Sandra's 70th Birthday Weekend in Reeth

We had been invited by Sandra to Reeth for the weekend to spend some time together celebrating her 70th Birthday. We met Margaret and Robert at Gretna and I drove the 4 of us to Reeth in time for us to go on the Wensleydale Railway from Redmire to Leyburn. This is a lovely railway line run by volunteers and today they had added extra trains to take people into Leyburn for the Tour of Yorkshire Bike Race. It was a great way of doing it and avoided problems parking and the service was free with just a collection tin for donations. We are on the old train and these kind of carriages brought back some happy memories from 50 years ago.

Sandra, Margaret, and Gaye have been best friends for well over 50 years 

Having our picnic in Leyburn before the race. Bob and Sandra were the perfect hosts and this was a lovely place just a few yards from where the cycle race would pass in about 30 minutes time.  

This shopkeeper provided Gaye with a chair from which she could watch the race go by

The breakaway group of 5 riders were a good 3 minutes ahead of the peloton but much later in the race and just a few kilometres from the finish they were caught and eventually these 5 finished well back in the field. It was a great atmosphere in Leyburn with plenty of entertainment going on in the square.

On Saturday evening Sandra, Margaret, and I went for a lovely walk along the river Swale and it was the most beautiful evening with so much wild life to be seen beside the river.  

Sandra & Margaret enjoying the last rays of sun beside the river. 

The sun had disappeared in the valley but up on the hill my cousin Hilary's house was still enjoying the late evening sunshine on The White House at Fremington Edge. I walked up there early on Saturday morning and it was just beautiful looking over the town of Reeth

The village of Reeth from the road heading up to The White House 

On Sunday Sandra had planned a walk from the village of Muker up the Swaledale valley to a small village called Thwaite where we stopped at a lovely pub for a drink before heading back along the trail to Muker.

After our walk we headed to Arkengarthdale for a birthday lunch at the CB Inn which was Gaye and Margarets treat to their best friend Sandra. It had been a whirlwind weekend and we had to leave after lunch to come home but the weather and hospitality had been superb and it was a weekend to remember for years to come. Special thanks to our hosts Sandra & Bob.

The Shawl at Leyburn in Wensleydale

It's our second day in Reeth and Bob is taking me this morning on a 6 mile walk called The Leyburn Shawl. It starts at Leyburn and heads up Wensleydale on a limestone escarpment called the Shawl and then crosses for the return on the other side of the Dale.

This is the path we take from Leyburn looking backwards with The Wensleydale valley on our right.

The view looking down into Wensleydale with Pencil Crags in the distance.

This was the engine room for the Keld Heads Smelt Mill

The walk now passes through lovely open fields with the Wensleydale Railway passing through them

A lovely downhill section through grassy fields into the valley bottom

The Village green in Wensley

Wensley church

This is Low Wood Lane an ancient track leading up from the river Ure to Leyburn. Used as a footpath it is very difficult walking on this surface but it must have been used for hundreds of years. 

After finishing our walk we headed to The  Tennants Auction House for lunch with the girls who were there to see what was being auctioned today. On the way back over the moor to Reeth we saw loads of Grouse but this was the only one I managed to photograph.

A superb walk with plenty to see and well signposted.