Eclipse from Crooklands

High overcast cloud with a few small breaks or thinnings - which helped as it filtered the sun. And once it was over the cloud thickened with a spit in the air. So lucky!

"Thank you" to our guests from Yorkshire Air Ambulance

We have had a collection pot in our dining room/lounge since John's accident (a ladder fall in 2012) and a note in the room information files, supporting the Yorkshire Air Ambulance, who whisked him off to Preston to be stitched back together.

The Air Ambulance is an essential service to all of Yorkshire, but especially the rural areas where land ambulances may not access or would take too long to ferry people to hospital.

Anyway.. a phone call from the YAA rep who had spoken to Clapham WI & who had collected our tin. He just felt he had to pass it on. He said that most tins had £20-£30 in them, but ours had a whopping £123, including two £20 notes!

So, a big "Thank You!" to all our guests who have contributed, from YAA & from us too.

New Front door!

From this, which was painted pine, always expanding with wet weather, so sticking & rotting,

to this,

hand-made in solid oak. Made by Wyn Roberts, a superb craftsman in Clapham village. It's the third thing he's made for us, the others being a built-in wardrobe & a mobile 'island' in the kitchen, all superb quality. Thank you, Wyn.

Tour de France fever

Yellow bicycles & bunting everywhere along the route, as I saw when coming back from Durham last month.

And here, 18 miles from the nearest point of the route ...

                                                         ............is our contribution!

Apart from breakfasts at 7am for guests needing to get to their spot on the route by 9am.

Ingleborough Gathering, 30 June 2014

Why did I wake at 4am??
Subconciously - it's the last Monday in June!
An eyelid raised ...its a clear sky.
Get up & go - it's the Ingleborough Sheep Gathering!

All the farmers with sheep on the fell, gather sheep down to sorting pens around its base, thence to their own farms, for shearing, on the last Monday in June. As a neighbour to Bleak Bank Farm, I go along & help. As does Jack, on his 50ft lead, with great enthusiasm - the one day in the year he's allowed to chase sheep!

We pile into a trailer, six of us plus dogs, on the back of a Land Rover & lurch & jolt up the fell, which takes us halfway, then march on up to the top where we meet with others from Cold Cotes. 6am on the top, as arranged. "Clapham farmers left at 5.20" - so they'll be below us to the east, gathering that area. We can see tiny figures below, the size of  midges, working out of Chapel-le-Dale to the west & north-west, searching the limestone pavement at the base of the escarpment.

We spread out across the top & eastern side & steadily move south, like a huge net. Those with dogs stay high, letting the dogs do the work, whistling instructions from their vantage points. Then across the rough ground to the next viewpoint.

We gather down to Bleak Bank's top field. By 8am we're down, enjoying a cuppa & I'm off to help Di with tidying up after B&B guests.

It's now 1.30pm. Jobs done. Back to Bleak Bank; they've already sheared several sheep. Team up with Ruth, farmer John's sister, who with sheep of her own always helps with the shearing here. I get them into the clipping pen, a few at a time, then feed them to her, one at a time. She wrestles them until sat on their tails, checks their feet, clips & treats if necessary (pedicure as well!), then shears. I hold, Liz (another sister) marks them with a red "D" & tail spot & then it's on to the next one. John & William (John's son) join in & continue through the afternoon. It's exhausting, but they don't seem to show it. Judith (John's wife) comes in as Liz leaves & in no time it's 7pm. There's still more to do, but it's supper time & we all pack up. Home to a bath & bed!

OGUG & the weather

Ingleton's OvergroundUnderground festival (www.ogug.co.uk) always seems to be hit with wet weather, though in patches this weekend - that's the problem with holding it on a Bank Holiday weekend! Still, there's been plenty to enjoy & instruct & there's more on Monday & next year to look forward to.

