Saltaire - 1916
Walkers setting off on A Dales High Way may be forgiven for finding themselves transported to WW1 Saltaire in the last few weeks.
The historic Unesco world heritage site has been transformed for a new film "The Choral", written by legendary playwright Alan Bennett.
The film will star Ralph Fiennes, Jim Broadbent, and Simon Russell Beale and be directed by Nicholas Hytner (The History Boys; The Lady in the Van, The Crucible, The Madness of King George).
A synopsis says: "A choral society's male members enlist in World War I, leaving the demanding Dr. Guthrie (Fiennes) to recruit teenagers.
"Together, they experience the joy of singing while the young boys grapple with their impending conscription into the army."
They have been filming since May, with the latest action focussed on "the Institute" - Victoria Hall.
Saltaire has become a popular set for films in recent years, including episodes of "Gentleman Jack" with Surrane Jones.
See BBC Films The Choral here.
2 July 2024
Bestselling Author Praise for Dales High Way
The best selling author David Nicholls has praised A Dales High Way as one of his favourite long distance walks.
In an online interview with the American Forbes magazine Nicholls was asked "Tell us about some of your favorite walks."
"I don’t always love coast walks, which can get a little dull, but the Northumberland Coastal Path is beautiful, with vast empty beaches, castles, a unique atmosphere and not too many tourists. Also, a lesser known route, the Dales High Way, is a beautiful diagonal path from Skipton, outside Leeds, to Appleby in Cumbria. An absolute beauty" he replied.
Nicholls' latest novel "You Are Here" is a love story set on Wainwright's Coast to Coast Walk, a walk he has done himself. He completes one or two long distance trails each year.
Writing in the Guardian he said "The conditions are always the same, a hike of 60 to 90 miles in early spring or autumn. The paths are well-trodden and unadventurous, taken from a list of routes that end in "way": the Dales Way, the Cumbria Way, Dales High Way, the Cleveland Way, the South Downs and Peddars Way, the Ridgeway. I always carry my own rucksack and have never for even one moment considered a tent."
He walks alone and enjoys solitude and wild landscapes: "Picture me, thirsty and wet on some desolate moor, 12 miles to go. The dream." This, perhaps, explains his preference for A Dales High Way over its much gentler and busier sibling, the Dales Way; "Northumbria and Cornwall aside, I don't like coastal walks. The Dales High Way is far superior to the Dales Way. I have no love for the South Downs. There, I've said it."
"You Are here" was published on 23 April by Sceptre at £20.
See the Forbes interview here.
1 June 2024
New exhibition of "Commoners" lives
A new exhibition of written and photographic portraits of the farmers, gamekeepers and conservationists who work on Ingleborough Common, Grassington Common and Brant Fell Common near Sedbergh are being exhibited at the Dales Countryside Museum in Hawes.
‘Labour of Love’ is a new exhibition by photographer Rob Fraser and writer Harriet Fraser. They run an environmental art and research practice from near Kendal.
The exhibition presents stories they have gathered during two years of meeting people who farm and manage commons in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, Dartmoor, the Lake District and the Shropshire Hills.
Harriet Fraser said: “For commoners there is a lot of uncertainty and threats to this way of life – and we’ve been cataloguing that.
“At the heart of our work is meeting people and listening to people. So I’m out and about with my microphone, Rob with his camera. And we learn from everyone we meet, whether we’re on a peat bog, or on the fell looking at dung beetles, or talking about management of the sheep, or talking to somebody from the National Trust about how to deal with the challenges we are facing."
‘Labour of Love’ at the Dales Countryside Museum (open daily, 10-5pm) will run until 8 September. It is being staged as part of ‘Our Common Cause: Our Upland Commons’, a three-year project led by the charity, Foundation for Common Land. As well as Rob and Harriet Fraser’s work, there are wild boar bones from Ingleborough and items from the museum’s permanent collection to see.
Photo: Shepherds meeting on the summit of Ingleborough at the start of a sheep gather in November, by Rob Fraser.
See the Dales Countryside Museum here.
