Dalesman February 2012

January 25, 2012

My trips this month span the breadth of North Yorkshire, with visits to Leyburn, Thirsk, and Sutton Bank.

Castle Bolton is a visitor attraction near Leyburn

Castle Bolton, once a fearsome Mediaeval stronghold, now a peaceful visitor attraction

In Leyburn, Alix Warland and Martin Crowson were typical of so many people I meet in the Dales.  For every person who can trace their family back over generations in the same village, there’s someone else who has moved in because they fell in love with the Dales.  And that love has caused them to throw themselves wholeheartedly into learning about their new home, and supporting its community.

As we drank our coffee, we fell to discussing the shopping in Leyburn.  Martin described it as “A totally difference experience to a lookalike high street.”  And, he commented, “There are three food stores, including one of the finest independents in the country.”

I had to agree.  I’ve bought things in Leyburn that I couldn’t find in other towns.  For instance, the household goods store in the former town hall, smack in the centre of the market place, is an Aladdin’s cave for the homemaker.

And Leyburn is a hidden gem for quality clothes and shoes, as well as food.

In fact, as I walked back to the car, a shop caught my eye, I nipped in for a browse – and came out with a new skirt.

A result for Leyburn!

Find out more about visiting Leyburn at www.welcometoleyburn.co.uk

Prof Dominic Powlesland

Prof Dominic Powlesland has spent decades studying the prehistoric landscape of Yorkshire

Over at Sutton Bank, Professor Dominic Powlesland, of the Landscape Research Centre, was explaining what they discovered when they dug a Bronze Age burial mound at Boltby Scar.  Such burial mounds pepper the Moors, and, he says, the remains of many more lie beneath the ploughed fields of the Vale of Pickering.

Traditionally, they were believed to be the burial place of an important personage, but Dominic’s work now points, he says, to longer term use as a burial site over hundreds of years, perhaps for a family or clan.

The barrow they dug at Boltby, he thinks, may be indicative of similar practices for other, similar looking barrows.  He says it revealed, “A long and complex history of both construction and robbing.”

They identified six phases of the life of the barrow.  Phase 1 was a stone ring, with large irregular limestone blocks laid on bed of pebbles.  They think it may have defined the area of a flat cemetery.  There was evidence of burning – perhaps funeral pyres?

Phase 2 was a turf mound within the stone ring.  There was lots of charcoal in the turf – carbonised hazel shells, indicating domestic activity.  Carbon 14 dating gave an age of around 1920-1730 BC.

They called phase 3 the ‘yellow mound’, as a thick deposit of yellow-brown clayey soil had been laid over the charcoaley soil of phase 2.

Phase 4 was a pebbly mound that covered over the yellow clay and extended to the stone ring.  It was made of clean silty soil with a layer of pebbles on the surface.

Phase 5 placed a wattle fence around the mound, with limestone slabs leaning up against the fence.  The vertical slabs of pale limestone, high on the escarpment, would have been visible from a considerable distance.

At phase 6, the whole mound , fence and stone rings were buried with a thick layer of fine silty soil.  Covering the limestone dimished its visibility in the landscape, but made the mound taller.

Dominic thinks that these phases probably developed over hundreds of years, starting around 2000 BC, in the early Bronze Age.  That is why he believes that it was used for many burials, not just one single person.

Whatever the significance of the mound to its original builders, the mound continues to draw people to it even today, around four thousand years later.

Read more about Dominic’s work at www.landscaperesearchcentre.org

Later this year, an exhibition of the findings at Boltby will be staged at Sutton Bank Vistor Centre.

Advanced student Alex Coode learns about historic ironwork at C Topp and Co

Advanced student Alex Coode learns about historic ironwork at C Topp and Co

Meanwhile, today, Chris Topp’s ironworks near Thirsk are attracting visitors from far and wide, who come to learn about his work with historic iron.

Although Chris also designs and makes brand new items, he has been involved with restoring historic iron work for decades.

He also does ‘practical archaeology’: making a replica of a historic artefact, in order to discover how it was made.  Much of this work has been filmed for TV, and he’s been involved in projects relating to a Roman Well, the Titanic, the Mary Rose, and even the Eiffel tower.

So when it was decided to form a body to provide proper training and qualifications for people working on valuable historic ironwork, it was natural that Chris should be involved.

The National Heritage Iron Group has been formed in order to provide training for a new generation of blacksmiths to continue learning the historic skills to care for our ironwork heritage.

www.christopp.co.uk

www.nhig.org.uk

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Dalesman January 2012

December 23, 2011

For the start of 2012, Dalesman looks at two very traditional sets of people.

Doreen Wardle, speaker of East Yorks dialect

Doreen Wardle, speaker of East Yorks dialect

Doreen Wardle lives in Harome, and speaks the dialect of East Yorkshire.  Like other north-east coastal speakers, her voice had a sing-song rythm that you need to ‘get your ear in’ to understand.

Soon, though we were laughing,  and when it was time to leave, initially I was sorry to part with her.  But I remembered that she’d mentioned  that she enjoys views of two thatched cottages from her home in Harome, so I decided to take a walk around the village.

I was fascinated by the range of different building materials there.  I’m used to villages that are mainly built of one material: bricks in the Vale of York, limestone in the Dales.  Roofs are usually of clay pantiles, slates, or ‘thakking stones’.  But in Harome, quite a few buildings were thatched, including the well-known gastro-pub ‘The Star’.

Other houses were built of brick, or of stone.  One very ancient looking little cottage had lovely Yorkshire sash windows.

And one house looked like a modern build, but still had a thatched roof.

I think it will be worth finding out a little bit more about the houses in Harome.

Peter Meese calls the dancers

Peter Meese calls up the dancers to perform in Kirkby Malzeard Church

And over in Kirkby Malzeard, the men were celebrating a very ancient tradition: Plough Sunday.  Unusually, in Kirkby, a sword dancing troupe dances in Church to mark this day – the return to work after the Christmas break.

But the sword dancers don’t stop for Christmas: Boxing Day is one of their fixed dates for dancing.  Spokesman Ted Dodsworth says: “People are waiting for us.” Fellow group member  Peter Meese says, “we dance it innumerable times, up and down the village.”

Kirkby Malzeard has boasted a sword dancing team for many generations, but the dancers’ outfits have varied over the years.  Ted says, “I asked a chap who danced in the 1930s about the uniform.  He said you got a pair of trousers and used your own belt.  The trousers were ‘one size fits all’ and I’ve got a photograph of a freat wide pair of trousers.”

“In the 1950s, they wore flowered skirts.  It was a women’s team, and I’m told it’s very difficult to do the dance wearing a skirt.”  Ted adds, “Womens’ teams weren’t ususual.  After the Great War, there was a shortage of men, and Cecil Sharp taught women so that the dances wouldn’t die out.”

