Tubbercurry, Monday, October 30, 2023

Sunday morning, we arose at 6:00 for a shower and clean-up; disaster, as the hot water didn’t start to come on until after 7:00! Deb managed to wash her hair by bending over the tub and rinsing with ice cold water. Not a great way to start the day, but quite an eye-opener. Luckily, mark had showered the night before. We departed Bainbridge without our beloved morning breakfast and were out the door, loaded and driving away by 7:40. It was a grey but dry morning and a great day for a drive. We headed east to Leyburn and then southeast towards Leeds and our eventual flight. We arrived at the Leeds Bradford airport car rental agency. The car rental center did not open until 11:30, we were forced to lock up the car and drop the key in the key drop box, hoping for the best. In the terminal we finally tracked down Mark’s traveling bag, although its interior was a bit disheveled from its sojourn (and probable search) all was in place. We rechecked all three bags, plus Deb’s carry-on, which was too big for this plane’s requirements, and settled in for a breakfast in the lounge.

The flight was loaded by noon, and we departed promptly at 12:30 for the trip back over the Irish Sea. The flight was uneventful and we landed in Dublin at 1:30 to reclaim our bags. All were accounted for this time, although if Mark’s bag had gone missing on a single destination flight with no stops, we would have been extremely suspicious. After baggage collection, we wheeled our four cases over to the SIXT Car Rental counter to pick up our reserved car. As the cute young attendant, Emma, returned Mark’s driver’s license, she helpfully noted that the next time he came to drive in Ireland, he would need a doctor’s certificate stating he was competent to drive, as he would then be over the age of 76. Evidently, in Ireland, after you achieve 60 years of driving time, one must then have an outside opinion on skill. We collected our vehicle, this time a Renault, loaded up the bags, and set out towards Tubbercurry. The drive was nearly three hours once we had cleared the Dublin airport snarl with only one or two wrong turns in the maze of freeways. It was a pleasant enough drive, but as we were restricted to google maps on the car screen we never felt like we had any idea of our location

As the European time zones returned to standard time from daylight savings time last night, it became dark around 5:00 and so slowed us a bit. We arrived in Tubbercurry at our lodgings, Murphy’s Hotel, at 6:30. We checked in, hauled our bags up the extremely slow lift, and then back down to the restaurant to meet Zoë. Hugs all around and then she drove us the 4 minutes to their home. Hugs and screams from the children, Iris, Esmè and Arthur and a firm hug from Garth upon arrival.

Garth had prepared a roasted chicken with roast potatoes and carrots for dinner and we soon tucked in for a proper meal; this was of course after distribution of some swag for the kids! The meal was delicious and after putting the children down, we enjoyed some wine and conversation. Zoë retuned us to our hotel around 10:00 and we fell into bed (twin beds as it turned out) for the evening. It had been a long, tiring day but seeing the Highland Family (the whole reason for this trip) erased all our tiredness.  

We slept in a log-like state until nearly 8:00 the next morning. We went down to the restaurant for our included full Irish breakfast of sausage, bacon, beans, fried eggs, white and black puddings, and coffee. The sausage was not as tasty as the ones we had enjoyed last week, but still very enjoyable. We then drove over to Highland's for the days adventures. We went for a Forest Walk at a nearby “forest,” this being a planted multi-acre ash and oak grove being reclaimed from bog ground. It was raining, off and on, but we were prepared.

Trails are graveled through the forest and the kids are well versed in the area, pointing out where the fairies live, where the donkeys  usually live (though not present today) and showing Dad the mushrooms and fungus. It was raining off and on, the girls were all decked out in their wellies and raincoats, and Arthur in his wellies and rain suit, or “trash bag” as Garth calls it. We stomped through puddles, Deb told off color kids’ poo jokes, Garth and the dog Blue explored a little deeper into the woods. We ambled for about two hours, wearing down the children’s energy and draining the old folks.

