. Many of the distinctive landscape features such as dry-stone walls, hedgerows, grasslands and woodlands are dependent on farming practices. That's what we like to hear! | |
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We drove through tiny and cute villages such as Liverton,
Hutton-le-Hole, Castleton, Slingsby, and Castle Howard.
No, we did not spot any famous Bridgerton-people near Castle Howard. To be honest, Rob and Hild would not recognize them even if they stopped to say hello... | |
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Thanks to Vanessa, we spotted two live hedgehogs, and oh so many photos and drawings of hedgehogs.
We are now inspired to try again to attract hedgehogs to the garden back home in Burnham-on-Sea. | |
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| Two humorous road names spotted on our satellite navigation maps. In Edinburgh, the road past Ikea and Costco had been named “Costkea Way”. When we left Arthur’s Seat, we were instructed to drive towards Duke’s Walk. Made us think of doggie-Duke in Weston. | |
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| One night we had a lovely dinner with Vanessa and Gary, who were wonderful hosts. Catching up was as if no time had passed since the last time we saw each other. | |
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After a few fun days in York, it was time to go home.
We stopped in Castleford to do some shopping and then to
outside Northampton to visit Ernie and Barbara.
A wonderful opportunity to catch up over a cup of tea
before the last leg back home to Burnham.
From Leeds to Burnham, we drove 510 km in 6 hours and 20 minutes. Our average speed was 80.5 km/h. This excludes a quick stop at Costco to fill up with diesel. | |
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Postscript: So much done in eight days. Now we are just excited to plan our next roadtrip! | |
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April 2025