Bridge

Fantastic day with friends on their first day of walking the Dales Way - 78 miles from Ilkley in West Yorkshire to Bowness-on-Windermere in Cumbria. The route follows mostly riverside paths and passes through the heart of the Yorkshire Dales and the foothills of southern Lakeland to the shore of the lake. It will take the three of them five days to complete.

Two of us decided to meet them half way on this leg from Ilkley to Grassington. Having parked at Linton just outside Grassington, our first problem was to cross the River Wharfe. The stepping stones on the map were under more than a foot of water! An alternative was found and we ran along the easily found paths for about eight miles to Barden Bridge, where we stumbled across an ice cream van. This had to be our cue for lunch. A handily placed bench overlooking the river, beckoned us over. It wasn't long before the completers arrived and we all had a picnic before we retraced our steps - now walking - back to Grassington. Glorious weather in the afternoon, having experienced a couple of showers in the morning. We parted company at Linton and I was more than a little envious of the three who were continuing their adventure of completing this lovely walking trail. Still, not long before the weekend and another trip to the Lakes, how lucky am I :)

Oh yes the photo! Delightful suspension bridge over the mighty River Wharfe between the stretch from Linton to Burnsall. Will get around to putting a link to some pics of this lovely area as soon as. In the meantime here's a link to an amazing storm out at sea from the vantage point of the Fylde coast. I felt fortunate enough to capture this a couple of weeks ago!