goodrichard.com

The weather reports are conflicting; the forecasters don’t seem to know what’s going on. So, we chanced it while the fair skies stayed just that, hoped for more of the same, and pointed the Polo north west to Ribblehead, and its mighty 24-arched viaduct.

Feats of engineering: VW Polo BlueMotion and Ribblehead Viaduct

Set in the Blea Moor, and dating from 1875, it was built over a five-year period by a workforce of thousands (200 of whom died during the construction). The longest on the scenic 72-mile Settle to Carlisle railway at 402 metres, it is 32 metres high, and its curvature is so that passengers riding on the train can that goes over it, can see it, too, stretching out in front of them.

It’s just one of 17 major viaducts spanning the ravines and 14 tunnels that make up the last great mainline to be built in the UK, and it very nearly didn’t survive to be as impressive as it is. In the 1980s British Rail attempted to close the line, deliberately diverting traffic away, stating the viaduct was unsafe, and at £6m, too expensive to repair.

Ribblehead train station now a Settle to Carlisle line visitor centre

But, traffic increased as a result, and the structure was saved from a certain crumbling death. Now maintained and restored, only a single track runs across it, preventing two trains from crossing it at the same time. Standing proud at the base of Whernside mountain, it looks a mighty sight when you approach it, even though it appears to be small.

Mighty scale of Ribblehead Viaduct is impressive from any angle

Up close, the scale is arguably more impressive, but although its curvature might be good for train travelers above, on the ground, it prevents you from seeing it end to end, distorting your perspective. Stopping for pictures and surrounded by sheep at the base of the arches, the fair skies cam over dark and mysterious, and we though for a moment that our luck had finally run out.

Spared any wet stuff, we moved to the front of the structure, and snapped some more from the rock ledges some distance away. Being so long, it’s hard to get a good picture of the viaduct, as even cameras with a wide or fish eye lens still don’t quite get it all in their viewfinders. The best pictures of the Grade II listed and listed Ancient Monument are undoubtedly from the road, with a touch of zoom, with a dark and moody sky.

Thankfully, that’s just what we got this afternoon. Deciding we’d had enough of a playtime, the heavens finally opened and we had to jump in the car and head for home, past the Brimham Rocks, which due to the torrential downpour, we had to leave for another time.

‘More cheese, Gromit?’

The Wensleydale Creamery was our first stop today. The official home of Wensleydale cheese, dairy products have been made in Wensleydale since 1150, when Cistercian monks first settled there and established a monastery, four miles from Hawes. Passing down the recipe to local farmer’s wives, this small town is now home to the Wensleydale Creamery, where all cheese branding the Wensleydale mark is produced.

The creamery’s story is one of struggle and rejuvenation. Facing closure in the 1930s, it was rescued by local townsman Kit Calvert, purchased by the Milk Marketing Board in 1966, closed by Dairy Crest in 1992 (production of cheese was moved to neighbouring Lancashire), and reopened after a management buy-out the same year. A visitor centre was opened in 1994.

Arriving in time for lunch in the creamery’s restaurant (where cheese appears in many dishes on the menu), we placed our orders and ate our food before taking a tour of the on-sit museum and viewing gallery. The ‘Cheese Experience’ tour can take up to 90 minutes on cheese-producing days, but with the cheese having been made a few hours previously, we only saw it being pitched. Cheese isn’t made every day at the creamery, so it’s worth checking if production is timed for the day of your visit.

Passing through the museum first, you can learn all about the history of Wensleydale Cheese and its production through the centuries. Walk through the original farmhouse dairy, taking in the pressure room and maturing room, and then learn about the traditional cheese-making process. The specialist cheese shop completes your visit, where there are shelves of traditional Yorkshire products on offer, and of course all of the cheeses made at the creamery itself.