Today, the team is back to a traditional all men group – smartly dressed in matching trousers, shirts and waistcoats.  And very smart they look too, while dancing to the Glory of God.

Read more about the Highside Longsword dance team at  http://www.teddodsworth.talktalk.net/hl/highside.htm

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Dalesman November 2011

November 1, 2011
158 squadron memorial includes the names of those who gave their lives

The 158 Squadron memorial is inscribed with the name of each serviceman who gave his life

In this November’s issue of Dalesman, I met the man who sculpted the memorial to 158 Squadron, Bomber Command, who flew from Lissett Airfield.

Every November, when Remembrance Day comes around, I hear yet another humbling story of the courage of ordinary people who were called upon to do extraordinary things.

‘Bluey’ Mottershead, who flew in 158 Squadron, told me: “Many people like myself didn’t consider being shot down.  We never thought about it. I had 14 gunners fly with me on operations, in all.  They told me the best way: my job was to fly; the navigator’s job was to get us there.”

‘Bluey’ was lucky enough to survive his time in Bomber Command, but many were less fortunate.

Peter Naylor, the artist who designed the Memorial sculpture at Lissett Airfield, studied as much as he could about the airmen he was commemorating.  He says, “Bomber Command ran missions every night from September 1939 until the end of the War.  ”

He adds, “When a plane was carrying 10 tons of incendiary bombs and 100 gallons of aviation fuel, if it was hit, it just vapourised into the sky.  The people in Bomber Command had the courage to keep going out, night after night, after seeing planes next to them just blow up and disappear.”

Peter said that he found many books, and that interest in the 1939-45 War doesn’t seem to be waning.  He speculates: “I think perhaps one reason for that is because it was absolutely a national war – everyone was involved, and the nation was united.”

Even after making the memorial, Peter is still discovering more about the men who served in 158 Squadron.  This is because he also made a miniature of the sculpture, and says, “People still come to buy the miniatures, and everyone has a story to tell.”

“I try to take the details of everyone who buys a miniature, like a little family.  I mean to compile all their stories into a dossier.”

The sculpture won the Marsh Award for Excellence in Public Sculpture, and Harry Irons accompanied Peter to collect the award.  Peter says, “Harry joined up when he was under age.  He knew that the life expectancy was about six weeks – he was a real hero.”

Peter says he’s never had a commission that means as much to him as the 158 Memorial, and he is now interested in making other Memorial Sculptures.  He has bid to make one to mark the contribution of the Women’s Land Army – so we may be hearing more of Peter Naylor and his work.

INFORMATION:

The 158 Memorial stands beside the road from Lissett to Gransmoor.

The Squadron Association holds an annual memorial service over the first weekend of September.  For details, see www.158squadron.co.uk, or telephone 0181 467 6775

Miniatures are available from Peter Naylor, who also gives talks about the Memorial.  Contact him on 01482 868311, or at www.peternaylor.co.uk

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Dalesman October 2011

September 29, 2011
fungi fruiting bodies on dead wood in Dalby Forest

fungi on dead wood

For Dalesman this month, I’ve had the privilege of meeting some very knowledgeable wildlife experts: David Hodgson, who has spent hours lying in the cold, wet dark , studying wildlife in caves, and Brian Walker, a retired forest ranger.

I spent a fascinating morning with Brian, now retired and enjoying spending his time on nature study and conservation.  His many years with the Forestry Commission have given him a deep knowledge, and conversation ranged over the lifestyles of fungi, the sustainable production of timber, conservation and climate change.

Fungi are neither plant nor animal, but something else.  Unlike plants, they cannot make energy from the sunshine, but must feed like animals.  But unlike animals, they cannot move, and they reproduce by spreading spores.  The toadstools and mushrooms we see carry the spores, which grow into new individuals.

Sometimes fungi live in partnership with a plant.  In these cases, said Brian, “None are destroying or weakening each other, but they’re interdependent.”

Other fungi are involved in decay, but this is a vital part of recycling nutrients back into the soil, so that new plants – and trees – can grow.

Many fungi are poisonous because fungi produce complex substances different to other plants or animals.  However, like the rainforest and the coral reef, this makes them a rich hunting ground for new chemicals that can have medicinal uses.

For instance, penicillin came from a type of fungus, and, said Brian, “There’s a fungus that makes people sick if they eat it and drink alcohol.  From that, they’ve developed a medicine for alcoholics.”

When working for the Forestry Commission, Brian worked closely with many other groups to promote conservation and biodiversity.  He commented that the expertise within the Forestry Commission meant that the forests were managed to the best known practice, for economic and sustainable timber production, for conservation, and to provide access for people to enjoy the forests.

He saw this practice as vital as the climate changes.  He stressed that conserving biodiversity means giving space to everything, not just species that we might find attractive.  For instance, he commented, “People dislike birds of prey because they eat the birds that come to their bird tables.”

He added, “The idea that there’s a unique British environment that can preserved can’t be done.  Dalby used to be a rabbit warren, now it’s a forest.  Things will change, and we must allow adaptation.  For instance, buzzards are moving south, and the honey buzzard is moving north.  We’re into change, it’s inevitable.”

However, he was upbeat, and thought that forests can accept change, and in fact, that change is a vital part of the life of the forest.   He commented that as areas are felled to harvest timber, particular species move into these areas.  He said, “There’s a bird called the great grey shrank, that comes in winter.  It might, with climate change, nest in Britain.  It loves the areas we fell, because it sits in the treetops, but forages in the open areas.  If we didn’t clear fell areas, there wouldn’t be these parts of the forest for them.”

The progression of natural change means that plants grow in clear felled areas, gradually filling them again.  But as new areas are harvested for timber, new clear areas are formed.

It’s all part of maintaining the biodiversity that Brian sees as key to protecting all species.

Read all about it in Dalesman

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Dalesman Magazine, September 2011

August 30, 2011

The new Dalesmans are out, with yet more insights into what makes Yorkshire such a great place to live, work, or take a holiday.

UNIVERSITY OF YORK DEPT OF ARCHAEOLOGY

The Archaeology Department is in a historic building in York

For this month’s edition, I visited Nicky Milner, an archaeologist at York University whose work had unearthed tantalising evidence that raises the question of whether there was a stone age settlement near Pickering.

She’s been working on the archaeology of Star Carr for decades and says, “The more we find, the more questions we bring up.  It’s my dream to get back and dig again.”

They have found remains of a house and a waterside ‘platform’ –  perhaps a pier, boardwalk, or wharf – towards one corner of a roughly traingular promontory jutting into the lake.  Test pits show more human acitivity on the rest of promotory.  Might there be more houses there?   Was it a base camp, a summer hunting lodge, or even a village?

