We had a leisurely start to the day today, meeting Earl and Sue at 10:00 am for a lovely breakfast outside in the grounds of Grantley Hall.

Breakfast.
Breakfast.
Breakfast.
Breakfast.
Breakfast.
Breakfast.
Breakfast.
Breakfast.
Andrea, with Earl and Sue at breakfast.
Andrea, with Earl and Sue at breakfast.

Our loose plan for the day today was to explore some of the Yorkshire area. We hopped into the car around midday, and headed west to the very pretty town of Grassington. Grassington is the setting for the fictional town of Darrowby in the television series “All Creatures Great and Small”. There was certainly no shortage of fans of the show in town, with people eagerly stopping us to point out locations used in the show.

Sue and Andrea, in Grassington.
Sue and Andrea, in Grassington.
Andrea, in Grassington.
Andrea, in Grassington.
Andrea, in Grassington.
Andrea, in Grassington.

From Grassington, we drove through the Yorkshire Dales National Park, which was very pretty. We stopped along the way to look at the views, particularly of the heather. The Yorkshire Dales consists mostly of lush, green valleys and high, rolling hills (“dales”), separated by dry stone walls and dotted with pastures. There is more than 8,000 kilometres of dry stone walls in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, making it the most prominent man-made feature in the area.

Heather in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.
Heather in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.
Sheep in a paddock defined by dry stone walls in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.
Sheep in a paddock defined by dry stone walls in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.
Sue and Andrea, looking at flowers on the side of the road in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.
Sue and Andrea, looking at flowers on the side of the road in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

Our next stop was Aysgarth Falls, still in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. Whilst not the most impressive waterfalls we’ve seen, they were nonetheless very pretty, and we enjoyed a nice walk around the area.

Aysgarth Falls.
Aysgarth Falls.
Aysgarth.
Aysgarth.
St. Andrew’s Church, Aysgarth.
St. Andrew’s Church, Aysgarth.
Gatehouse in Aysgarth.
Gatehouse in Aysgarth.

From the town of Aysgarth, we ventured off the main road to look at the nearby Bolton Castle. Bolton Castle is a late 14th-century fortress built by Richard, 1st Baron Scrope, between 1378 and 1399. The castle has played host to many important historic events, most notably serving as the prison of Mary, Queen of Scots, for six months in 1568-9. The castle was extensively damaged during the English Civil War, but much of the structure remains intact today.

Sue and Andrea, at Bolton Castle.
Sue and Andrea, at Bolton Castle.
Andrea, at Bolton Castle.
Andrea, at Bolton Castle.
Keith, at Bolton Castle.
Keith, at Bolton Castle.
Bolton Castle.
Bolton Castle.
A garden maze at Bolton Castle.
A garden maze at Bolton Castle.
A view from Bolton Castle.
A view from Bolton Castle.

We left Bolton Castle around 6:00 pm, and set off to have a look at the town of Richmond.

Richmond, Yorkshire.
Richmond, Yorkshire.

The town was remarkably quiet for a Friday night, but we managed to find a nice restaurant for a very enjoyable dinner.

Dinner.
Dinner.
Dinner.
Dinner.
Dinner.
Dinner.
Dinner.
Dinner.
Dinner.
Dinner.
Dinner.
Dinner.

We left Richmond at about 9:00 pm, for the drive back to Grantley Hall. The trip took about an hour and, after saying goodnight to Earl and Sue, we headed upstairs to bed after a lovely day in Yorkshire.

We don’t have firm plans for tomorrow, but we’re considering a day at the local Ripon races.