Settle

Settle is on the boundary if the Yorkshire Dales and we arrived by train from Carlisle where we dropped the car off. The train from Carlisle to Settle is one of the most scenic railway journeys in England. It was completed in 1876 and was an engineers challenge with 72 miles of track, 20 major viaducts and 14 tunnels. The landscape is majestic and they have a volunteer guide who comes around to talk to passengers and answer any questions. Our cottage is in the town with a bedroom and bathroom downstairs and the living space upstairs. 

Settle is an unspoilt market town and is visited mainly by those who want to explore the Yorkshire Dales. The markets have been held here on a Tuesday since 1249 with many of the buildings dating back from 1670. Overlooking the market square is The Shambles which was once a butchers shop and slaughter house. The building still has the loading hoists in the upper floor. Steam trains occasionally pass through Settle and while Cliff went on a walk over the hills, I was able to see one of them on the Sunday morning. Didn't think I would ever be standing with train spotters waiting in the rain for a glimpse of a train. Well you know the saying, 'When In Rome'. One of the cafes we had coffee in was called 'Ye Olde Naked Man Cafe'. Not sure why! The library was a great resource as we could use their wifi and computer for printing. The staff there got to know me well as I was there every day at some time. Also the laundrette was just at the end of the street so handy for doing our washing.

We took a bus to Skipton which boasts a medieval castle and ancient church called the Holy Trinity.  We had seen a lot of castles so we just looked at the grounds and went inside the church. It was build 700 years ago and had many changes over that time due to finds from the Castle occupants Lady Anne Clifford and damage in wars and lightning strikes. The town was holding a market and after we looked at the many stalls we walked along the canal into the Skipton Woods which were filled to the brim with trees.

We saw a bit more rain here with showers mostly overnight but also some during the day. This meant we had to be ready for all types of weather as it was still humid and then sunny. The town is quiet but it is easy to feel at home here. We walked one day to the Victoria Caves which was a circular route from the end of our street coming back into the centre of the town. This was about 8 kilometres and took us up hills and through properties. It was very beautiful and we met up with two guys walking the same route so we stopped to chat along the way. They had come from Manchester to do the walk so that made our location near it very special indeed. 

We travelled by train to Lancaster for the day to look around and see the sights. We had to walk 30 min to get to the station as it was on another line. The station is called Giggleswick which made me giggle every time I said it, seems like my sense of humour is still just as lame. We did the town walk in Lancaster which took us past a cathedral, castle and many old buildings. Stopped for a beer at a pub built in 1688 and it was like being in a sophisticated cave. It was probably the nicest pub we had every been in and we had been in quite a lot over this trip.

The week went by too quick and leaving was hard as we had just settled in. We packed our bags, walked to the station and caught our train to Knaresborough via a stop over 3 hrs in Leeds.