Monday 8 April 2019

Yorkshire Holiday 2019 - Ripon Canal

Monday, the 25th of March, was the kind of beautiful spring days with wall-to-wall sunshine we would have wished for our walk to Fountains Abbey. We even (very briefly) thought about repeating it, but then thought better of it - there would be other visits there in future years, and today was a new day with time for a different walk.



Ripon Canal was the plan for today. We visited some of our favourtie shops in the morning, and after a quick and light lunch at home went out for a few hours to walk along the canal.
If you want to compare this year's pictures with those of our last walk there in the Summer of 2017, click here
 
Ripon Canal starts and ends here, with the canal basin in town.




Nature Reserve (not open for walks)
A friendly robin was hoping for tidbits - we didn't have any.



Where the canal boats live



Back at the cottage, the evening light was once again marvellous. This was the view from the front room of our cottage at arount 5:30 pm:


Then it was my turn to make our tea/dinner. I chose to try my hand at Shakshouka, a dish O.K. and I had first tried last year in December. It is easy to make, and yet I messed up - the eggwhites did not behave the way I expected, and so my Shakshouka did not look as nice as the one O.K. made for us then (and has been making a few more times since).




Still, it tasted nice, and next time I hope I'll be more successful.

16 comments:

  1. Looks like a perfect spring day and a nice walk!

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  2. Well, I think that meal looks delicious. A perefect end to a perfect day by the sound of it.

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  3. The shakshouka looks good to me. What did your imaginary sister think of it? It is easy to see that you had lovely spring weather for your walk by the Ripon Canal. A great day for taking pictures.

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    1. My sister liked it. Or maybe she was just really hungry after the walk.

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  4. I have been thoroughly enjoying your posts about your vacation. I have been planning a vacation to Yorkshire for next year and all your photos make me want to go even more.

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    1. That's great to know, Jennifer! Have a look back at my other posts about Yorkshire holidays, from 2017 backwards (there was none in 2018). You'll see what it looks like in summer then.
      Have you any particular plans yet?

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    2. We haven't decided anything for sure yet except we will probably go next April and I really want to go to the James Herriot Museum. There is just so much I want to do and we will be limited on time. It is hard to narrow it down. I do have fun planning though!

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    3. The James Herriot Museum is well worth a visit! We've been there in 2012. You can read my post and see the pictures by clicking here.

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  5. I am chuckling at YP saying you have an imaginary sister!
    Your meal looks good to me and after all your walking, I would have even liked MY cooking! LOL!
    That ROBIN! I would have been thrilled to see it and to get that photo of it.
    Your imaginary sister...still giggling!

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    1. It made me giggle, too :-)
      The robin was so close, I couldn't believe it! If we'd had anything for him, we are both sure he would have taken it directly from our hands. The bench is a popular resting spot for walkers and birdwatchers, so the robin must be used to people sitting there with some food for him.

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  6. Another beautiful day. You got some great photos there. I love the little robin so much! Keep on cooking. And it's the taste that matters most of all.

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    1. So true! But even if the taste is fine, a nice presentation adds to the enjoyment of a meal.
      The encounter with the robin was special!

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  7. I didn't know Ripon had a canal. I see it goes all the way to York. It looks a lovely place to cycle - I think it is usually possible to cycle along Canal and River Trust towpaths if you're careful. I'm glad you had lovely weather. Your cottage looks as if it is in one of the older parts of the city.

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    1. The path along the canal is rather varied, Jenny; only bits of it offer themselves for cycling, as it narrows down to a packed mud path only as wide as two human feet and leads across pastures in parts. Also, crossing the canal is possible only on locks sometimes, which is not easy to do carrying a bike. Maybe it gets more cycle-friendly closer to York - I've never been that far along.
      Our cottage is a five-minute walk from the Market Square, so, yes, it is an old part of the city, on Coltsgate Hill.

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