Friday 16 December 2011

A Jolly but chilly outing.








We weren't sure whether to go or not. My friend W and I had arranged to meet our friends in Kirby Lonsdale, on the edge of Cumbria, for a Christmas lunch in a local Bistro. Whichever way we decided to go meant going either over or down the side of the Pennine Chain, along high and bleak ground. And there is snow lying on the tops. Earlier in the week the weather was awful - snow showers, icy roads, biting winds, and we decided not to go. Then yesterday two things made us change our minds. The first was that yesterday was a lovely still, sunny day - glorious for the time of year; the second was that the farmer suggested that it was hardly the road for two old women to be driving on at the time of the year! That decided us.

My friend was driving (she has a four-wheel-drive vehicle) and we are nothing if not intrepid. In fact it was a pleasant and easy journey. All the way there snow was lying - sometimes just on the tops, sometimes quite thickly on the sides of the road and when we came down to lower ground, to the edge of the Trough of Bowland, there had been four or five inches of snow overnight and all the parked cars were heavily covered in it.

But the roads were mainly dry and we had set out in plenty of time. Kirby Lonsdale is such a pretty little town and decorates so well for Christmas. I did intend to take photographs after our lunch but when we came out of the Bistro it was snowing, and our only thought was to get home before dark. (It takes one and a half hours to get there).

The journey home was in thick cloud, well down over the hills in places. But a lot of the snow had gone during the morning, when the sun had been out. It was an uneventful journey and we arrived home - two old, intrepid ladies, unfazed by a bit of snow and ice - just before dark.

And what of the lunch. Well, W and I had a 'share platter' - laid out on a slate. It was delicious and a splendid idea. A pork pie, cut in half; four triangles of cheese (two blue, two cheddar); a pot of dressed green salad; a pot of sun-dried tomatoes; several pots of olives; a pot of fried whitebait with lemon slices; a pot of hummous; smoked salmon, serano ham, thinly sliced beef; white and brown chunky bread and a pot of butter. I shall certainly try something similar over the Christmas holiday if the occasion arises.

Anyway - for what it is worth - here are a few photographs I took through the car windscreen as we bowled along. As you will see, Ingleborough was - as usual - in cloud. But I think you will also agree that the Ribblehead viaduct in bright sunshine is a lovely photograph.

18 comments:

Heather said...

Three cheers for the two old ladies!! Your photos are wonderful and so dramatic - the one of the viaduct is stunning. Reading about your lunch makes my mouth water even though I've just eaten my evening meal. Definitely worth driving through snow for. Glad you got home safely.

Elizabeth said...

A super duper post! Outstanding photos
Well done, intrepid old ladies.
Yes, the 'share platter is an excellent idea.

John Going Gently said...

in my exoerience , there is nothing more intrepid than a bunch olf "old" ladies

George said...

You and your friend were truly intrepid, but it sounds like the trip was well worth it. I would travel hours for a good lunch with a good friend.

Dartford Warbler said...

Thank you for these wonderful photos! I can imagine the thrill of driving through that beautiful Pennine landscape on a winter`s day like today. I have only ever seen Ribblehead and Ingleborough in the summer. You must have been grateful for a warm car.

Good to hear that you had a lovely day out with an old friend.

angryparsnip said...

Your day out sounds wonderful but I must say it does look cold outside.
I am always amazed by the photos you post of Ribblehead Viaduct. I would be staring at it all the time, quite fabulous.
I find it rather nice that besides me, my very first and much loved Scottie, Kirby also shares a name of a town near you.
The Farmer should know by now never tell any older woman she can't do something.

cheers, parsnip

Pondside said...

Wonderful photos - and I wish blogger hadn't taken away our ability to really enlarge them.
Your day sounds like it was wonderful, from start to finish. I doubt that your Farmer will be making any more comments about old ladies!

Everything Changes said...

Great pics!

Gwil W said...

Lovely photos. I think the annual 3-Peaks race is in late April Dominic.

I've completed 3-Peaks but only as as a (anti-clockwise about 8 hours) starting and finishing at Ribblehead and not at the cafe' in Horton in Ribblesdale as the 90% do. If I was doing the walk again I think I'd do it from the cafe' but go clockwise i.e up Ingleborough first.

Dave King said...

I remember Kirby Lonsdale from a wonderful holiday we had when the children were children, so I was able to go with you in my imagination. Great place, and this is a great post.

Anonymous said...

So lovely to see the scenery and I'm glad that you made the journey safely and had a good lunch as well.

Pondside remarked about not being able to enlarge pictures now, well you can if you right click on the picture then press 'open in new tab' or window. I hope it works for you.

Crafty Green Poet said...

Wonderful photos. Sounds like a lovely trip! I've not been to Kirby Lonsdale for ages, we used to have family holidays on a farm there, when i was very young.

it's me said...

Beautiful post! viaduct photo is stunning--inspired by your attitude

Cuby said...

Very well done the two intrepid ladies, the bistro in Kirby Lonsdale sounds perfect if your lunch tells the tale.Love the photos f an area I know quite well but have not visited for ages, so thanks for them.

The Weaver of Grass said...

Glad you enjoyed the photos - this old woman is determined to be intrepid.

Bovey Belle said...

Well done both! Nothing like a man's scorn to get you into positive mode! What a GORGEOUS lunch - you have made my mouth water. Would love to try something like that here on Boxing Day or 27th, and can even go and dig a bit of slate up from the yard to serve it on!!! (We are on slate bedrock here, with a smidgin of clay in places as "topsoil".

Your mention of Kirkby Lonsdale takes me back to trips up and back to/from Durham to collect middle daughter from Uni. The winter term was a bit of a challenge, I seem to remember . . .

FABULOUS photos too - especially the Ribblehead viaduct.

thousandflower said...

Congrats to two "old ladies". And the photograph of the viaduct is wonderful. I have to get back to your neck of the woods again.

Michala Gyetvai (Kayla coo) said...

Amazing landscape
I feel very hungry after reading about your lunch!