Returning home, Garth had prepared some meatballs (his first attempt) so set those in the oven to cook and brown while he prepared red sauce with mushrooms. Zoë prepared the spaghetti, garlic bread and a salad, we opened a bottle of wine and had a wonderfully delicious home cooked meal. Next it was time to carve the pumpkins for tomorrow’s holiday. The carving was a long and complicated task - each child drew on their respective gourds, and then Dad proceeded with sharp knife and steady hand to interpret the drawings. Mark handled cleaning out the “guts” and Zoë helpfully located some matches to light the candles for a test run.

The kids finally went down a little after 8:00 and the adults finished the wine and talked for a bit. We headed back to Murphy’s and were in bed by. 9:45, a bit exhausted but happy. 

Bainbridge, October 28, 2023

If we thought yesterday was rainy, today was pouring when we awoke; however it is sleep inducing. Due to Mark’s small wardrobe, and to forestall him having to try on some of Deb’s skivvies, we prevailed upon our hosts to throw a small load into their washer this morning. This will help tremendously with our travels. After our daily eggs, bacon and English sausage, all of which we find is sourced right here in Bainbridge, we perused the hosts large map (ours is tucked neatly in Mark’s errant suitcase) and decided that today we would head northeast.

As we set off towards Sedbergh, the rain quickly disappeared. We passed Hardraw, promising ourselves to return tomorrow to view Britain’s highest waterfall. We had stopped there last year, but as the country was in a bit of a drought, it wasn’t that impressive. With all the moisture this year, it should be spectacular. As we headed onward, a strange light appeared in the sky overhead - sunshine! We pulled into a parking lot, cratered like the moon, but each crater filled with rain water. these were so deep that, with a slight breeze, ripples formed as if waves were blown across a lake. We took some photos of the high peaks to the northwest emerging from the clouds. These peaks are the eastward ones surrounding Lake Windermere to the west.

Reaching Sedbergh, we turned north toward Kirby Stephen, a larger town along the A685, a modern two lane highway with the locals speeding at 60 mph! Startled, we tried to keep up. We reached Kirby Stephen, a veritable metropolis, complete with traffic backed up for seemingly miles. Once through the traffic snarls, we were back on the highway and soon hopped off at the small exit for Kaber. We pulled over for a moment just to check our maps and bring our heart rate down. It seems we are becoming country yokels averse to the “big city.” We continued along the small roads eastward headed again to Tan Hill with the idea of stopping for another pint. As it was now 2:30 in the afternoon, we expected perhaps we could score a table. Not a chance. The parking lot area was more crowded than yesterday. We forgot that this is a school holiday week, and every caravan in the British Isles had loaded up all their children and were converging on the Yorkshire Dales National Park for a long week or weekend. We drove right on by, headed now to Reeth, a destination we knew well. Upon arrival, Mark quickly parked at the city lot, through open the door and digging a 20 pence coin out of his pocket, headed for the “public convenience” building.

Relieved, we turned southeast through Grinton and across the moor towards Leyburn. The sunshine we had enjoyed to the west was now gone and the clouds descended, covering us again in fog. We reached Leyburn just before 3:00 and pulled into the market parking lot. Today had been market day and the vendors were just packing up. We stopped into our favorite Posthorn Tea Shop for a cup of tea and an afternoon snack. Deb enjoyed a bowl of potato leek soup (entirely too large) and a few pieces of cheese scone, toasted. Mark was wishing for a sultana scone with cream and jam, but the fruit scones were all sold out, so he settled for a tea cake, a small round loaf of bread split and toasted, upon which he spread his butter and jam. We also enjoyed two small pots of Yorkshire tea.

Finishing our afternoon tea, we stopped in the home and kitchen store we enjoy and then on to the local petrol station for some fuel. Next we headed back west towards Bainbridge and home. We arrived shortly after 4:00, parked and climbed the stairs to our lodgings. We kicked off our shoes, Deb picked up the phone to do battle with United regarding Mark’s bag and we poured ourselves a glass of wine. Shortly after five, we looked at each other, toasted our good fortune and decided to call it a day. We turned on the British telly to see what we could find, agreeing that we had experienced a wonderful day.