As part of the festival, friends in Cold Cotes, a neighbouring hamlet opened their converted barn to show off Margaret's landscaping business & Kevin's watercolours & prints, many of the immediate area, including the iconic shape of Ingleborough. We have our eyes on one or two of his pictures. Look him up on www.kbwatercolours.co.uk

After getting home from that Jack & I set off for his walk. Well, my walk today. With Three-Peak guests in exhausting themselves on the 26 mile circuit of Pen-y-Ghent, Whernside & Ingleborough,  & no chance of a long plod tomorrow or Tuesday, we'd better get a good one in today. So, we made the top of Ingleborough inside 70 minutes from home, faster than I've* ever done it, (*=dog assisted. 6 legs better than 2. Would be a lot slower without!) before or after accident. Then back home 2½hours after leaving it. Nice hot bath & a doze for Jack.

Views from the path down:

Wildflowers (& not so wild)

Last Thursday after guests had departed, and as no-one was due that night, we paid a visit to Parceval Hall, near Appletreewick - it's been on the list of things to do for ages.

Well WOW! The rhodedendrons there are fantastic! White to deep reds & all shades between. There's been a fine display of daffs, but they've been succeded by other bulbs, wisteria - Oh, just amazing displays. www.parcevalhallgardens.co.uk

Our own wisteria is just out & smelling lovely,

as is the azalea by the pond - a rich deep pink.

I walked back with Jack from the village up a little used track yesterday the primroses have given way to bluebells & other wildflowers:

And finally, there's the barn with a view. If there was ever a chance to live there (but...), this would be the place. A hazy day but you can still see a bit:

Lovely!

What a nice note to find when changing a room after guests leave!

Spring - beginning at last!

Last week was DRY!! (mostly)

We heard the first curlew of the year;

have had our first sighting of the Tawny Owl;

and seen hares chasing each other across the fields.

Snowdrops are beginning to fade, crocus are flowering and daffodils by the roadside are starting.

And it's just the start of the lambing season around here!

Unseasonable flowers

Here we are, at the beginning of February and we have a number of unseasonal flowers out. Aubretia seem to have some flowers  almost all year round. Until very recently, Gazania were in bloom & as the photos show, a "pink" and kaffir lillies and Calendula.  Elder bushes are already sprouting leaves and Pulmonaria are in full bloom. We only saw our first snowdrops recently and our first crocus a couple of days ago. daffodil bulbs have six inches growth. Only hope there isn't a really cold snap to hit everything back.

Day Out

Lovely day today. 

Promise of showers from the 'Weather Channel' didn't materialise.

Clapham Beck was boiling & the falls by the church were spilling with white water after all the rain we've had recently.

Drove over to Settle with a friend staying from America & then on to Malham, over the moors. Good views of Malham Cove from distance & close up. Malham heaving with walkers - always a very popular spot.

Thence over the hills into Littondale & Wharfedale. Rivers full & waterfalls white & visible from afar. Upper Wharfedale is part of the Tour de France route - it'll be packed in July!

Turn left towards Hubberholme, the lanes get narrower, the road wetter. Must have flooded recently. Lovely little Dales Church at Hubberholme with pews by the Mouseman, tucked into the hillside.

Up the hill, pass the last hamlet & over the hills to Hawes, glimpsing back at a magnificent view of Ingleborough, dark against light sky, prominent nose facing west & with a cap of cloud, rays of sun slicing through the clouds to the east. Aaaarrrghh! why didn't I bring the camera?!

Wensleydale Creamery at Hawes. Presents for friends down south and a quick run back, via the Ribblehead Viaduct, just as a train was coming over it - a good day out!

October & November

Late October & November have seen warm & pleasant days, mixed with sometimes heavy showers, rainbows & spectacular sunsets. 
















Now in late November the weather has turned colder and as a result of several frosty mornings, the farmers are busy emptying their slurry tanks over the fields. Not a day to put the washing out if you want it smelling sweetly of fresh air!

