Ripon

 Today I headed from Osmotherley to Northallerton and there picked up Sustrans Route 71 to Bedale which was a lovely mix of private road and roads with zero cars on. From Bedale I village hopped to Masham for some lunch and then onto Ripon where I'm staying at the rather posh looking Ripon Inn. 

Lots of winding roads and attractive farmland again and I enjoyed a close up view of a combine harvester hard at work. 

The day was a little over 40miles but it was pretty hot and the countryside was "rolling" so it felt like I got a good workout! 

I've cycled through Ripon before but have only ever stopped for a cafe and to take a snapshot of the cathedral. So it was nice to have an evening to wander round the town and the spa gardens. Also it's free to go in the cathedral- York should take note. 

Heading back home tomorrow on what should hopefully be an easy (and flat) run back to York via the Way of the Roses. Several admin bits to sort out as well as some packing to do before heading to the States. 



Crossing the river Swale
Church in Thornton Watlass. You can tell you're on the right track to the next village as you can always spot the church spire about a mile away! 


Home for the night, posher than a dorm room.


Alice in Wonderland themed art in Ripon Spa Gardens


Ripon Cathedral 

I know the way to go tomorrow......



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Malmsbury & the Yarra Valley

Image
I was woken by a very noisy crow. The cawing of crows has definitely been the soundtrack to Australia! It was also very cold outside - don't be fooled by the blue sky in the pictures, temperatures were between 7 and 9 degrees all day with a wind that I reckon came straight from the Antarctic. At least it was mostly dry. As I went to school in Malmesbury, Wiltshire I had to stop in Malmsbury, Victoria even though they lost the 'e' at some point. This was once a supply town for the goldfields and now retains a small high street and gardens. It was actually a bit more charming than it came out in the photos and I did my bit for the economy by visiting the bakery and antique/gift shop.  I then realised I was driving straight past Hanging Rock so that made a nice place for a walk and explore. It was too cold for a Picnic at Hanging Rock which is just as well as apparently that's quite a dangerous activity. The rock itself is an extinct volcano and rock type is trachyte. It l...
Read more

Jurien Bay

Image
Yesterday was spent driving south on highway 1. This is the 9,000 mile road which circles Australia but I had enough of it yesterday - I was on a very straight bit for several hours. As I got south though there started to be noticeably more trees, flowers and colourful shrubs.  I stopped off for the night at a lovely Airbnb in Geraldton and this morning drove another couple of hours south to Jurien Bay. I bypassed Jurien Bay on the way north when it would have been raining anyway. There was not a cloud in the sky today. As usual there are pristine white beaches and a turquoise sea. In fact this stretch of the coastline is dubbed the 'turquoise coast'.  There are three things to do in Jurien Bay 1) take a walk along the beach 2) eat fresh mackerel at the beach cafe and 3) go snorkeling with the friendly Australian sealions. I completed the first two today and have a boat ride booked at 7am tomorrow to tick off number three. Apparently sealions like to wake up early.  Some ...
Read more

Phillip Island

Image
Today I took a day tour from Melbourne to see the penguins on Phillip Island, with a couple of stops on the way. First we drove via Albert Park, which has lovely views of the city over the lake, to Brighton Beach. This is famous for its colourful Victorian bathing boxes. They used to be changing rooms and now go for a small fortune even though you can't do much with them!  Next stop was Moonlit Sanctuary wildlife park which is a small park of Australian animals. The wombat was my favourite as well as the koalas of course.  Then onto Phillip Island and after a couple of viewpoints, and some swamp wallaby spotting onto the Penguin Parade.  Phillip Island is home to the aptly named Little Penguin. They are only about a foot tall - really tiny. They come on shore shortly after sunset each night to their cozy burrows. Visitors have been coming to see them since the 1920s. One beach is open to visitors with boardwalk and seating area you need to stay within. The penguins don't ...
Read more