Saturday, our final day in the Yorkshire Dales. We enjoyed our last tremendous English Breakfast courtesy of Jane & Neil McNair. We spent an hour or so working on our morning puzzles and then set out to cover the last few areas of the Dales for the day. We first headed to Aysgarth Falls National Visitor Center, arriving around 11:30, a perfect time for Deb to have her final gelato cone of this trip. Next we headed to Leyburn, looking for a map of Ireland, but instead finding a little bookshop that relieved us of some funds as we stocked up on some gifts and books. No map though.

We turned south to explore a final corner of the Yorkshire Dales National Park that we had not yet covered. We stopped in Kettlewell for a pint and a bathroom break, and then headed over the tops to pass through Gayle, ending in Hawes. No time to stop here again, so we then turned west to Hardraw to visit the Hardraw Force - the tallest waterfall in Great Britain. We paid our entry fee and walked up the paths to the waterfall - truly impressive.After strolling back to the car we drove on towards Askrigg and the Crown Pub, arriving around 4:30. We hoped to catch an early meal before turning back to Bainbridge. However, the pub does not serve food until 6:00. What to do?

We nursed a pint of ale and a pint of cider for 90 minutes and then stepped up to the bar to order our dinner, A steak pie with mashed potatoes and a burger with chips. The steak pie was excellent, the burger not so much. When we had arrived the pub was nearly empty, but it quickly filled up with the members of the Askrigg football team, and all their wives and children. They filled the bar, drinking and chattering. We expected them to thin out as meal time neared, but no such luck. On a more mischievous note, this pub featured the most unique urinals Mark had ever seen. (A specially refitted beer keg - how appropriate!)

We returned home by 7:00 ready to pack our bags and prepare for tomorrow. We had received an email early in the day that, reportedly, Mark’s bag was waiting for us in Leeds at the airport. As it had spent most of the last week in Amsterdam, presumably rolling around the red light district, partaking of the ambiance and probably carrying on with some racy two-wheeler, we are looking forward to seeing its walk of shame in the airport lobby. Our flight is scheduled to depart Sunday at 12:30 headed to Dublin. From there we pick up another car and drive to Tubercurry to see the Highlands and begin week two of our 2023 Adventure.

Bainbridge, October 27, 2023

There is something restful and comforting about a drizzly rainy morning in the Yorkshire Dales. A light rain was falling on Wednesday morning as we awakened and planned our day. We were down to breakfast at our usual 8:30 and found another couple in the breakfast room. We introduced ourselves to Ireen and Chris Hudson, an English couple of about our age. Ireen is a born Dubliner, married to English former schoolteacher Chris. This is their 30th anniversary week and they are on a few weeks vacation to celebrate. They have never been to the Yorkshire Dales and so were motoring around as we have been. Very enjoyable couple.

Another 4-star breakfast and then we spent a few hours in the lounge deciding where to spend the day. A few words about our accommodations: The Low Mill Guest House was originally built around 1740 as a working flour mill on the river Bain. After some years of dereliction, it was restored as a working demonstration flour mill in 1972 by local craftsmen. In 2003, Jane and Neil McNair purchased it while on holiday in the area. Originally from London, the couple, who were experienced in home building and remodeling, decided to convert the structure to a guest house. The facility has 3 guest rooms, a lounge, a dining area, and ample parking. It is situated on the River Bain with views of the waterfalls and is a truly quaint setting.