We have been treated to some wildlife treats:

• a stoat, running down the wall in Cow Pasture, next to us
• a woodpecker going about its business in the sycamore in the same field
• our own private murmurations of starlings of countless numbers
• flocks of lapwings, feasting on the fields
• a kestrel inspecting us at low altitude
• the resident bank vole scuttling around in the undergrowth

Yellow Irises and a Barn Owl

The yellow flag irises are out down on Newby Moor, the SSSI that covers much of the valley below us. 

Patches of ground in the lowest lying areas and along the beck sides, and in the wonderfully sunny weather that we have had these last few days, they look magnificent!

A few days ago, we had offered to collect an arriving guest at Clapham station at about 6pm. As Di drove back with our guest, Jack and I walked back along the road - about 3miles & normally taking about 1½hours ('cos of all the interesting smells that have to be checked!)

Out of the corner of his eye, I caught a glimpse of a bird, not sure what it was, so stopped & waited for it to show again.

Over the next  hour a barn owl hunted across the moor, returning three or four times to the apex of a ruined barn, 
well away from the road.

These are distant photos, taken at maximum zoom. The 'one that got away' was the one where the owl was heading straight for me, face-on, 30, then 20 yards away....
            ....but Jack & I were in the middle of the road with a tractor bearing down on us, less than 20 yards away. "Oh, ***!"

Thank You!

A few days ago we received a couple of "Thank You" letters. It's always a pleasant surprise and nice to receive.
One was from one of three lovely ladies, away on their annual get-together, off walking by day & filling the house with happy chatter whilst in.
The other letter was from "Country Walking" magazine, who say that we have been recommended by one of their team or by a reader as a welcoming and lovely place to stay.

So, to both - a big "Thank you" from us

From the Crooklands Chronicle:-

 

Last Wednesday morning, bright & early, Celeb TV star, Jack, dragged his co-star up to the top of Ingleborough to enjoy a gorgeous sunny breakfast of biscuits & water (both!). It was John's first time since before his accident & a long-stated aim to achieve before the end of June. On the way down Jack had a wonderful time chasing rabbits & on getting home, enjoyed a special relaxing doze in the sun, whilst the co-star went off for his hydrotherapy session.

 

You can't get the staff these days...the co-star hasn't figured out how to get photos from Di's phone to the computer yet!

 

Woofs & licks,

Jack.

Local wildlife

It's been a real pleasure each morning recently, to see a hare munching away, under the bathroom window...

 ...and then there were two! (Maybe they're working on a few more!)







There have been curlews around for a few weeks now, after a late start. In previous years they arrived at the end of February, but the first I heard this year was in mid-March. My camera is never near when I do see one, so it was a pleasant surprise to see one walk through the viewfinder as I watched the hares!

And then there have been buzzards around a lot recently. With most lambs born in the fields there will have been afterbirth to feed off, if they can beat the gulls, jackdaws & crows to it, and not get chased off. Gulls & crows can be very persistent, dive-bombing & harrassing buzzards.

Male pheasants are in full, bright plumage; females tucked into safe corners in hedgerows & verges, sitting on eggs, becoming as inconspicuous as possible. They really are difficult to see, their colouring fits in so well. 

Sadly, I saw a dead stoat beside the road yesterday, presumably roadkill.

Over the last week to ten days the fields have gone from olive brown to green. At last the temperature has risen enough for grass to grow. Lambs are growing, bouncing around, charging around the field edges, climbing through gates & over walls. And there are plenty of young rabbits around ... have to let Jack loose to scare them out of the garden!

Fieldfares

Two Fieldfares seen in the field alongside the house. Like sleek thrushes, similar size but with 'brilliant white' undersides, brown back & wings & grey head.

Stayed around for a couple of days.

Extreme dog walking!

Following on from yesterday's post - Di had come home from walking Jack with tall stories of crossing the tops of hedges and a car covered by drifting snow. Well....

 

The daft thing is - there's so much snow, but the fields are green!
And, slowly, it's thawing. "less snow than yesterday" says Di.