16 May 2024
Community bid to run Dent's Sun Inn
The residents of Dentdale aim to buy their favourite pub, the ancient Sun Inn on Dent Main Street.
The Sun is a popular local pub at heart of the community, welcoming visitors since the 16th Century, and a favoured stop-over for Dales High Way walkers.
On the market for £525,000, the pub has been up for sale for more than two years and is facing an uncertain future, so a group of local people met last week and have decided it was time to act.
They have set up a Community Interest Company to apply for a grant from the Government and also plan to sell shares in the company to raise money.
The first step will be a Pledge of Shares at a second public meeting to be held in the Haygarth Room, Dent Memorial Hall, on May 8th at 7pm. Shares will cost £5 each. They have already gained pledges of support from the local Parish Council; the Friends of the Settle-Carlisle Line (Foscl); Western Dales Bus and the Friends of A Dales High Way!
See the Save Our Sun website here.
1 May 2024
ride2stride 2024
The popular Settle-Carlisle walking festival - ride2stride - is back again this year with a packed programme of free walks, talks and music. The festival, at the heart of Dales High Way country, runs from Tuesday April 30th to Monday May 6th.
The annual festival began back in 2012, but was sorely missed for a 3-year period during the pandemic. Its return last year proved to be very popular indeed.
In March the festival was picked by the Observer and Guardian newspapers as one of the top ten walking festivals in Britain: "An annual week-long celebration of the western Dales and Eden Valley, the festival’s varied programme of walks all begin and end at stations along the Settle-Carlisle line – one of the most spectacular stretches of train line in the UK. New for 2024 will be Trail Tasters, walks that offer the chance to sample sections of some of the region’s long-distance trails, as well as annual favourites and live music and entertainment at pubs in the area."
A visit to Giggleswick Chapel marks part of one of the walks on the first day. All the led walks are free and no prior booking is needed.
For a full programme see ride2stride.co.uk
10 April 2024
Saltaire and Skipton amongst best places to live
Saltaire and Skipton are amongst the best places to live in the north and northeast region, according to the Sunday Times Guide for 2024.
Leeds was the winner for the region, being "the best place to live if you want to work hard and play hard in the biggest, buzziest city in the north."
Saltaire - the starting point for A Dales High Way, was described as "the best place to live if you fancy a funky village vibe within commuting distance of Leeds and Bradford."
The Guide notes: It was a model village built by the 19th-centuray mill-owner, wool baron and temperance titan Sir Titus Salt for his workers and now, two centuries later, Saltaire is a model address for 21st century living. Its streets echo with the clatter of Birkenstocks and chukka boots on the cobblestones, as everyone from creatives to teachers, techies to NHS workers is choosing to make BD18 their home.
Designated a Unesco world heritage site in 2001, surrounded by greenery yet only minutes from the cities of West Yorkshire, Saltaire is as posh as Bradford gets - but also as down to earth as the Yorkshire pudding, sausages and curry gravy served at the cheekily named bar Don't Tell Titus. "it's one of the most unusual places I've lived," says Saskia Brown, 36, a neurology nurse at Leeds General Infirmary and a Morris dancer. "The architecture is amazing and it just feels very safe. We even have a Facebook page for our local cats."
Skipton, first stop on A Dales High Way, was the overall winner in 2014. The guide says it is the best place if "You're up for a free-spirited, family friendly market town."
See our previous post here, and the Sunday Times Guide here.
20 Mar 2024
Dales High Way Slide Show
The new walking season kicks off with a chance to see an illustrated talk on A Dales High Way by Chris Grogan this month.
Chris Grogan, who created the route with husband Tony, is giving the illustrated talk at the invitation of the Shipley Library Slide Show Group.
Chris has presented a version of her popular talk at many venues since its inception in 2007.
Dales High Way guide books will be on sale and members of the Friends of A Dales High Way committee will be there to chat to.
The talk will be hosted at Shipley Library, 2 Wellcroft Street, in the town centre, at 7.30pm on Friday 15th March.
Doors open at 7pm, it costs £3 which includes a cuppa and everyone is welcome.
