Category: North York Moors
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The Colours of The Carrs
Ah, another stunning panorama from the summit of Cleveland’s iconic Roseberry Topping, captured countless times on phones and often graced by a selfie. It feels like I too have taken this shot so many times before. Below, the quaint village of Newton-under-Roseberry nestles, its new builds seemingly encroaching on the flat farmlands of The Carrs.…
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Welkin’s Cheek
Before “sky” became the common term for the vast expanse above us, it was poetically known as “welkin”—a word closely related to the German “Wolke,” meaning cloud, and even more so to “Wölkchen,” meaning little cloud. Today, the welkin offered a breathtaking sight for those who gazed upward. Shakespeare himself was no stranger to this…
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Framing the Landscape — A Nine-Year Retrospective
Nine years. Nine long years in which the world has undergone remarkable transformations: Brexit, Covid, Ukraine, the rise and—let us hope—fall of Trump, and the conclusion of Tory turmoil. Yet, some constants endure. For nine years, “Framing the Landscape,” that quintessential piece of modern art, that obtrusive metallic eyesore placed in a nature reserve, has…
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An Encounter in Esk Dale
Another photograph from yesterday, captured during our return journey from Whitby to Grosmont, which we reached by train for the outward leg. Our route followed the Esk Valley Walk, though much of it traversed the well-preserved flagged paths known as the Monk’s Trod. This path is purportedly the medieval route linking Grosmont Priory and Whitby…
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An Echo of Grosmont Priory
The Grandmontine Priory of Grosmont was established around 1200 at a site overlooking the River Esk. It was one Joan de Turnham who granted the site to the monks, and according to the deed of gift, a “mansion house” already existed there. Its surrounding fields, covering about 200 acres, were already in cultivation, evidenced by…
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The National Trust’s Never-Ending Battle
The Lake District, known for its beautiful scenery, made the BBC news this morning, but not because of its peaceful views or poetic charm. Instead, the news was about the rubbish left by people pretending to be campers. The shores of Buttermere are now covered with abandoned camping gear like mattresses, clothing, and even an…
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From Battersby to Farndale: A Stone that Guides the Way
Standing stones, those charming columns of rock, are strewn all over the North York Moors. Some mark parish or estate boundaries, others waymarkers or religious crosses. Take this small, irregular stone, for instance, standing unobtrusively just south of the old Rosedale mineral railway line. It is probably post-medieval, though it marks a trod from Battersby…
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Bridestone Griff
Ah, what a scene of unparalleled magnificence. Majestic sandstone columns and rock outcrops, shaped over millennia by wind and rain, now somewhat overwhelmed by a verdant sea of bracken, rippling across the landscape like an oversized duvet. Deep wooded valleys, or “griffs,” carve into the moor, a National Trust property a few miles south of…
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Mists of Misinformation: Chemtrails
A splendid summer morning, the sky an unblemished expanse of blue with the occasional fluffy cloud. Above Battersby Moor, a puffy white streak trails behind an unseen aeroplane, an innocuous contrail formed predominantly from water vapour. Yet, a growing faction of the population insists these are not mere vestiges of aviation but harbingers of malevolence.…
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It were a bit barren on t’moors like, nowt much to see!
A view along the Cleveland Way as it traverses Newton Moor, with the elusive Highcliffe Nab shrouded in mist. The cartulary concerning the founding of Gisborough Priory records a significant route named Melegate, extending from a point on the Percy Cross track, known as Molecros, to Roseberry Common. The Cleveland Way here likely follows the…