It’s exciting because current thinking says that at this time, human activity in Yorkshire was limited to small groups of itinerant hunters.  But to build a platform requires lots of people to come together, and work together.  So this work could revolutionise beliefs about stone age society.

The stone age seems so long ago – but other evidence shows these people to be very like us: discoveries of beads show that they liked to make themselves look good, just as we do today.

Nicky and her colleagues are desperate to discover more – and time is running out.  Laboratory work this winter has proved that the valuable organic remains, having survived for 11,000 years, are beginning to decay.

The race is on to dig and find out more before the evidence is lost forever.

Read more about Nicky’s researches in Dalesman, and at www.starcarr.com

Woodalls of Malton is in the Market Place

Woodall's of Malton is housed in a historic building in the Market Place

Over in Malton, Winston Kobylka is doing his part to preserve traditional craft skills.

He says that he’d heard that Woodall’s was for sale, so went along to take a look.  He says that he walked in, liked it, and asked to buy it ‘just like that’.

He’s scathing of people who ask questions about business plans and how much money he expects to make.  “I’m not in it for that,” he says, “It’s that we’re sustainable and make ecological products which will safeguard the future.”

He believes that everything can’t be made abroad for ever, and hopes that Woodall’s will help to keep skills alive in Britain.  But, they are still dependent on imports for raw materials, and he says, “Sadly, economic times have us battling against costs of cotton, sisal and hessian.  Some is produced in the UK, but the majority is sourced overseas.”

And he adds, “Hessian or jute may spend 4 months at sea, during which time the price changes several times.  It’s to do with the futures market, currency fluctuations, and forward trading.”

It’s likely he knows what he’s talking about: he listed some of his previous jobs.  As well as working in historic building conservation, he’d done photography, basketry, technical work for the Department of Transport, translating, supply chain management, and, most recently, teaching economics.

Now he’s adding rope splicing to his many skills, but when he walks around his shop, he’s like a child in a toy shop, revelling in the sheer variety of the stock.

“Look at the glove cupboard,” he said, showing a large double cupboard filled with all sorts of gloves.  And the halters – for animals ranging from bulls to ferrets.  There were racks and racks of different sorts of string and rope, trays and drawers of knives, scissors, and equipment for sheep and lambs.

Woodall’s is one of those shops that’s full of ‘useful stuff’, and the more you look, the more you see.  And it’s well worth asking too – assistant Dilys has been there for twenty one years, and knows what’s there.

Many customers are farmers, and Winston says, “Canvas and tarpaulin covers for horse drawn wagons were the backbone of this business.  Now we use a lot of PU and PVC for tarpaulins, but still the main business is these covers, mainly for agricultural use.”

Covers to protect from weather will always be useful – and so too is the rope to tie them down.  Winston says, “The history of rope is fundamental to all industries.”

Woodall’s is in the centre of Malton,  www.gwoodall.com/

Roger Sedgwick, third generation farmer

Roger Sedgwick, dairy farmer, tests his grass for silage

Later  I ventured over the Pennines to Sedbergh, where I visited the Sedgwick family.   I was struck at how different the landscape was to the Moors and Pennine Dales that I see from my home in the Vale of Mowbray.

My nearest hills are the North York Moors, flat-topped and dark with heather.

The hills at the Sedgwicks’ farm on the Howgill Fells were very different: much higher, rounded, and a uniform soft light green colour.  From the distance of the lower slopes, they looked as if clad in apple-green velvet.

Roger explained they had rights for grazing the high fells, in addition to their own farmland lower down the hill.  His father Geoff keeps the Rough Fell sheep that are adapted to the area.  But he explained that many of the families that had farmed the fells in his youth have now given up farming.  The land is concentrating into fewer farms – who are keeping fewer sheep.

This could lead to the landscape changing again.  I consulted the Yorkshire Dales National Park website to find about the Howgills, and it said that, centuries ago, forest was cleared to make way for sheep farming.  Without the sheep, maybe one day this forest might return: Roger commented that gorse that had been cleared was now growing again on the fell.

Aside from the sheep, Roger also commented that administrators over the years had caused confusion in their location:  “We were in the West Riding of Yorkshire.  Now we’re under Cumbria County Council, we have a Lancaster Post Code, and we’re in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.”

Now, debate is raging as to whether more of this area should be taken into the Yorkshire Dales National Park.  There are views on both sides, and only time will tell who wins.

Meanwhile, there is no doubt that the Howgills are a strikingly different – and breathtaking – landscape.

Like all English landscapes, it’s a landscape that has been shaped by farming, and farming now is changing.  Smaller farms need to diversify to survive, and the Sedgwicks plan to do this by making ice cream.

However, it may not be such a new development after all.  Geoff recalls his father being involved in a number of business ventures: “He was a master cabinetmaker,” recalls Geoff.  “I came across someone with furniture he made, dated 1895, the year he came here.”

“He was into lots of things, though.  For three years, he had three farms – he gave two of them up after a few years.  He was also an insurance agent, and sold dips.”

He also built himself a nice new house, that the family now lets out to holidaymakers.

Roger adds, “He was also in the local Militia.  He guarded the King and Queen’s train at Sedbergh in 1917.  They stopped at the station and slept in the train overnight.”

Roger also says, pointing at a field now grazed by his cows:  “My Grandfather was also at Gallipolli.  When he came home, he walked up from Sedbergh Station in the evening, and next morning, he was ploughing that field.”

Nowadays, Roger cuts silage to feed his cows in winter, and his pastures are full of rich grass.  On the higher slopes, open with no fences or walls, his father Geoff’s Rough Fell sheep graze.

Roger now hopes that his latest addition to the family’s ventures, ice cream, will keep the family farming for another generation.

See www.holidaysedbergh.co.uk

email: sedgwick665@btinternet.com  Telephone: 01539 620252

Geoff’s Rough Fell Sheep are featured in “Kendal Rough Fell Sheep: the breed, the people and the furture”, published by the Rough Fell Breed Association, www.roughfellsheep.co.uk

Read everything in full in Dalesman Magazine, in print only, from good newsagents, or visit  www.dalesman.co.uk for a money-saving subscription.

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Dalesman, August 2011, Living with a Windfarm

July 29, 2011

Introduction

I’ll be upfront about this: windfarms have been controversial for a long time, but I didn’t really look into the debates until there were proposals in my district.

As is common when a windfarm is proposed, there was a hotly-argued campaign, both for and against.

It’s easy to find lots of news reports about these campaigns.  And it’s easy to find websites claiming that living near a windfarm is not nice.  But they are written mainly by people campaigning against a windfarm being built, not by people who have actually experienced living near a wind farm.