We headed today back to Hawes for some shopping and walking about. Then we were off to the north for a look at our last year’s cottage in Gunnerside, which started us on this love affair with the Yorkshire Dales. We had originally made a dinner reservation for this evening at the Kings Head Pub in Gunnerside, but after driving home in the absolute dark on these small roads Tuesday evening from Aysgarth, we determined that the much longer drive from Gunnerside back to Bainbridge in the dark was more than we wanted to attempt, we cancelled our reservation at Kings Head. We did stop in Gunnerside to see our old haunt, Burnside Cottage. It appears the property has been sold and remodeling is under way.

Next we swung up the fell above Gunnerside towards Tan Hill and its only business, the Tan Hill Inn. This is the highest situated Pub in Britain at 1,782 feet above sea level. We arrived in the fog around 1:30 and the place was packed - no tables available so we opted for a quick pint at the bar. Mark had a half pint of black Sheep ale, and Deb had a full pint of Old Moot cider. The cider, a sweet, bubbly berry flavored drink was much to her liking. If we can find some similar beverages in Omaha, she may step away from her carbonated red wine as a drink of choice. (Except of course for Dirty Martini Fridays.)

After the obligatory bathroom break, we’d turned the vehicle southward and back towards Bainbridge. We took a small road to reach Bainbridge, going from the valley of Swaledale over the moor hill (fell) to the adjoining valley of Wensleydale. We had traveled this road last year, but the time of year was different. Flocks of sheep had been moved into the various pastures, and Deb was in and out of the vehicle four times, opening and closing gates as we climbed up and then down the hills. The fog had lifted a bit by now, so we didn’t also have to contend with that, allowing for some gorgeous views up and down the valleys. We arrived in Bainbridge for an evening glass of wine before leaving for Askrigg and our chosen restaurant, The Kings Arms Hotel and Restaurant. Unfortunately, they were booked solid until 8:00, by which time we hoped to be reading with our feet up. We booked for the following evening and then made a quick phone call to another spot, The Aysgarth Falls Hotel, a few villages away. There was a table available so we headed over. the room was modern and the food acceptable. Deb had a pork and chicken pie and Mark a large cheeseburger, accompanied by a pitcher of sparkling water, a glass of Shiraz and a pint of ale. Returning home, we were in our room and reading by 9:00.

Thursday morning following breakfast, we spent time in the lounge visiting with our new acquaintances, the Hudsons before they took off towards home. We then struck out northward towards the town of Barnards Castle and the Bowes Museum. John Bowes, the illegitimate son of an Earl, met Josephine when he bought the Theatre De Varieties in Paris where she was an actress; they married in 1852.

Josephine, an accomplished artist, became a patron of the arts. In 1862 she decided to sell John’s wedding gift to her, their home in France, to start their Museum project so they could share their love of art with the people of the area near  John’s family home. Sadly, neither of them lived to see their Museum open to the public in 1892. The lead exhibit, the Silver Swan Automaton, was not available for viewing, as it has been withdrawn for conservation. there is a nice article about it on a Wikipedia page (Silver Swan.) After viewing the art of the Bowes, we left Barnards Castle and went up the moor and down into Swaledale, then up again and down into Wensleydale arriving home shortly after 5:00. A quick drop off of our finds of the day and then off to Askrigg to the Kings Arms Hotel for our evening meal. 

We both decided on the Steak & Drover’s Ale pie with new potatoes and seasonal vegetables. A delicious choice and very filling. Deb enjoyed a Shiraz and Mark a Theakston Ale. Back home by 8:00, we read until near midnight and turned in, another lovely Yorkshire day (literally) under our belts. 

Bainbridge, October 25, 2023

 We awoke early this morning, 4:30 local time, as is normal during the first few days of a major time change from west to east. No magical reappearance of Mark’s luggage overnight. We descended the stone steps from the second floor of the 1740 remodeled mill house that is our home for the next week, to the lovely dining room which overlooks the rushing river Bain. The Low Mill Guest House proprietors prepared a wonderful full English breakfast for us, juice, scrambled or poached eggs, English bacon, sausage, baked beans, grilled tomato, blood sausage and grilled mushrooms. With some brown toast and freshly made marmalade, we were able to polish most of the food off, accompanied by tea and coffee. This will easily last us until evening.