See the Shipley Library Slide Shows website here.
2 March 2024
Appleby Castle for Sale at £9.5m
The 12th century castle in Appleby is up for sale with a price tag of £9.5 million.
First site of the castle signals the final stretch for walkers on A Dales High Way.
The keep dates back to around 1100 and the castle changed hands between Scots and English several times before it was partly destroyed in the 1660s by a Royalist army during the English Civil War. Lady Anne Clifford subsequently began to restore it to its earlier glory.
The castle has been extensively restored over the last 20 years. It is now home to a hotel and events business, with private living space and a museum.
Its current owner, Sally Nightingale, who moved to Appleby in the 1990s, said she would always "carry" Appleby Castle in her heart. “Lady Anne was the most celebrated owner of Appleby Castle and I’ve tried to follow in her footsteps," Ms Nightingale said.
The castle was closed to the public for many years following a dispute between the owners and English Heritage, but was finally re-opened 10 years ago.
See the Appleby Castle website here.
12 Feb 2024
Towpath Closure
The canal towpath from Shipley through Saltaire has been closed for improvement works. The closure is expected to last 3 months.
The towpath is near the start of A Dales High Way. There are 2 easy alternative routes: the first is to follow the narrow road to the right of the towpath which leads through Salts Sports fields to rejoin the main route where a footbridge crossed the river; alternatively cross the footbridge by the Boathouse first, then follow the path on the opposite river side to rejoin the main route as it leaves the next footbridge.
The work is being funded by charity Sustrans, with the Government-funded Shipley Towns Fund paying £23,500 towards the project.
Sustrans says it is working with with the Canal & River Trust, the charity that looks after the Leeds & Liverpool Canal, and Bradford Council on the project, that includes a new asphalt surface with natural stone gravel finish to fill in muddy potholes and create a smooth route.
UPDATE:
The work is now finished and the towpath re-opened.
23 Jan 2024
New Plan for National Park
The Yorkshire Dales National Park is updating its management plan – to cover the period 2025 to 2029 – and is asking: ‘What needs doing most in the National Park in the next five years?’
You are invited to give your opinion on areas ranging from reducing pollution in rivers to increasing the supply of affordable homes, and rank what would be your top six priorities. The public consultation is in the form of a survey, which takes only a few minutes to complete and is available online until Monday the 26th of February.
The Management Plan Partnership includes representatives from North Yorkshire and Westmorland and Furness Councils, private sector interests from North Yorkshire and Cumbria, as well as statutory environmental agencies.
Deputy Chair of the partnership, Neil Heseltine, said: “The National Park Management Plan sets out the specific things we will work together to achieve; it is in effect a five-year ‘to do list’ for the various organisations that operate in the National Park. If an area of work is not in the management plan, it won’t get done. That’s why I would warmly invite anyone who has an interest in the future of the National Park to take part in this survey.”
A short film (see above) has been produced to encourage people to respond.
See the public survey here.
20 Jan 2024
75 Years of our National Parks
2024 marks the 75th anniversary of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949, which not only created our first National Parks, but the first long distance walking trails like the Pennine Way.
This truly visionary legislation also protected countryside access, created Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Sites of Special Scientific Interest and National Nature Reserves – all fundamental in creating and maintaining spaces for nature and people to thrive.
The Yorkshire Dales National Park was established in 1954, extended in 2016 to its current 870 square miles of stunning landscapes. A Dales High Way follows the western side from south to north.
The Campaign for National Parks (CNP), Founded in 1936, is the only independent charity dedicated to securing the future of National Parks in England and Wales.
One of the major campaigns currently underway is the fight against the government's proposed relaxation of planning laws in the parks.
In a joint letter to the Prime Minister, Neil Heseltine and Jim Bailey, both working farmers and chairs of the Yorkshire Dales and North York Moors National Park Authorities respectively, said :
"The impact of walking in the valleys of Upper Swaledale and across the Cleveland Hills to the Esk Valley and the route of the iconic Coast to Coast Walk should these proposals be enacted doesn't bear thinking about."
