A friendly start to the day with a visit from a family of swans
This fella thought he could eat our boat - fat chance!
This was his teenage cygnet, who tried to climb up the side of the boat for bread!
This morning Barry and I went to East Riddlesden Hall, just across the road from our mooring, but oddly it was closed on Thursdays & Fridays! Barry had visited the Chandlery at Apperley Bridge yesterday trying to get something for the engine and it was closed on Wednesdays! Ah well, we wouldn’t have paid the ₤5.25 entrance fee anyway, so just had a mooch around the pond and gardens.
This erection on the towpath caught Sandra's eye, an upturned cannon
The mounting platform at East Riddlesden Hall designed to enable guests to alight into their horse-drawn carriages
East Riddlesden Hall, the film location for Wuthering Heights (1992)It was a more relaxing day as there was a stretch of 17 miles without locks, yaay! Unfortunately however, an abundance of swing bridges made up for it. It still took us a couple of hours to reach Silsden, so it was a good job Corrie made the decision to get on her bike yesterday evening.
First swing bridge of the day leaving Riddlesden
The backyards of the some of the terraced houses in Riddlesden 
Crazy roof lines looking up the hill
'Jake' the Burmese cat who travels along the canals with his owners and even leaves the boat sometimes as long as there aren't any dogs in the vicinity
Jakes home, 'North Star', heading off
Don't shoot me I'm only the photographer ...
Kim & Joe were on swing bridge dutyOur journey took us on the outskirts of the Yorkshire Dales, and I walked a lot of it to be able to see and feel its magnificence. We looked across at the hills and vales on one side, with shaded woods on the other that must be gorgeous in the spring when the bluebells are out. You could almost see fairies frolicking, it was so surreal. The little villages have made the most of the canal with lots of pretty housing alongside.
On the hills across the valley towards Keighley
Lots of reminders of the past industrial influence
We travelled through some lovely shaded glades ...
which reminded us of the Llangollen Canal
There was an Emerdale Farm feel about this area
Stone walls everywhere
Bet it wasn't as clear as this 30 or more years ago
Sandra & Joe helping out a fellow narrowboater with the swing bridge
They weren't really naked behind the wall, it just looks that way!
A nice mix of town and country
You wouldn't even know there was a canal here
This was as busy as it got on the water all day, not a lot of traffic about
Some well kept back gardens through Silsden
The view where we stopped for lunch, looking towards Airedale
Looks like an old mill town
Kim and Joe are not looking too happy as this bridge was used by the farmer to move his cows and Joe hadn't put his shoes on!!
Magnificent Mill buildings at Farnhill
Kim & Joe taking their share of the driving
Another fairytale glade
Another scattered village ...
And another mill ...
and yet another ...
The light was just amazing
A memorial on the side of the canal to seven polish airmen killed in 1943 when a Wellington Bomber crashed during training. Surprisingly it's been kept tidy and well-maintained for so many years
Incredible that the canal can keep such a level course (no locks for almost 17 miles) with all the hills around ...
Some being quite high
On the way we found a boat for Maggie ...
and one for my 'bro Andy!
Entering delightful Skipton
We reached our destination of Skipton early evening and had a night on the town! Well we visited a couple of pubs, one with live music that Kim and I sang along to joyfully and Barry and Joe chipped in reluctantly, eventually! Then we were off to ‘The Woolly Sheep' down the road for a couple. Skipton is a market town, and used to be known in Saxon as ‘Scip-tun’, which means ‘sheep-town’! Barry had a bit of a Timothy Taylor's ale tasting session here, discovering the differences between the six from the friendly barman.
The balmy evening sing-a-long
Kim & Joe at The Quay
Beer tasting with a certain style & Finesse
The 'Timothey Taylors' were very agreeable
The eyes don't look too good
Kim & Joe at 'The Woolly Sheep'What a magical day, it’s what life's all about, and makes me appreciate all the good things that are in ours …
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