Home -> Europe -> Great Britain -> Travelogue 2005 -> Sunday 28 August

To the east, Yorkshire

When we leave the Lake District it is still cold weather and dark clouds in the sky. But as soon as we leave Cumbria and cross the Penines, a mountain range that stretches trhough central England from north to south, the sun starts to break through the clouds a bit. And it gets noticeably warmer, which we like, since it has been really cold the last few days. So we leave the west coast and drive to the east, where we want to visit Yorkshire. This morning we made a detour because we wanted to visit a museum in Keswick, but it was so busy there, with traffic jams from the centre to far outside the town, that we just drove on. In fact, it is busy everywhere in England, wherever we come.

Now and then we make a stop in a town, like in Penrith, in pretty Richmond and Thirsk where we pass the James Herriot museum. And, obviously, we see cathedrals everywhere, a speciality of the English: every self-respecting town has at least one large cathedral.
Not so late in the afternoon we arrive at Helmsley, north east of York where we go to the Tourist Information to see if they can help us find a place for the night. Here again, it is very busy. People explain us that the Bank Holiday is the cause. Next week the summer holiday in England is over but the last monday of August is Bank Holiday and everybody wants to take advantage of that last day off. After a few phonecalls we find out that even most of the campsites are overcrowded.

But there is a small campsite, not far from Helmsley, where we can put our small tent. It is nice wether to camp, dry and warm. So we quickly go there, put up our tent and drive back to Helmsley to have a look around and eat a meal. It is nice to be able to walk in t-shirt again! Although we haven't come here for the weather, we always experience more of a holiday-feeling when the sun shines and we don't grow numb all the time as we did in the Lake District.

Helmsley is a colourfull town in a nice, natural environment. Today there have been carraces and in the centre of town people admire the strange and remarkable racing cars that are parked on the square. The restaurants and pubs are crowded but we are able to get a table outside after waiting for a while. When we later walk a bit out of the centre towards the castle, the streets become much quieter.

Here again a cathedral dominates the town; of the castle only a ruin is left. People in medieval costumes just come from the castle and we see more of them in the restaurants and pubs, later. There must have been a busy programm today with performances and plays!

In a supermarket Elisabeth looks around in search of her favourite candy, Sweetstars of Bonds of London. Years ago we could find them in several shops in Scotland, but the last few years we see them nowhere aymore. Even the one last shop in Beauly where they had them until last year stopped selling them. But every supermarket we enter, Elisabeth checks the candy, you never know. And today she gets the jackpot! Behind a pillar there are a few, what a luck. Elisabeth immediately takes 3 bags although there are more. At least we know that they still exist and Elisabeth is happy as a child!

Back on the campsite we enjoy the last sunrays of the day but after that it quickly cools down. But we have a warm tent and to spend the night here costs only £ 14 (€ 21), much cheaper than a hotel.

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with Elisabeth and Teije