Trollers Gill & Parcevall Hall, Yorkshire Dales, Spring
Happy belated Easter everyone. Did you have a good 'un?
Usually for Cumbria, and the Lake District in particular, Easter signals the first tourism wave of the season. With that in mind, and no obligations to serve, Lisabet and I booked a couple of nights away in a beautiful B&B set in bonny Pateley Bridge, in the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
We took the scenic route to Nidderdale from Cumbria, as we didn't need to check in until the evening. So, first we stopped off at the impossibly pretty Yorkshire Dales village of Burnsall for lunch and some light photography. Afterwards we continued east and stopped off near Grimwith Reservoir for the day's main activity: Trollers Gill.
This place has been on my radar, otherwise known as my Pinterest, for years.
It did not disappoint.
All photos shot on my Fujifilm X-T2 using my three prime lenses: a Fujinon 23mm f/2.0, a Laowa 9mm f/2.8, and an adapted Pentax SMC 55mm f/2.0. Images made 80% in-camera using the Astia film simulation, then finished off in Lightroom and Affinity Photo.
Burnsall
After coffee and a bacon butty near the river, we snapped some shots of Burnsall as we made our merry way back to the car. The 5-arched Burnsall Bridge here is a Grade II listed building, originally constructed in the 17th century with some 19th century improvements.
I'm not sure it's possible to get more Yorkshire than this scene. The Red Lion, built in the 16th century, and recently taken over by Thwaites Brewery.
Like many Yorkshire Dales villages, there's plenty of historical sandy limestone buildings decorated with beautiful greenery, flowers, and the distant hills.
Burnsall Primary School. Originally the old Grammar School founded in 1602 by William Craven of Appletreewick, who later became Lord Mayor of London.
Trollers Gill
After Burnsall, I identified a handy little parking area off the B6265 that would serve as the starting point of our hike to, and up, Trollers Gill. The day was bright and sunny whilst also hazy, lending a wonderful sense of intrigue and distance to photographs. Up on the moorland high above Appletreewick, views extended for miles and miles.
The path down the moorland was easy enough to follow, and soon the characteristic karst limestone landscape of the Yorkshire Dales became apparent.
The main signs pointing to Trollers Gill invite walkers to enter the ravine at the top and scramble their way down. Instead, we elected to take the trail around the western side of Middle Fell. This would eventually lead us to the bottom of Trollers Gill.
The anticipation and excitement builds as we near the bottom of the deep ravine.
At the bottom of Trollerdale, we followed the minor path north to start the climb up Trollers Gill. But first, I simply had to snap this glorious scene.
The entrance to Trollers Gill, largely dry for most of the year. Historically this would've been the site of a thunderous ravine with several waterfalls and cascades crashing down the gill. Thousands of years of erosion in a limestone landscape means the beck at the top of the gill now goes underground before entering the ravine, later reemerging at the bottom of Trollerdale.
Looking back at our way into Trollers Gill. Fellow hikers gingerly navigate the way down the ravine. Can you imagine this gorge full of water?
As with many other places in the Yorkshire Dales that features sheer limestone walls, Trollers Gill is a favourite for rock climbers.
Rock climbers assist each other as they ascertain routes up the sheer sides of Trollers Gill.
An ultra wide composition looking up from the bottom of what would've been a powerful waterfall. The meaning of the name "Trollers Gill" comes in two parts. "Gill" is already quite well known and used in Yorkshire and Cumbria, sometimes alternatively spelled as "Ghyll". It means a deep ravine or gully, and is cognate with the word gullet. "Trollers" is split into two: "troll" meaning, well, troll, the mythical beast (not the internet variety), and ears meaning "arse". This gives us "the Troll's arse". You're welcome.
Near the top of Trollers Gill, where the beck mysteriously disappears into the unfathomably twisted caves underneath.
Climbing out the gill and up onto the moorland, we realise that the haze has nearly cleared, giving us a fairly clear shot of Simon's Seat.
The deep drop into Trollers Gill that we had just climbed out of.
The single lane "New Road" that connects with the B6265.
A clear sign that a moorland is particularly and consistently wet: rushes everywhere.
One last look back at the farm track that guided us down into Trollers Gill.
A great discovery! Hanging on a branch near our parking spot was this beautifully preserved sheep's skull, probably a Swaledale. We took it home. Isn't it beautiful?
Parcevall Hall & Gardens
After returning to the car, we realised looking at the map that we were very near Parcevall Hall & Gardens. Fancy a quick visit and a wander? Why not?
Parcevall Hall is a Grade II listed Manor House that includes 24 acres of sculpted and maintained gardens. They were created in 1927 but fell into decline after 1960 following the death of Sir William Milner, 8th Baronet of Nun Appleton. Restoration work commenced in the 1980s.
People can visit and explore the gardens between April and October. It enjoys fabulous views and beautiful displays.
Lisabet and I particularly enjoyed this peaceful statue.
The Gardens, amongst other things, are known for their wonderful view of Trollers Gill, so we followed the route uphill.
Still plenty of daffodils around.
And there it is. Trollers Gill to the right and Middle Fell in the centre, daffodils blooming below. What a fantastic scene.
Cherry Blossom in full bloom at the entrance to the Gardens. What a full and gorgeous day.