8 February 2013 – Fairford

January was quite a quiet month for us thanks mainly to the weather. The snow in the middle of the month caused us to postpone a planned walking break in Yorkshire and also meant we could do very little in the garden. However, things got a lot brighter for us at the start of February.

On Sunday 3rd of February we took part in a singing day at the Colston Hall Bristol. There was a scratch choir of 280 and a scratch orchestra of around 230. We rehearsed in the morning and afternoon and then gave a performance at 4pm to an audience of a few hundred. It was hard work but great fun and very rewarding especially as the day seems to have raised over £6000 for Cancer Research.

The next day we set off on our postponed break in Yorkshire. We had an uneventful journey to just north of Leeds where we managed to do a short (3 miles) walk in good weather. The ground was rather wet and soggy but we thoroughly enjoyed being in the fresh air. After a cup of tea at the home of Annie’s friend Bridget, we drove the 20 miles or so to the very nice Chevin Country Park Hotel & Spa our home for the next three nights.
Tuesday morning and we woke to find a couple of inches of snow around the hotel. The hotel is situated on the Chevin, a ridge on the south side of Wharfedale overlooking the market town of Otley. The highest point of the Chevin, Surprise View, reaches 282 metres above sea level or 143 metres above Otley. Given that there were snow showers and a bitterly cold wind at the top of the ridge we decided that we would walk to Surprise View and then take a zigzag path down to Otley.

Of course the snow made it quite slippery in places. That said, we enjoyed the challenge and a welcome cup of coffee in Otley. We decided to find a different route back and walked along the valley before beginning our ascent. As we got about half way up the snow started to fall and was blowing almost horizontally. Our concern was that we could not see the path through the trees and any footprints were quickly becoming obliterated. However, we made it to the road running along the top of the ridge and hence back to the hotel. Although we had only walked a few miles, it seemed a lot longer. After a warm drink at the hotel we decided to make the best of the afternoon–(it had stopped snowing and had got a bit warmer although there was still quite a wind) and headed to Ilkley. As we got out of the car it started to rain/sleet and it was thoroughly unpleasant. Not surprisingly, we did not spend long looking at the town and headed back to the warmth of the hotel and in Gerry’s case a long sauna. Wednesday dawned sunny, dry and quite warm!! and, with hardly a trace of snow to be seen, we set off eagerly on a 7 mile walk which took in the Harewood Estate. It was a great walk with lots to see including some Red Kites and Stags, some pleasant water falls and Harewood House.

Walking across fields was like walking in a bog and reflected the incredibly wet autumn and January we have suffered in the UK.

Another walk around Bolton Abbey in the late afternoon rounded off a glorious day. We only walked a couple of miles but the view as we climbed the hill overlooking the Abbey ruins was fantastic. Beyond the ruins was the still active church – services have been said on the site every day for the last 850 years.

Thursday morning, and the sun was shining but it was bitterly cold. As we neared the end of a walk across Burley Moor we realized that our boots had not got muddy because the soggy ground was now frozen!!
After our walk, we drove to Thorner for lunch with Bridget before heading home. Our 3 days in Yorkshire had seen sunshine, snow, rain, sleet and bitterly cold winds and some memorable walks. All in all, a truly invigorating experience.