It’s difficult to find reports of living near a windfarm by people who are actually experiencing it.  After a windfarm is actually built, media reports tend to disappear.  Is this because there’s actually not much to say?  Is it because it’s like when other new developments arrive?  For instance, new supermarkets often generate opposition at the planning stage, but after it’s built, people get used to it, then they end up shopping there.

Or, are the suggestions that windfarms make people ill true, and these people have no strength for further complaints?

I wanted to find out what it was like to live near a wind farm after the hype had died down.  And this was surprisingly difficult to do.

Here is an account of how I did it, and what I found out.

Method

I aimed to be as impartial as possible, and avoid ‘putting words into people’s mouths’.  I simply asked, “Tell us what it’s like to live near a windfarm.”

I began in late 2009, tracking down the addresses for parishes with windfarms in them, and contacted the Parish Clerk, asking him/her to display a poster asking people to get in touch with their windfarm experiences.  I contacted 23 parishes in total.  Some were in Yorkshire, Cumbria, and Co Durham, because these are areas where many windfarms are springing up.  I also contacted parishes in Cornwall because this is the site of some of our oldest-established windfarms.  These people would have real, long term, practical experience of living near a windfarm.

The result was: nothing.  I got the odd email, one or two phone calls – but mainly, a resounding silence.

Disheartened, I picked on two windfarms that I could easily travel to: Knabs Ridge near Harrogate, and Lissett Airfield near Bridlington.  I searched online and in the telephone directory to find people in these areas who I could call.  These people gave me other contacts, and gradually, I built a collection of comments.

I can’t say that I had a statistical sample – but I did try to find as many people as I could, and to ask the open question ‘tell me what it’s like to live near a windfarm.’

They could have answered ‘no different to before it was built’ – and a few did.  But many did not.

wind turbines at Lissett

Lissett windfarm

Findings: Knabs Ridge

I tried to get an overview, by asking a ward councillor what she’d heard from people in the area.  Cllr Hill said that she felt there was divided opinion, but she had heard  that, “Many people had to have their TV satellite dishes changed because of the towers.  And there’s noise – a whoosh whoosh for those living near, but I can’t say how close.”

She also commented that on one occasion, Felliscliffe Parish Council had contacted the windfarm operators to complain about the noise – and that the company “knew immediately what was wrong, and they fixed it immediately.”

“The community fund has been paying out.  It was controversial, the borders of it spread out and out.  Parish Councils can’t ask, but community groups can.”

On the whole, though, she felt: “It’s not an ongoing problem.  It’s like when a large new estate is built – it’s a fait accompli.”

I rang quite a few people from Kettlesing and Felliscliffe, who I found at ramdom in the telephone directory.  Many were not keen to speak to me- when I said ‘windfarm’, they became silent.  I am not in the habit of harrassing members of the public, so I apologised and left them be.

Of those who did speak, few would give their names.

One man emailed to say that he enjoyed seeing the turbines as he drove past on his way to work – he thought they looked beautiful.

Mike Lowsley, who lives in Harrogate, represented the Ramblers’ Association when they objected to the windfarm being built.  He said, “I’m no longer on the committee , so I can’t speak for the RA.  But on a personal level, I think the impact is even greater than we expected.  There are a number of smaller windturbines – less than 6kW – on farms in Nidderdale, but they don’t seem to have the same landscape impact.  It’s a question of scale.”

A member of staff at a nearby restaurant on the main A59 road said that she’d noticed no effects from the windfarm.  “No-one’s said anything to me,” she said.

A lady living in the nearby village of Kettlesing said, “The windfarm doesn’t affect me very much, as I’m in a dip, and I don’t see them from my house.  I’ve never noticed any noise.  But the A59 is a busy, dangerous road, with traffic most of the time.  The traffic noise outweighs the noise of the windfarm.”

But, she added, “Nobody wanted it.  It is an eyesore, to be honest.  The person affected very badly had a house under the windfarm.  She got no compensation.  She moved away.  It took 3 years to sell, and it went at a giveaway price.”

One man summed up the general feeling when he said, “We live in the AONB, and we’re not allowed to do anything without special permission.  The windfarm is only 25 feet from the AONB.  We had a lovely view, then these things popped up, whining, with red lights flashing at night.  Although we’ve got used to it, we’d definitely prefer them not to be there.  The people who want them live miles away.”

Many people said that they felt that their opinions, and those of the district planning authority, had counted for nothing.  The District Council had refused planning permission for the windfarm, but this was overturned at appeal – and people said they felt this was a ‘done deal’ from the start.

One man was prepared to give his name: Peter Kershaw.  He said, “We live at High Moor Farm, about half a mile from Knabs Hill.  The wind farm looks on top of us because it’s that big – we’re about a field away.  No-one else is really in line like us.  We’re on the east side, the westerlies blow over to us.  There’s no one to the west.  On the southern side, there’s nobody for a mile or so.  There’s only us who seems to be in this bit.”

“It’s noise as much as anything.   When they’re operating, you get a whuff-whuff-whuff.  In certain wind directions, it’s horrendous.  Most prevailing wind is from the west, so we get most of it.  The next neighbours are about a mile away, the sound’s dropping off that far.”

“And you get blade flicker when the sun’s setting – it drives you mad.”

“We’ve complained, but it’s like banging your head against a brick wall.  This last year, we’ve given up.  For the last 8 to 9 months, we’ve not bothered complaining.”

“We had Harrogate Council on it – even though she offered to come out on nights when it was windy, we got nowhere, so we’ve given up.”

Peter and his family run a caravan holiday park, and, he said, “It’s cost us a lot of trade, we think , though they won’t accept it because they say it’s down to the recession, which started two and a half years ago.  [Knabs Ridge  began operating in September 2008.]  Though in other recessions, we’ve not dropped off.  Caravanning holds up when people can’t go abroad.”

A spokesperson for Harrogate Council said, “We have just two complaints and they were from the nearby caravan park.  These complaints were not progressed as the residents didn’t provide us with any details and the complaint has been closed.  No doubt they moved on too if they were only holidaying.  So they are the only two complaints we have on record.”

Findings: Lissett

I’d say that at Knabs Ridge, the majority of people I spoke to didn’t like the windfarm.  At Lissett, opinion was much more divided.  People living in Lissett village said they had no problem with the windfarm, while people a short distance up the road complained.  It seemed odd that feelings could be so different over such a short distance, so I took a trip to see for myself.

My main findings are published in Dalesman Magazine, August 2011, with extra information written here in my blog.

As soon as I parked my car and walked up Lissett’s main street, I could see why people in the village said they couldn’t see the windfarm, even though it was so close.  From the main street, I couldn’t see the windfarm, because a copse of trees happened to be in exactly the right place to block the view of it.

But would people hear noise, even if they couldn’t see the windfarm?  I walked around and asked people who I met – even banged on a few doors.  One man said that if the wind was high, and he was in his garden, he could hear it, but added, “It really doesn’t affect me.”  Everyone else said that they didn’t notice it: no problems at all.