If you like cheese, then this is the place for you. A visit is recommended, and it’s no surprise that over 200,000 people are attracted to the creamery each year. But, you no longer have to go Wensleydale to buy its cheeses. Now sold in most major supermarkets, you can buy a taste of Yorkshire locally. Just look for the green and beige logo, with the cow’s head on it. And enjoy it the traditional Yorkshire way; with a cup of tea, and a slice of fruit cake.

With the sun still shining, we drove the 1.5 miles further north, to the hamlet of Hardraw, to see the natural wonder of Hardraw Force. Reputedly England’s largest single drop waterfall at 100 feet, access is through the historic Green Dragon Inn. Paying a small fee for entry is worth it, though, and the sound of the cascading water can be heard from several feet away.

The mighty waterfall at Hardraw is certainly a force of nature

Set in a wooded ravine, on Hardraw Beck, Hardraw Force is arguably more impressive than what we saw yesterday. It does have something in common with the wider falls at Aysgarth, though; it too has appeared in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. Maid Marian caught Robin Hood bathing at Hardraw Force, behind the gushing water, and although access behind the falls is now prohibited, it takes nothing away from the sheer spectacle of what nature has created.

We stayed for a while, taking dreamy, blurry pictures of the water, before heading home. Little did we know it, but unwittingly, we’d visited another of the All Creatures Great and Small locations; Hardraw’s parish church doubled as Darrowby Church in the series.

We arrived yesterday, after our 225-mile road trip through six counties. We’re to spend a week exploring the Yorkshire Dales, and have the Polo BlueMotion from the VW Press Office in which to do it. And while I’ve yet to pop my Dales cherry, with Northern parents, Nik used to visit as a kid.

A picture is around every corner in the Yorkshire Dales National Park

There’s much to see, and I wonder if we’ll fit it all in a week. Back home we’re reliving our childhood Sunday nights and watching the first series (from 1978) of All Creatures Great and Small, the BBC’s fondly-remembered adapted series from Yorkshire vet James Herriot’s books, so the countryside already looks familiar.

With so much to see, though, where do we start? We’re staying in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales National Park near Grassington, and decided to stay close to home today. Waterfalls and trickling streams are a common feature in this part of the country, and so taking the B6160 and A684 to Aysgarth, we visited the impressive Aysgarth Falls.

Aysgarth Falls a popular attraction in the small village of Aysgarth

A triple flight of waterfalls, the mighty River Ure has carved its way through the mid-Wensleydale landscape, and here, thousands of gallons of iron-rich orange-tinged water cascade over the broad limestone steps. Made up of three sections, upper, middle, and lower, they are one of the local beauty spots and are quite something.

You’ve probably seen them, too; scenes from the 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves starring Kevin Costner were filmed on the falls themselves. Seeing the fast flowing water with its strong currents, the shoot must have seen some tricky, and not to mention slippery conditions.

After a tea and scone stop-off (I have a feeling there may be quite a few of those over the coming week), we pointed the car north-west, and arrived at the very picturesque Bolton Castle. One of our listed locations to visit on the Herriot trail, the quadrangular structure dates from 1399, imprisoned Mary, Queen of Scots in 1569, and although damaged in the English Civil War, has been used in many TV and film productions.

The imposing Bolton Castle, overlooking Castle Bolton village below

Our link was of course, All Creatures, as it was here that James proposed to Helen (yes, of course she accepted), but it has also starred in Elizabeth, Ivanhoe, and Heartbeat. On a quiet Sunday afternoon, and lit by hazy sunshine, it really is quite beautiful. It’s arguably even prettier and almost imposing on approach, as it peeks out from the small houses in the village of Castle Bolton which surround it. It can also be picked out a few miles away, sitting proudly on its hill, among the lush green landscape round it.

With good weather (I have doubts that that will last), it’s been a highly enjoyable first day ‘up north’, and I look forward to the sights and sounds that the Dales has to reveal. From what I’ve seen and experienced so far, I think she’ll have lots to offer…