Peering through Yorkshire village windows

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What a nice gesture!  The village hall in Boltby, North Yorkshire, is left on the latch.  There are no amenities in this lovely village so, if you’re passing by and need to use the loo, you can pop in.  There’s a kitchen too, and you’re welcome to put the kettle on.  If only I’d thought to bring some cake!

Boltby is on the western edge of the North York Moors, and I was there to follow Gurtof Beck in the direction of Gormire Lake.  There’s a wonderful humpbacked stone bridge for pedestrians at the centre of the village, and right beside it, two mosaics.

They are part of 23 such markers on the  36 mile long Hambleton Hillside Mosaic Walk. Now, don’t worry!  I didn’t undertake the whole distance, and I stopped to admire a few cottages along the way.  And Boltby’s pretty 19th century chapel.

Beyond the village it’s a pleasant rolling landscape, with impressive Whitestone Cliff a distant backdrop.  Sheep gambol in the fields, and overhead, gliders ride the thermals.  I’d love to have their bird’s eye view.

Gormire Lake is accessible only on foot, and was formed after the last Ice Age, when an ice sheet covered the Vale of York.  I’ve previously only seen it from the cliff top, a dark and mysterious green expanse, surrounded by woodland. It’s not a place to go after dusk, for it’s said to be haunted by a knight who plunged from the cliff to his death. He was riding the white mare on whom the famous White Horse of Kilburn is thought to be based.

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I never much like to retrace my steps, and so it was that I found tiny Thirlby.  The village nestles round a ford, always a source of delight to me.  No stepping stones for this one, just a huddle of pretty cottages.  Apparently James Herriot, veterinarian and author, once lived here.  Pear Tree House, home to a master cabinet maker, came as a real surprise.  Bob Hunter uses the symbol of a wren to distinguish his furniture.

Boltby and Thirlby are just a couple of miles apart, and easy walking.  A short drive away, the village of Kilburn was home to another, more famous, craftsman.  Robert Thompson, or Mouseman as he became known, came from a family ‘as poor as church mice’. Astonishingly, he taught himself the craft of carving and joinery.  I’ve long promised myself a visit.

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There are tearooms too, but you really don’t want to see another scone with jam and cream, do you?  Just picture it!

Have you seen Dawn’s A Lingering Look at Windows this month?

 

140 comments

  4. Jo I’ve decided that where you live has 5 or so million quaint and charming villages. It’s astounding! I love the welcoming atmosphere and I agree with Andrew, some of your best images. Beautifully done.

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  5. You do this so well Jo, just setting off and nosing around a place and finding all the best bits. I love looking around villages, and popping into open churches (not tried the village halls). I am definitely going to have to do a Yorkshire holiday before too long, you whet my appetite for exploring the Dales and the N York moors. And now it is September! Only 14 days until we meet! O_o

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      1. We had a couple of Shropshire pub walks, but don’t think we did more than a couple. I do have a North Yorkshire walking book that I used when I took my boys there for Easter, way too long ago! Like you I prefer a circular walk. Or drive.

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      1. Thanks for the hugs, Jo! I’m just baking a chocolate cake, a slice of which I shall eat with warm berries as my dessert tonight, and I bought some cheese to finish off, for the first time in ages! Have to spoil myself from time to time!

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      2. Sounds excellent! It’s a girl’s night tonight and not my turn to cook (except something simple for Mick). Whoopee-doop! I may have some homemade apple pie and custard to keep me going until then 🙂

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      3. Lucky you! It’s home alone tonight, but off for lunch on Sunday, cooked by a very capable ex-colleague of mine! And more good things to look forward to in the week, yippee!

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  8. This is a wonderful post (unlike all your others!!!!!) lovely villages and distinctive things in each. I’m glad you can’t bear to retrace steps. I love your circles. Expect to see some on my blog soon! Boltby village hall says it all about the best of village life. A lovely launch into a quiet weekend. Enjoy yours and find it decorated with hugs in odd places.

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    1. Circles? Good-o! I like them 🙂 Did you see my brollies, incidentally? (in the Skipton post). You know how I love the canals. Well, Prunella Scales and Timothy West went boating through Skipton for a TV programme and sat in the self same canalside pub we did. My new claim to fame and totally irrelevant to this post. 🙂 Sharing the hugs, and thank you!

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      1. Yes, I did notice your umbrellas, but it was when I was distracted by who knows what! They’re my new favourite totally photogenic object. Enjoy your weekend, and have a few autumn hugs: mind you it’s 26° here today. My job is washing a sooty doonah, and maybe baking. R and Co are away so I’ll take liberties with their facilities.

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    1. The idea never crossed my mind, Ann! 🙂 🙂 Thirsk and the surrounding villages is Herriot country and I tend to disregard it in favour of the Yorkshire Moors. A mistake, really 🙂 Thanks for your company, hon. Hoping that all’s well.

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    1. Picture postcard England, Colline 🙂 🙂 There was one guy working on a roof, and a couple of people at the stables. I guess everyone else was at work in Thirsk or York. 🙂 Are you back at school yet?

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    1. I was impressed with the craftsmanship too, Kate. It wasn’t obvious that it was a working business till I Googled it afterwards. Nice place to work! 🙂 I do like informative links. The prices at Mouseman’s nearly made me fall over. Just as well it wouldn’t go with my stuff. I’d rather like a stool though. Making the most of fading Summer here. Thanks for your company.

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  19. Lovely pictures Jo – some of your best. How delightful that the village hall is so welcoming. I remember family holidays when I was young. My dad liked churches and we just turned up, opened the door and went inside. These days they are almost always locked!

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    1. I meant to try the chapel in Boltby, Andrew, but it somehow got overlooked in favour of the hall. There were great displays of village history in there. Really a nice idea, and a lovely spot. Thank you very much! 🙂 🙂

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  20. oh what a lovely stroll . . . . and just as I am looking at flights to Leeds either from Southampton or Faro as can’t make up my mind when to visit my friends! Can’t decide what I like best but the mice, wren and mosaics are all in the top three 🙂

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