Following this huge meal, rather than walk it off, we boarded our vehicle and set out to secure Mark some usable clothing. We stopped first in the town of Leyburn and bought some new socks and a walking staff from the local outfitter. Next over to our provisioner, Campbell’s of Leyburn, to lay in a supply of wine and bottled sparkling water. After a quick walkthrough of our favorite home furnishings store and a stop at a cash point for some local currency, we next travelled further east to Richmond and the local Tesco Superstore. We purchased some underwear boxers, tee shirts and a fleece sweater and flannel shirt to round out the new wardrobe.

Next, we pointed the vehicle back to the west and headed to Hawes for a walk through. Mark discovered the last essential piece of wardrobe, a set of braces embellished with pictures of the local cow breed. We stopped at a local pub to make a reservation for our evening meal. We returned to base in Bainbridge and transferred our purchases to our room and settled in for a few hours rest up and a glass of wine before setting out again for Hawes and our evening meal at the White Hart Inn.

The meal included a glass of Theakston Ale, a glass of Shiraz with a starter of Halloumi bites (fried Wensleydale cheese cubes) accompanied by sweet chili jam. For mains, Deb enjoyed lamb “Henry”, braised lamb shank with sage mashed  potatoes, kale and a minted lamb sauce. Mark dined on chicken breast wrapped in Parma ham, accompanied by pommes fondant, leeks, bacon and a delicious wild mushroom gravy. Totally sated, we traveled back in the dark to our rooms in Bainbridge. Again still suffering from the time change, we were in bed around 9:00, exhausted but happy with our day.

Tuesday morning brought a light rain, but again the marvelous breakfast. We tempered a bit by eschewing the tomato and the blood sausage. Next we spent an hour or so in the lounge, reading the morning Omaha World Herald and New York Times. No errant bag on offer, we then set out for an afternoon’s drive. We directed the Nissan southward towards Malham and Ribbledale. We traveled through some amazing scenery on some increasingly narrow roads. At one point we were headed towards Stainforth Force (Force being a corruption of a Norwegian word for water fall) and drove down a path that Google Maps claimed was a passable bridge. We drove over a bridge that allowed only 3” inches of clearance on either side of the vehicle, miraculously (Mark claims expertly) avoiding any scratches to the car. We parked to enjoy the view. On meeting a pair of women walking, they told us no one drives the bridge - too narrow. Luckily fools and tourists are protected from folly! Although it was too muddy for us with no Wellies on hand, we were able to see the salmon climbing the falls on the way to their spawning pools upstream. This was well worth the drive. We continued along the track, which quickly widened to a country road status. 

Next on to the village of Malham, the setting for some scenes in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.” We stopped at the National Park visitor’s center for a bathroom break and a box of ginger snaps for sustenance. We continued onward in some of the most scenic areas we have yet encountered in the Yorkshire Dales. We returned to Bainbridge at 5:15; just enough time to pause for another bathroom break before heading out for our evening meal. We booked this evening at a recommended restaurant the Wensleydale Heifer in West Witton. This is an AA rated Seafood Pub of the year. Deb dined on their Fish & Chips, a generous portion piece of Whitby Haddock, accompanied by great chips, a curry gravy sauce and minted mushy peas., Mark enjoyed a pan roasted Stone Bass fillet, accompanied by a  shellfish risotto. The food was excellent, the wine and ale very drinkable, and the cheese board of local cheeses as a dessert really topped the day off. We returned to our rooms, tired but well sated and travelled. We finally received a notice that tracked Mark’s bag. United Airlines had sent it from Newark to Amsterdam. No further information at this point. Time will tell.