Eddie Bartram lives in Lissett village and said, ”I was on the Parish Council during the planning phase.  I’m now retired from the Parish Council, so this is my personal opinion.  There are 32 houses in Lisset, at the time of the planning, there were 82 adults.  The Parish council did a straw poll, and 92% of 82 people were totally in favour, OR, didn’t give a toss.  5 households out of 32 were against it.  So we had no problem as a Parish council in supporting the application.”

“From a personal point of view, anything that cuts carbon dioxide gets my vote.”

From his home, he sees little of the turbines, because of the trees.  And, he said, “In the village where we live, we can’t hear a thing.”

“There’s a village nearby called Gransmore, about two and a half miles from the turbines, and they have an unobstructed view.  One family had a justified complaint – it was in clear view – I did appreciate that.  But they were outside our Parish.”

He added, “Two complaints dealt with strobing, if the sun is behind the blades it can be a problem to certain people – but it’s not a problem here.  They [objectors] also said it would interfere with TV, but we haven’t had any problems here.”

“Personally, I’ve had no problems from noise, TV interference, or strobing – no adverse effects.”

Eddie added, “There’s another element, a clawback in cash.  The windfarm people put £25,000 per year, for the 25 year life of the windfarm, into a pot.  They take claims for good causes.  It’s a good thing.”

“158 Squadron flew from Lissett, and lost 851 aircrew.  Novera [the windfarm developers] funded a memorial, now in the village’s keeping.”

“

The only thing I can remember from before the windfarm was that we didn’t get £25,000 a year.”

Eddie likes visiting Scotland, and is hoping to move there.  Therefore, his house is for sale.  He said, “When I see the wind turbines– they’re all over Scotland – when the blades are turning, I find them beautiful and comforting.  But when they’re stationary, I find them threatening.  I don’t know why, it’s illogical – but I’d rather see them turning.  Their proper place in life is motion.

There were several houses for sale in Lissett, but with the housing market currently moving slowly, it’s hard to say whether this was unusual.  And people who were planning on staying in Lissett, and even those recently moved in, all said they weren’t troubled by the windfarm.  The copse, and the position of the village relative to wind, sun, and the turbines, seems to have saved them from problems.

Along the road to Gransmoor, people weren’t so lucky.  Their position relative to sun,  wind and trees meant that they got shadow flicker in their homes (a strobe-like effect when the turbine blades move between the viewer and the sun), and noise was blown towards them.

The man universally acknowledged to have the clearest view of the windfarm, John Ost, had made a formal complaint.  Having done so, he was asked to keep records of when there was a problem.  This was necessary in order to see whether the windfarm was, or was not, operating within the rules set for it.

However, keeping those records was a job in itself.  John showed them to me: pages and pages of dates, times, and descriptions.  He is aware that keeping such records brings its own problems.  He said, “I can see that it is evidence, but I try not to listen out for it.  I only record it if impinges on us – I don’t want to get into obsessive behaviour.”

It’s also a lot of work: a complaint could easily founder if the complainant hadn’t the time, skills, or inclination for weeks and weeks of meticulous documentation.

John had taken the trouble to do this for noise, which was troubling him by keeping him awake at night.  However, when it came to shadow flicker, he gave up on the record keeping.  He explained: “They asked me to identify which individual turbine was causing the effect, so as to get the operator to turn that turbine off.  But it varies, as the sun sets at different spot on the horizon every day, so the turbine can be different –sometimes there’s two.  AND I don’t want to be looking out for things all the time, to report them so that they can do something – that’s very paranoid.”

So when shadow flicker strikes, he pulls the curtains.  He said, “It’s like an invasion into the house.  That sounds over the top, but we had a lot of it last week as it’s been fine weather.  We have to live with it and be stoical.”

I called the wind company, and their spokesman said that they had carried out action to reduce the noise, and that they were waiting for a module which would calculate when shadow flicker would be a problem, and turn the turbine off for that time.  He couldn’t say why this hadn’t been installed when the windfarm was built, as the company that now owns the windfarm is different to the one that built it.

John tries not to let it get to him.  He said, “I’m a cheerful chap, I’m bright and happy.  I don’t think I’m miserable, but you did ask me what the effects are and this is it.  I did consider asking for reduced council tax, but decided not to because somebody else would have to pay more.”

“I’ve not got used to it.  I did consider moving, but we do like it here.  When you asked if I want to put my name to this I thought maybe I was talking it down a bit – but maybe there’s someone who loves windfarms.  But we have no plans to move at present.”

“I’m not an embittered man, but if more are going to go up, they need to be very careful when they’re near to people’s houses.”

In February 2011, the spokesperson for East Riding Council said, “The council can confirm that we had a complaint of noise nuisance arising from the windfarm in August 2009.  A second complaint was made but no further contact was forthcoming from the complainant when asked for details.  The complaint has been dealt with by using the conditions of the Planning consent that allowed the Council to request a noise investigation to be carried out by the windfarm company.  Such investigations do tend to take some time as a period of noise monitoring needs to be carried out for a sufficiently long time to cover the types of weather conditions that prevail when the noise is reported to occur.  This was completed in 2010 and the noise consultant concluded that there were some weather conditions during which the noise did exceed the limits detailed in the planning consent.  Some mitigation measures were installed last autumn ie replacement of some bearings in the turbines and the programming of some turbines to shut down during specific wind speeds and directions.  Some further works are planned to be done when the necessary parts become available.  It is likely that a further period of noise monitoring will be carried out to confirm the results of the mitigation measures when completed. “

When I asked another lady living on the Gransmoor to Lissett road what it was like to live near a windfarm, she replied, “Not nice.  It’s like living among monstrosities, that overpower you.  We’re about half a mile away.  I can never get used to it.  They weren’t there and we had a view, now we’ve got a view of these things.  Whatever room we’re in, or in the garden or the yard, they’re there.”

A lady from Gransmoor said that she was particularly concerned about flicker in her house, as a family member suffered from photosensitive epilepsy.  She said, “When the sun’s shining, we have  to keep the curtains closed because of the the blade flicker reflecting on the wall.  And at night – you have the curtains closed anyway – the lights constantly flicker on and off.  [There are lights on top of the turbine towers at night.]  Plus there’s the extra flicker due to the blades passing in front.”

She added, “Then there’s the farce that people think that people in the community are getting free electricity.  NO WE DON’T.  In fact, we pay the green energy supplement –the ROCS- are added onto our electricity bills.”

Another lady in Gransmoor said that everyone in the village lost their TV reception when the windfarm went up.  The company paid for freeview satellite boxes for each house, but residents said that the TV reception still didn’t always work properly.

