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Antonine Wall
A huge ditch gives some idea of the scale of the engineering the Romans put into the building of the Antonine Wall. Stretching 40 miles across Scotland between the Clyde and the Forth estuaries, it was built of the orders of the Emporer Antonius Pius in AD142 and occupied for 22 years before being abandoned…
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Sir John de Graham’s Castle
One of the best example of a motte and bailey castle I’ve seen. Unusually square shaped, the depth of the motte can be gauged by the wooden steps built to preserve the slope with the actual castle would have been timber-framed. It would have had commanding views over the Carron Valley, a viewed obscured today…
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Cora Linn
Just above the dramatic Falls of Clyde. William Wallace country. His cave where he hid after fleeing from the English is said to overlook the Cora Linn. Along with several other locations throughout Scotland. Linn means a pool and Cora is said to be a daughter of Malcolm II who reigned in the eleventh century,…
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Coriolus versicolor
Confined to a classroom all day so an early morning dog run up Cliff Rigg was all I could manage. Too early for decent lighting but a display of colour on a fallen tree at the bottom of Thief Lane caught my eye. This is Coriolus versicolor, a very common fungus from a large family…
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Raisdale
That little offshoot of Bilsdale. The North York Moors seem particularly dour and rugged at this time of the year. Fifty shades of brown. But the cloud breaks and the sun’s morning rays brings an enchanting tranquillity to the dale below. Aelred thought so, writing in the 12th century. He was Abbot of Rievaulx, a…
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Guisborough Forest And Walkway Visitors Centre, Pinchinthorpe
I cycled the route of the old Middlesbrough and Guisborough Railway towards Nunthorpe in the hope of a nice photo of Roseberry from an unfamiliar angle but the dull weather dashed that idea. It was an out and back route along a well-maintained walkway. At the far end, a six-foot-high fence prevented all chance of…
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A tree guard in the making
According to an old Chinese proverb “the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The next best time is now.” I was reminded of this today when planting an oak sapling in Bransdale. It will take 20 to 30 years until it produces its first acorns and might even still be around…
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Dances with sheep
A flock of Aireyholme sheep complete a short set piece of contemporary dance. Very niche. A carefully choreographed outdoor performance that is a joyful exercise in shape, rhythm and sound. But back to reality, another cracking day. Should we be worried? On this day last year, we woke up to a good snowfall with a…
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Hanging Stone, Danby Dale
When the Reverend J.C.Atkinson became the vicar of the parish of Danby in 1847 there was no village of Danby and as far as he could ascertain there had never been one. There was a Danby Dale, a Danby Rigg and a Danby Castle. There were several hamlets: Dale End, Little Fryup and Ainthorpe, and…
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Busby lambs
First of the Spring lambs. These do look a week or so old. Near to Great Busby. Lambing is planned so that the best price is obtained when the lambs are eventually sold as a glut of lambs coming to market at the same time will mean a lower price. Some farmers in the south…
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