 

2023 Autumn Journey

Saturday, October 21 dawns as a warm and leaf dropping day. We are packed and ready to leave home by 9:00 and darling Darcy arrives 3 minutes early, accompanied by her faithful companion Norman the dog, to take us to the airport to start what will undoubtedly be a long 24 hours of travel. We have three bags to check: one with Deb’s clothes, one with Mark’s clothes and one with gifts and loot for the Highland family, whose home in Ireland we are going to visit as part of our adventures. We check the bags all the way through to Leeds, U.K., our final destination for this first week.

We leave on time from Eppley Airfield in Omaha, headed for O’Hare in Chicago and then onward to Liberty Airfield in Newark New Jersey. The schedules all work out fine, no rushing from terminal to terminal, and we even score a slight upgrade in Newark as we board the 777 for Dublin. Most of the flights are full, with the exception of the Newark to Dublin leg, which is probably about 60% capacity. We arrive in Dublin at 7:00 AM local time and then find a lounge to rest for a few hours prior to our final leg from Dublin into Leeds.

The food was non-existent on any flights except the over the water leg to Dublin. We both opted for the cheese stuffed pasta over the chicken on offer. It was fair, but not award winning. The wine however was gratis, so that made the dinner a little more palatable. The morning sandwich of egg and cheese on a hamburger roll was horrible! The cheese appeared to be onions and not cheese and the egg patty surely never saw the back end of a chicken. We each took one bite and stopped. Did we mention the coffee was undrinkable, this even for Deb who normally doses hers up with milk and sweetener.

Needless to say, we were glad to find a lounge in the Dublin Airport just a few steps away from our next gate. We talked our way in, even though Deb didn’t bring the proper entry card. We rested, had some excellent coffee and juice, together with a scone and some raspberry jam.

The announcement for our flight to Leeds was made at 9:55 so we headed to the gate for loading. We learned that we were boarding a bus to take us to the aircraft. Out we go across the tarmac and pull up to a 70 passenger propeller plane - we hadn’t been in a prop for years. The trip was smooth over the Irish Sea and we landed in Leeds 45 minutes later. We were tired; Mark did not sleep on the overnight flight and Deb only managed a couple of hours. We were cranky and tired of airports, this was our 5th in less than 24 hours.

Did you catch the rooky travel mistake we’d made? You might recall that in the first paragraph above we described our packing. We have known, and usually try and practice spreading our packing over both suitcases, some underwear, socks and a shirt for each of us in each suitcase. Well, this time we weren’t paying attention and we are paying the priced. Mark’s suitcase is amongst the missing. (Son Jake will be quickly sending an “I told you so” message; he counseled us to purchase some Apple Air Tags for the luggage, but I poopooed the idea.) 

The errant bag may actually still be in Leeds, or at any of the other 4 airports we visited. Leeds had a plane slide off the runway in a storm last week. No one was injured, but they were forced to close the airport for a few days and the luggage stacked up. There was one large room filled with bags, although we didn’t see our missing one. I know, I know Jake; if I had installed an air tag I could have found the bag if it was there. We filled out a “missing person” report and are hoping that it shows in the next week. For the moment, Mark will be rinsing his underwear and wearing a long sleeved tee-shirt of Deb’s (suitably uni-sex looking but he is not picky.)

We then proceeded to National Car Rental to pick up our ride for the next week, a nice 4-door SUV on the small side, with only 426 miles on the odometer. Our lodging for this week is the Low Mill Guest House in Bainbridge, a small village tucked into the Yorkshire Dales National Park. We picked this village as we had driven through it a number of times last year on our visit and decided to home base in the same general area.

The drive to Bainbridge was about an hour and one half, the weather was perfect and the traffic was relatively light. The area has received lots of rain in the last few weeks, and many of the rivers had flooded over their banks. It was wonderful so see and hear the rushing water in the rivers and brooks as we drove along. Our original plan was to stop and find some shirts, socks and underwear for Mark, but after arriving, we were too tired. We bought a bottle of wine and some soda water, broke out the red hot pretzels we had stashed as a snack, and we were down for the count by 6:00 - a very long day, but we ended up right where we want to be.