I awoke in my fancy Otley apartment to a soupy sort of day. It was dry, and largely remained so, but hard to see the hills very distinctly. That didn’t make them any easier to climb, of course, and there was plenty of that today, especially in the morning. Most of the rivers of Yorkshire seem to flow from west to east, so if you are travelling north you have to cross each of the main valleys. Otley is in Wharfedale, which needed climbing steeply out of first thing, and then it was down into Nidderdale and back up again, and then various other ups and downs until I reached the much larger River Ure at Masham. Next came a plunge into and out of the valley of the River Swale at Richmond, and then I entered County Durham when I crossed the River Tees at pretty Piercebridge, where the Romans had their own bridge. The final river of the day was the Wear at Durham, at the end of the ride. All that added up to 6,000 feet of ascent over 78 miles, which was a bit less full on than yesterday, but a decent workout nonetheless. I managed to arrive by 7pm, which worked well enough for Jenni, who got there a little before me and understandably didn’t want to miss out on dinner.
The last part of the day was completed under blue skies and sunshine. It took a while to arrive; but bode well for spending a nice day together tomorrow seeing the ancient sights of Durham, whose magnificent cathedral alone justified a stopover. We have done quite a few of these days away now and I think they have worked out rather well. I have also been up close and personal with a good selection of the country’s very best medieval cathedrals, including York, Lincoln, Chester, Salisbury and now Durham. It wasn’t planned to be like that – I just followed the lines- but I’m glad it worked out that way. I like cathedrals.
But I had to get to Durham first. The hour out of Otley undulated prolifically though remote country, and then I passed through a series of attractive stone villages in the area to the west of Harrogate and Ripon. If someone told me I had to move and live around here, I think I would be happy enough. These seemed like very desirable places and the countryside is interesting, and close to areas of genuine ruggedness. I especially liked Kettlesing, not just for its name; but also for the buildings, the village green with old stocks, the peace and quiet, and the enticing pub.
The last few miles to lunch at Masham took me through some well appointed and handsome rural stone-built villages, like Grewelthorpe and the larger Kirkby Malzeard, all of which were easy on the eye. But not as altogether enticing as Masham itself, which I have long felt offers most of the ingredients I need for a happy life. Masham has a spectacularly spacious market place, surely one of the biggest anywhere, with a really interesting range of proper, small shops (like bakeries and butchers) that you feel are there just as much for the locals as the visitors. It has a few really nice looking pubs and hotels and – best of all – two (2) outstanding breweries: Theakston’s and Black Sheep, both of which, as far as I am concerned, brew some of the best beer you could ever wish to drink. Add in a beautiful church with an unusual octagonal tower and spire, and you have a long distance adventure cyclist staying as long as time will allow, and enjoying the fine fare at Johnny Baghdad’s cafe on the square. I always like my trips to Masham. Tell you what, though, I was surprised to see a mobile Post Office van in the town. Surely, with everything else Masham offers, it must have its own post office, doesn’t it?
The roads I was cycling had been quiet all day, and so it continued almost into Richmond, which is another lovely town. Things became busy a couple of miles short of my arrival there when I found myself crossing through Catterick army barracks, the British Army’s home in the North of England, or so the sign said. It amounts to quite a town-sized community, supported by the likes of Tesco, Aldi and many others, including a cinema, that we are used to seeing in towns elsewhere. The difference here is that you can’t go in to much of it without permission.
By the river crossing as you enter the older streets of Richmond, which is mostly up on the bluff above, stands it’s old railway station. It is now superbly repurposed as a cinema and cafe bar complex, but retaining all the architectural features of the old station building. I stopped and simply enjoyed being inside, with a latte and a mini fruit cake to see me through the remaining miles, which were still considerable. This followed the pattern of many previous days, where I metaphorically roll up my sleeves and get on with it as time starts to be a factor later in the day.
Richmond is dominated by its Norman castle keep, and it also boasts a wide, cobbled market place and many fine old buildings. It is a likeable place. But I needed to press on, and found more lovely villages on a quiet road that took me to Piercebridge. From here, I chose to follow a B road due north and for several miles followed the straight line of a Roman road. It was a bit busier, and the country a bit blander, but it got me to Bishop Auckland in no nonsense fashion, which is what was needed. This is not in itself a lovely place; but adjacent to its market place, on a bluff high above a valley to the north, stands Auckland Castle and it’s extensive grounds, which makes it worth the trip. The town and the castle seem uncomfortable bed fellows, but once there, you cannot fail to be impressed by the scale of the splendour of the grounds, which include a quite stunning walled garden that is terraced into a wide, steep bank. I really need to return and do all of this justice. There is clearly something happening here on a significant scale, and I hope it has a positive knock on effect on the town.
And finally, I cycled along a quiet rail trail from here all the way into Durham, avoiding both main roads and some fairly unattractive former mining communities along the way. All in all it was a great day of mostly very quiet cycling, taking me through some lovely places.