And, echoing Peter Kershaw’s comments, she said, “We’ve seen so much hassle that we’ve given up shouting.  It’s like banging your head against a brick wall.”

While issues such as noise and shadow flicker have affected some homes more than others, the thing that struck me was that so many people complained of bad feeling over the windfarm.  I was told that at the planning stage, some people had supported the windfarm, and others had opposed it.  Time and again, I was told, “It split the village.”  Divisions formed then had, it seems, not healed – the windfarm went online in 2009, and I visited in January 2011.  Others grumbled about the Community Fund.

I was also told that several houses in Lissett village are owned by the landowner who benefits from the windfarm – and that those tenants may therefore have felt that they didn’t want to comment on the windfarm.  However, I did not find anyone in Lissett who refused to speak: everyone I found in Lissett spoke postively about the windfarm.

Community Funds

It’s common practice for windfarm developers to set up some form of community benefit fund.  In fact, at the time of writing, guidelines were being set up for what this should be.

They should be a good thing – certainly Eddie Batram was a fan of the financial benefits of the Lissett fund.

However, like money everywhere, Community Funds seem to provide fuel for discontent.   At Knabs Ridge, one person called it a ‘farce’, as the area of benefit was extended until it included people who were deemed not to ‘suffer’ at all from the windfarm.

A council officer at East Riding Council explained how this can happen.  She said that setting the area of benefit was a decision for the wind companies, but that they sometimes ask for advice from the Council.  In this case, she said, “Given that we have a lot of windfarms, we don’t want one parish trapped between two areas of benefit, and will never get a windfarm.  So we say that if a windfarm is in a parish, don’t just consider that parish, but also consider those that get construction noise and visual impact.”

East Riding supplies the services of its Communities Officer to adminster the Lissett fund, keeping records, auditing etc.  She helps groups with their applications to the fund, ensuring that they provide the proper paperwork, and that applications are not for things that the council should provide.

Generalities

One lady, I don’t know where she was from, because she insisted on anonymity, got in touch to tell me I was being “naive or disingenuous – of course no-body’s going to say what it’s like, because we’re all trying to sell our houses.”

She went on to explain that if a complaint is made to the council, this has to be disclosed to potential buyers of the house.  Hence, ‘nobody was going to complain.’

Conclusion

After many hours speaking to people living near windfarms, I would say that my impression is that living very close – say within half a mile – of a windfarm is likely to be unpleasant.  There could be noise, shadow flicker, the ‘mesmersising’ effect of the moving blades, the sense of being overshadowed by huge towers, and possible TV interference.

Beyond that distance, being affected seems to depend very much upon wind direction, the position of the sun, and intervening features such as hills and woodland.  Some people will be affected, others won’t.

For those badly affected, there seems to be little remedy.  Making a formal complaint requires dedication and meticulous work over a long period, and therefore, many give up.

Financial compensation is little – maybe a reduction in Council Tax, and a community fund going to good causes, but not to individual property owners.

So I can see why people oppose windfarms near their homes.

With windfarms proposed in my area, I’d embarked on this research hoping that I’d find that I didn’t need to be worried.

But now I am.

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Dalesman August 2011, Rosedale Railway

July 29, 2011
A view across Rosedale

paths lead from the road to the old track bed of the Rosedale Railway

When I met members of Rosedale History Society and Kirby, Great Broughton and Ingleby Greenhow History Group to discuss the Rosedale Railway, I realised that we could talk all day, and I still wouldn’t have heard all that they have discovered.

So I asked each of them what aspect of their discoveries had affected them most deeply.

Linda Chambers, of Rosdale, says, “We’ve been collecting information on all aspects of Rosedale’s history, especially about the people who lived there.”

From this perspective, she sees the Ironstone rush of 1850 to 1929 as a ‘blip’ in the Dale’s history.  Before that, it was a farming area with a Priory of nuns – and that was destroyed by Henry VIII.

When the mines closed in 1929, the people who had come to work in them quickly dispersed.  She suspects that many emigrated to mining areas in other parts of the world, and her next research project is to try to track down some of their descendents.

Patrick Chambers also suspects that many miners emigrated, and says, “There’s a clue in that there are a lot of Rosedales, and Clevelands, around the world, especially in the Western USA.”

Despite the fact that the miners left, Patrick comments that many of their houses are still occupied, either by commuters or holidaymakers.

Patrick enjoys walking in the dale.  He’s been out with the local geology trust, and comments, “They built the houses out of ironstone, and now it’s rusting.”

He is also concerned that the relics of the mining era are deteriorating.  He’d contacted the National Park to see if anything could be done, but there was no money at present to preserve the remains of the calcining kilns.

Although he would like to preserve the historical remains, he is in no doubt that he has a nicer life than the miners of long ago.  He says, “In the ironstone mine, they worked 8 hour shifts in the darkness, and they had to buy their own candles and gunpowder – from the Company, of course.”

The kilns – 3 in all – were used to heat the iron ore with coal.  This enriched the iron content before the ore was transported over the moors to the iron works.

Wayne Barnacal, of the Kirby, Great Broughton and Ingleby Greenhow Local History Group, says, “It takes little imagination to reconstruct what it was like – most things can be seen.”

Wayne worked building and operating big chemical plants, and is impressed at the vigour of the Victorian engineers.  As well as the speed of construction of the railway, he says, “They had a major fire in the drumhouse at the top of the incline, and within a matter of months, they’d developed and installed new technology.”  Also, he says, “By modern health and safety standards, it’s a different world.”

He says, “It was demanding, dirty, dangerous work – but better than what else was available at the time.”

The incline was a major hazard: a steep bank, where trains were hauled up and down on a cable wound round a drum and connected to another train going the other way, acting as a counterbalance.

Even with the counterbalance, it was considered too dangerous for people to ride the incline, and they had to get out and walk.  Patrick says, “There were nasty accidents with people crushed by runaway wagons.”

The line was intended for goods only, but people did catch a ride in the brake van.

Geoff Taylor, of KGBIG group, enjoys anecdotes from people who lived and worked at the time, and says, “One lady lived in a railway cottage 1300 feet up at the top of the incline.  When the railway closed, she didn’t want to move.  You only need to go up there to see why – it has a fantastic panoramic view.”  And despite the remote location, she also spoke of a sense of community in the rows of cottages.

Geoff’s also noted Rosedale’s place in world history.  He says, “I saw a TV programme about mining in Australia.  The scale is colossal – Australia is being used as a continental mine for China.  But in a way, it was the same in Rosedale.  Although in comparison to today, the tonnages are different, in the 1860s and 70s, North Yorkshire was supplying 40% of the world’s ironstone – it was a big player in the world economy.”

