Category: Raisdale
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Teeth of the Lion: Natureās Yellow Peril
Raisdale is not known for its dandelionsāTeeth of the Lion. But this is a splendid crop. Beloved by children for their time-telling attribute and wish-granting parachute seeds, as if horology and magic come naturally to plants. Its garish yellow flowers chase the sun like sycophants and offer pollinators an early-season breakfast. Every part of it…
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The Sheep of Clough
A heap of moss-covered sandstone, once a farmstead, now a sheep stronghold. This is Clough, where the path from Bilsdale Moor West meets another from Staindale to Raisdale Mill. In 1781, William Hunton lived here, followed in 1826 by John Garbutt, who managed thirty-five acres. Today, the only residents are the sheep, who seem perfectly…
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From Beak Hills to the Cotswolds: A Tale of Unequal Farming
Cringle Moor, as seen from Cold Moor across the eastern sweep of Raisdale. Below sits Beak Hills farm, your archetypal North York Moors operation. According to their website, they mostly breed sheep on 125 acres of valley pasture, with another 300 acres of shared grazing rights on Cold Moor. They have also embraced modern farming…
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Raisdaleās Constablewick and the Bones of Bert
This morning was cold, but not that cold. No puddles bore that brittle layer of ācat ice,ā and the dead Bracken fronds remained frost-free. Compare that to last Saturday, when midnight brought a sultry 15Ā°C, according to the car thermometerāa temperature fit for short sleeves. Earlier that day, as Storm Bert howled and hurled snow,…
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A View from Wath Hill and Echoes of Life at Clough House
A view of Wath Hill from above the remains of the old farmstead of Clough. Just a handful of moss-covered stones indicate where Clough House farm used to stand. It’s simple to overlook its past as a bustling farm, a family home. A solitary out-building still stands, its roof clad in corrugated sheeting. The rest…
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In Search of Magical Gate Posts
Upon the high moors near Young Ralph Cross at Rosedale Head, a commemorative stone stands in honour of Frank Elgee, a notable naturalist and archaeologist, who once curated the Dorman Memorial Museum in Middlesbrough. His wife and “assistant,” Harriet Elgee, was a knowledgeable writer and poet in her own right. I recently came across a…
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From Stone Ruck to Roseberry: Though a Neolithic lens
The recognition of a clustering of rock-art sites around the perimeter of Scugdale has given rise to a hypothesis concerning a plausible ancient prehistoric route encircling the valley. This period corresponds to approximately 5,000 years ago, specifically the Middle Neolithic era, when Scugdale likely comprised a blend of thick woodland and the marshy vestiges of…
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Little Raisdale ā A modest dale with a forgotten settlement and chapel
In the upper reaches of Raisdale, an eastern prong stretches out to the edge of the Cleveland Hills between Cold Moor and Cringle Moor. Right of centre in the photo stands Hall Garth Farm, a name which suggests a once grand manor-house, standing proudly on the land. To its left, there used to be a…
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Little Raisdale, Hall Garth Farm and the ‘Farming Parson’
More often than not, my decision regarding which photo to share is primarily based on the likelihood of returning to the same spot. Such was the case this morning. Today’s image captures the western side of Cold Moor, offering a view down onto Cold Moor Cote in Raisdale. On the left, you’ll see this farm,…
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Who was Brian?
Brian’s Pond at Clough Gill Top has always intrigued me. An oasis on the bleak Bilsdale West Moor. But just who was Brian? The name and pond appears on the 1857 Ordnance Survey Six-inch map and I’ve always thought it a modern name. But I find it was actually a fairly popular name for Arthurian…