A Yorkshire idyll

'The Burrows', North Yorkshire

 A highlight of my trip to the UK last month was my stay in North Yorkshire at 'The Burrows'. Not too far from Thirsk, turn at Moor Lane in Sessay, and travel down a bumpy country lane to this beautiful B & B in the Yorkshire countryside. Run by my good friends Mike and Jenny, The Burrows is a lovely little self-contained, self catered flat that sleeps 2 people comfortably. The Burrows

The Burrows, enter through these double doors. Enjoy your own private garden regularly visited by a variety of bird life and a cheeky squirrel.

The Burrows adjoins the main house, 'Greenfields House' at Sessay, near Thirsk

This quiet, peaceful B & B adjoins the main house, 'Greenfields House' and farm. You can meet the donkeys and pat Tom the cob horse. Chickens wander the back yard and Jenny will happily supply farm fresh eggs for your breakfast!

Sessay is not too far from the charming market town of Easingwold that hosts a variety of great shops featuring local produce, bakeriers, art, and a great cup of tea. Easingwold market is located in the Market Square and held every Friday. Thirsk is nearby as well, I visited the James Herriot centre and the local museum for a taste of the Yorkshire vet's life. And not to forget the wonderful city of York, the Minster, the city walls and a ramble in the Shambles was so much fun! The art gallery there is pretty good, but the York Castle Museum near York Castle was excellent and a must see.

The Herriot museum, Thirsk. With many pills and potions and old veterinary equipment on show. Not to mention artifacts and settings from the tv shows.

 

The Shambles. A bit heavy on the 'Potter' side of things, but still great fun

  

 

Inside the York Castle Museum: Based on the collection from Dr. Kirk, a man fascinated by history and vanishing ways of life - especially rural life. He collected obsolete and rare survivals of various trades and skills from the Victorian era. In 1935 he donated his entire collection to the City of York, and in collaboration with the City a dedicated building was built, recreating historic shop fronts and interiors to display the collection showing it in the original context. Go see this museum!  

The stunning York Minster

Honestly, there is just so much to see and do in Yorkshire. The Dales are beautiful. And the Moors! Fascinating villages to visit, wonderful people, great pubs, cheese, pork pies... stunning abbeys - the Riveavx Abbey was just amazing.... just so much to see, do and love.

Riveaux Abbey

Buttertubs pass, Yorkshire Dales

A beck in the Yorkshire dales

 

The Moors

Yorkshire has captured my heart - but nothing more so than The Burrows, and my wonderful friends Mike and Jenny. So much so, that I have started to think already about my next visit.

Sunset, overlooking the fields behind The Burrows

Sketches from the UK

 I know I promised to update this blog while I was away with pictures and sketches, but the e-sim I had was somewhat dodgy on my phone. Firstly it was a French number, which meant when I had time, it was out of service area or bandwidth, and when I had bandwidth I was too busy travelling about! Needless to say I walked my feet off, had a faboulous time touring about and staying with friends.

Here are a few images from my travel sketchbook. It is only a little travel sized from Hand Book Journals. 180gsm hotpress, lovely creamy colour at 14 x 9 cm it fit into my shoulder bag nicely. Most of the sketches were done on site, with some finishing later in the hotel/room. All were done using a LAMY fountain pen, with touches of grey marking pen, or washed LAMY, or bits of watercolour pencil/graphitint. Enjoy!

Swaledale sheep from the Yorkshire Dales. These guys stand right in the middle of the road and glare at you! Both male and female have curved horns. Black faces, white coats. Hearty little beasties.

Drystone walls are a feature of the English countryside, particularly in the Dales. Many are in disrepair. All are worthy subjects for a drawing or six!

The white church on the hill in Findochty, Scotland. A sunny, if cold and blustery day!

Fishermen's cottages snuggle up tightly against each other to keep out the wind.

The tide was out at Portsoy, Scotland. To get to the moored boats you needed to climb this rickety ladder.

You need a strong, tough boat to fish the North Seas.

Pitlochry, Scotland. A pretty village filled with Victorian era buildings.

Hettie, my friend Mike's very spoiled, yet sweet princess Cocker Spaniel.

Open fields, blue skies, fluffy clouds, barley and poppies waving in the breeze. A beautiful day in Yorkshire.

Reivaulx Abbey in Yorkshire. A wonderful afternoon, strolling among the ruins of this ancient abbey.

The smallest house in the UK can be found in Ambleside, Lake District. The Bridge house over the Stock Beck has only two rooms, one up, one down. At one time the local basket weaver, his wife and six children lived here!

Castlerigg Stone Circle, Lake District

Herdwick sheep. These guys have unique colouring, black coats and white faces. Native to the Lake District, Beatrix Potter was instrumental in saving this breed.

Yeoman Warder at the Tower of London. This gentleman kindly let me quickly sketch him. He has served over 28 years in the Royal Marines, two tours of duty in Afganistan and one in Iraq. A chest full of medals. On this day he was wearing 'half' formal dress as it was the King's Birthday. A proud serviceman.

 

Finally, a very quick sketch of the Cutty Sark, Greenwich. I didn't go on board, it is sort of a Disney adventure these days with costumed guides, holograms, bells and whistles. Maybe next visit!