Wayne says, “We keep getting new information, and people’s recollections.  The railway closed in 1929, so people alive then have direct remembrances – we want to capture as many of them as we can.”  They plan to archive these on a public website, as well as within their own collections.

Geoff says, “Another reason for making a website is that it gives access to people in places like Canda and Australia, who are connected by family or by profession.  We’d love them to get in touch.”

Linda says, “Descendants find things in the attic, or they remember Grandad telling them about Rosedale, and we’re keen to collect their reminiscences.”

INFORMATION:

Both groups are keen to receive any information, reminscences, documents or photos relating to the history of their areas.  They both hold regular meetings and events, and welcome new members.

Contact Rosedale History Society at: http://rosedale.ryedaleconnect.org.uk/2011/01/17/news/ email rosedalehistory@hotmail.co.uk, Tel 01751 417071

Contact KGBIG History Group at: http://www.kgbighistory.org.uk/ Tel 01642 712458

The joint website devoted to the history of the railway is: www.rosedalerailway.org

Grants from many organisations have helped them to publish a leaflet with a map of walks, and information about the history of the railway.  This is available by post (Telephone 01751 417071/01642 712458 to check P&P rates), or from outlets including the North York Moors Centre in Danby, Beck Isle Museum in Pickering, Ryedale Folk Museum in Hutton-le-Hole, and local public libraries

There is a display of Rosedale’s history at the White Horse Farm Inn, Rosedale Abbey, Tel 01751 417239, www.whitehorserosedale.co.uk, and the society will be at Rosedale Show, 10/11 Sept 2011.

A programme of joint walks with the North East Yorkshire Geology Trust is listed at:

www.avm-branding.com/neygt

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Dalesman June 2011

May 28, 2011

For Dalesman this month, I visited a primary school that has worked with the Post Office to provide a service after the village Parish Plan revealed a desire for a Post Office.

Pupils at Foston School serve in their Post Office

Pupils serving in Foston School's Post Office

Laura Glass, a teaching assistant at Foston School, in Thornton-le-Clay near Malton, says, “It was part of the Parish Plan – they wanted a Post Office, and we thought it would be a good way to help develop community links.”

While the children benefit from learning ‘real life’ skills, and villagers enjoy being served by the children, the services the school can currently offer are limited.  Basically, it’s stamps and cards.

Miss Glass says, “A kind lady from Halifax sent us some cards to sell, and at Christmas, the children designed some cards, which we printed.”

Miss Glass says, “We hope to expand it as time goes by – we’ll see how it goes.”

A spokesman for the Post Office explained “Any organisation can apply to become a stamp retailer, and we’ll provide stamps at a discount so they can make a small profit.  And to accept parcels, all you need is some scales and a template to measure the size, so that you can work out the correct postage.”

But the Post Office would charge to collect the parcels, unless the organisation was selling enough stamps to qualify for free collection.  However, parcels could be stamped and collected by an organisation such as the school or the pub, then taken to a main post office to be sent.  So if someone from the school was passing a main post office on the way home, this could be a next move for the school’s service.

When a community wants to save a Post Office that’s closing, then they can explore ideas, but if they wanted to open a brand new ‘Greenfield’ Post Office, then they would have to discuss this.  The spokesman explained, “We want to make it as easy as possible, but, the main criterion would be impact on other Post Offices – we wouldn’t want to take business away from an existing PO.  We’d also discuss suitable premises, a person to run it, and look at the business case so that we were confident it was sustainable.

Meanwhile, Consumer Focus (http://www.consumerfocus.org.uk/policy-research/post/background-briefings/post-office-local) says that “Post Office Local” –sometimes called ‘Post Office Essentials’ is being trialled.  It’s a system where a limited Post Office service is offered over the counter of an existing retail business, rather than at a dedicated Post Office counter.

I doubt very much that service users care what sort of counter their services come over, as long as they can access the services they need.  With the cost of fuel and transport ever spiralling, the more services that can be accessed without long journeys, the better people will be pleased.

I also had the pleasure of meeting Sue Lawson, a deeply thoughtful artist.  Sue is an artists’ artist, bringing immense depth and experience to her work

Sue Lawson, artist

Sue Lawson, artist

She studied art at university, where she did fashionable installations, and pieces reflecting concepts of fame and consumer society.  She enjoyed her time there, and the exuberance of the city, of watching people and their activities.

But when she moved to the Yorkshire Dales, the landscape was, she said, ‘a revelation.’  And she took to painting it.  She says, “It’s important to take reference from other artists, to learn.  But then you have to forget it and find your own way of looking at things.  It comes from within – then other people respond to it.  It’s like music – they’re closely related.  I can’t paint properly unless I listen to music.

She aims to capture the particular feeling of a particular place, at a particular moment – her memory of being there.  She says, “You can put more emotion into a painting than a photograph.”

“It is not so much intellectual as a feeling thing.  I put a lot of energy into it.”

Although she doesn’t paint outdoors, she spends lots of time out, walking, taking photographs, and soaking up the atmosphere.  People say that Sue’ s work reminds them of coming home with ruddy cheeks after a winter walk..

There’s a lot of texture in Sue’s paintings, and for that reason, she sells only original paintings, not prints.  She says, “Prints wouldn’t work for my pictures, because they don’t carry the texture.”

Sue works in layers, adding glazes – It’s surprising that pictures so full of vitality are the result of such long labours.  But, says Sue, “Struggle makes you appreciate things – it’s how the old masters worked.”  She uses oil paints that allow her to do this, and says, “If I don’t get the atmosphere, it doesn’t leave the studio.  It needs the madness and energy.”

Her aim with her pictures, she says, is “Escapism – a feeling of being in a place, and recreating the overall impact of that place when you were there.”

She has to keep painting, as her favourites sell, and, she says, “I’ve never had a house with a view, so I put the views on the walls.”

See Sue’s work at http://www.suelawson.co.uk/

Read both articles in full in Dalesman magazine, in print only.

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Dalesman May 2011

April 26, 2011

Dalesman for May 2011 features two enjoyable, but very different visits.

Holgate Mill was  a surreal sight: an eighteenth century windmill in the middle of a street of comfortable twentieth century semi-detached family homes.

Bob Anderton beside the huge cogs that harness the wind to drive the grindstones

Bob Anderton beside the machinery of Holgate Windmill

When it was built, Holgate was the height of wind technology.  It boasted a fantail, a vane mounted to the rear of the mill that automatically aligned the mill to face the wind.

Previously, windmills had been mounted on a  post sunk in the ground.  When the wind direction changed, the miller had to rotate the entire building, millstones and all, to face the wind again – a hard, heavy job.

Older mills had four sails, usually made of canvas like the sails of a ship.  Holgate had five sails for maximum efficiency.  The sails were also fitted with shutters, like venetian blinds.  In low winds, the shutters were closed to catch as much wind as possible.  In high winds, the shutters were opened up to allow some wind to pass through, and avoid damage to the sails.

