Monday's ups and downs

Today's first task, decide where we are going to stay tonight. No, today's first task, go to Wetherspoons for breakfast, it's easier than trying to wash up after porridge etc in the van, and more importantly Wetherspoons probably has nicer toilets than in the van, especially at that time of day 

Today's second task is to decide where to stay tonight, something discussed over a Wetherspoons' breakfast. My first option was the car park in Skipton but apparently that can fill up. Searching around we discover Heptonstall Bowls Club, just a few hundred meters vertically above Hebden Bridge in the Calder Valley. A quick phone call to check they aren't booked (yes, often you have to book overnight car park slots!) and we are sorted. 

On to the day's third task deciding where to go, but that is already part decided. After a quick mooch around Ripon, refueling with diesel e'ill head off to the nearby Fountains Abbey. It's National Trust so free, and the weather is nice. 

Like all abbeys and monasteries after the reformation it is a load of ruins, but it is a heck of a big and impressive load of ruins! 

A very good guide in the Porter's Lodge has both a potted history and a huge model of the abbey in its heyday.

However, it's not Fountains Abbey that is UNESCO listed but the adjacent Studeley Royal Water Gardens. Not enough time to explore these properly, we were already getting on for there hours on site, something for next time perhaps! 

But the nearby Victorian church was pretty, with some nice stained glass and a somewhat special organs to those in the know. I managed to arrange for the guide to give us a tune or two. Glorious sounds in what was not a huge church

Ripon Cathedral is much larger. I wonder if you can tell that from the view of it at the far end of the lime avenue beside the church

Time is pressing on. Google tells us it's almost two hours to Heptonstall and we don't have any food for dinner. 

The road across the dales via Pately Bridge to Grassington is hard work, lots of long 1 in 6 climbs followed by 1 in 6 descents, with cyclists carefully positioned along the climbs (never descents) to ensure that once you get a head of steam up you have to brake and drop back to first gear. Mind you the views were magnificent in places. 

At Grassington the East-West road rotates to North-South, following a valley, the drive into Skipton in much easier. Shopping done but it's now 5:15, Skipton is already stop-start traffic and the route takes us down through Keighley, it's going to be slow. So navigator Liz announces a change of plan, we are heading west into Lancashire, barely touching the outskirts of Colne before heading on the 10 mile white road across the top of Heptonstall moor. "Do you think that road’s OK?”, asks I, "maybe" comes the reply!

Dunno about "alright", but "interesting, buttock-clenching, needing extreme care" are words and phrases that might be a better description. It's just about two lane, if vehicles pass slowly enough to really hug the verge, but even that luxury disappears in many places, tight bends both in the horizontal and vertical plane make the driving "interesting" without the added joy of an occasionally indifferent road surface. Oh and there's a 1 in 4 hill with possibly the tightest hairpin I've ever negotiated. 

After probably getting on for 30 minutes for those 10 miles, I am relieved to see the village of Heptonstall. Relief is short-lived as the van bone-shakes it's way down the village's main street

Must take a walk tomorrow, looking for gold - dislocated teeth fillings!

Just 71 miles but with over 3700m of climbs! 

The speed and altitude stats are interesting