Despite being the height of technology when it was built, when electricity became easily available, the miller preferred to use an electric motor, rather than rely on the vagaries of the wind.  Even today, after restoring the wind powered machinery, the preservation society will run one grindstone on wind power, and the other with an electric motor, so that they can work when the wind doesn’t blow.

One of the joys of eighteenth-century engineering is that, unlike modern electronics,  it’s all big and visible.  Inside the mill,  giant cogs and shafts transmit the power from the rotating sails to the grindstones.  Most of the gears are cast iron, still strong and serviceable after over 200 years.  But many of the hoppers, vats and beams are wood, and years of damp and insects have destroyed these.  However, these have been built anew: the members of Holgate Mill Preservation Society have achieved a great deal in ten years.

Bob attributes this success to a skilled team, generous funders, and their strategy.  Rather than try to do all the work themselves, they went to a professional millwright, Tom Davies, and applied for grants to fund the work.

Visitors to the mill need to be fit and agile, as access to all four floors is by ladder.  As you progress up the tower, the rooms become progressively smaller, and right up in the cap, the room is dominated by a huge toothed wheel, attached the sails.  When the wind turns that wheel, it would be easy for the unwary to get caught in the machinery.  The picture above shows Bob Anderton, the chairman of the preservation society,  next to the great gear that is turned by the sails.

Bob hopes that soon the mill will be grinding corn, selling flour – and even possibly adding a bakery.

He says, “We want to grind flour and sell it for people to use.”  As the mill is currently in use as a mini-community hall, the addition of food can only mean even more visitors to this very unusual windmill.

For further information, see www.holgatewindmill.org or Telephone Bob  Anderton on 01904 795851

Holgate Mill was once cutting edge technology.  By contrast, Hackfall was always meant to evoke the past, created as a romantic ruin.

PAUL MOSLEY, THE WOODLAND OFFICER, ENJOYS A WALK AT HACKFALL

HACKFALL IS A SEMI NATURAL WOODLAND WITH ROMANTIC RUINS DESIGNED BY WILLIAM AISLABIE

Hackfall was originally woodland that would have been used for timber.  In fact, said Paul Mosley, Hackfall’s officer, “It’s believed that the Aislabies originally bought Hackfall for the timber, and for a tufa quarry, which they used to clad several buildings at Studley Royal.”

The Aislabies who bought Hackfall were famous for their landscape design around Fountains Abbey, now a World Heritage Site.  But their landscape at Hackfall, where they built  romantic ‘ruin’ eye-catchers in the forest, is less well-known.

But in its day, it was famous.  Turner painted it, and Victorian tourist guides advertised carriages from Ripon Station to Hackfall.   But, after years as a Victorian pleasure ground, the timber was all felled in the 1930s.

It chanced that the land was then bought by someone who went against the advice at the time, which was to replant with fast-growing, commercial conifers.  Instead, the new owner bided his time, and let nature take its course.

It has resulted in Hackfall now being classed as the relatively rare ‘semi natural ancient woodland.’  The semi-natural bit is because, says Paul – that lucky man whose job it is to know Hackfall intimately – “Most woodland has always been managed, and at Hackfall there’s evidence of limekilns, charcoal burning, and sawmills all in the wood.  But the seedbank, and the wildlife, such as invertebrates, are still there.”

“And there’s lots of wildlife.  We had a moth expert who trapped 158 species in one evening.”

Hackfall is made even more interesting by the series of follies built by the Aislabies.  They act as ‘eyecatchers’ and ‘surprises’ to draw walkers around the wood.

Hackfall is also full of falling water, with so many becks, trickles and cascades, it’s quite difficult to tell what’s natural and what’s man-made.  Which, of course, was the Aislabies’ intention: to enhance the natural landscape to make it more beautiful, and more interesting.   Nearly three hundred years later, it’s clear that they knew what they were doing.

Hackfall is beguiling at any time of year – I recommend a visit.

See www.woodlandtrust.org.uk and www.hackfall.org.uk for more, and information on how to get there, where to park, etc

News since the article went to print: Paul Mosley says that Hackfall has won

the Nostra Europa Award for its  Conservation / Restoration.

See: http://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/en/our-woods/hackfall/Pages/EuropaNostraAward.aspx?wood=5462

Or: http://www.europanostra.org/projects/50/

He adds that the restoration was achieved thanks to funding from The  Heritage Lottery Fund, The Hackfall Trust,  the Woodland Trust and volunteers,  the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Yorventure and the North Yorkshire Aggregates Grant Scheme.

To read my articles in full, in print only, buy Dalesman Magazine, www.dalesman.co.uk

MOWBRAY CASTLE, AN EYECATCHER BUILT BY THE AISLABIES

MOWBRAY CASTLE, ONE OF THE MANY EYECATCHERS EVOKING THE PAST GLORIES AT HACKFALL

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Dalesman April 2011

March 24, 2011

Dalesman April 2011 – Mulgrave Woods

A VIEW OF THE MULGRAVE ESTATE

LANDSCAPING BY HUMPHRY REPTON AT MULGRAVE

As a tree lover myself, it was a pleasure to meet Jim Mortlock, head forester for the Mulgrave Estate, near Whitby.

It was clear that Jim took real pleasure and pride in the woods he cares for, and, as he took me round the estate, I could see why.

He works to a plan laid out by Humphry Repton some three centuries ago – but this is the time scale a forester has to think in.  Standing in open parkland by the estate office, Jim pointed out how the swathes of woodland that he is still planting contribute to Repton’s landscape vision.

And, as he pointed out the views, it was clear that Repton’s vision was coming to fruition.  There were stands of trees across the treetops, cradling the green vale of pasture and parkland.  Here, large specimen trees were things of beauty in their own right.

Across the fields were breathtaking views of the sea and cliffs at Sandsend.

And the well-managed woods, said Jim, were full of wildlife.  He showed me trees that he’s kept for woodpeckers to nest in.  He likes to see the deer, which are a small, managed population that don’t damage his trees.

As for the flowers, after years of being shaded out, Jim says that thinning out firewood has rejuvenated them, producing carpets of primroses and bluebells in spring.

The policy of mixing decidous and evergreen trees showed its visual benefits when I visited, as dark evergreens provided a foil to the brilliant autumn colours of the hardwoods.

The estate has recently invested in state of the art machinery to cut logs for firewood.  Income from these logs has paid for new access tracks into the woods, which are available for public access on selected days.

To buy firewood, or to visit the woods, see http://mulgrave-estate.co.uk/index.php/land-use/access/

By admin | Posted in Blog, Countryside, Dalesman, Nature Conservation and Environment, Uncategorized, Yorkshire | Comments off