Sat: Everything a bit new this time. With taking Cath’s new bike and having the roof rack to accommodate some extra storage, it was all a bit up in the air! The original plan was to have teh bike on the roof, but the weight of the bike put an end to that. So with a bit of a bit of juggling around, we decided on the spare wheel and bike standing upright and the awning and clothes bags on the roof. This seemed to work well, apart from the bike moving a little (needs breaks on). Still, possibilities to work through. The roof rack opens up opportunities to move a lot of stuff from inside the car to on top. The roof rack itself and the ratchet straps worked very well however, very pleased with them.
The journey to the site didn’t take us past Wetherby, so we had to find a new resting point. This turned out to be Leeming Bar Rest Point. A rest point, as it isn’t really a service stop. It’s really a non-event. We parked up next to the coach bays which was fine. We could have used the old truck area, but the inclines looked a little ‘grounding’ to say the least. There is a Costa here, but apparently the coffee machine waw broken, so no coffee, go figure! Anyhow, glad to to be out of here and we made headway to the campsite. The A61 Ripon road was not very good either, quite twist, bumpy and narrow in places, but there you go. Onto the A59, much the same and then the final approach to the site. This was okay in general, just the final section post Grassington where the road becomes very narrow, but fine taking your time. We pulled into the site and were warmly greeted. Not many pitches free, a very popular site it seems. But we found a nice pitch, albeit near the play park. A quick reverse on and we began our holiday with our usual routines. Although a little different, with the stuff being on the roof this time!
Sun: A relax onsite day. Glorious weather again, we enjoyed breakfast outdoors as we usually do. I then decided to put the satellite dish up as the TV signal here is non existent, even from the booster. Having fixed the cable run in the ‘van last trip, I was confident it should be an easier gig now. And, especially as I have a new satellite finder unit. This bad boy can power the LNB and also show pictures of channels received. All this standing by your dish, it makes life so much easier. After keying in a correct transponder, I instantly found the Astra birds, swapped the cable over to the ‘van and hey presto – instant satellite TV. That’s the easiest I’ve ever done it. The only downside to today, was the fact that I got bitten on my head, arms and legs 🙁
Mon: A trip to Skipton Castle had been booked, so off we went following breakfast. Parking is adequately taken care of with the Castle’s own dedicated car park. I booked the car park with the castle trip, so upon arrival I gave my name to the attendant there and voila, in you go. Same with the castle, give your name and you’re in. No tickets, QR codes or jumping through hoops, it simply works well. The castle is well worth a visit, as it is a fine example of such an important historic building. You can see all the rooms and how the castle actually operated, you really get a very good sense of the castle and it’s ‘time’. Following this, we enjoyed a coffee on the high street and then returned back to base.
Tue: No time for breakfast, time to get to the Embsay & Bolton Abbey Railway. Actually there would have been time, but Cath didn’t get up until near 9am! Honestly, you’d think we were on holiday 🙂 Back down the B6265 and off to Embsay station. Plenty of free parking spaces, we booked in again just as efficiently as at the castle with the online system I had used then, very impressed with this. Then following a nosy around the station we boarded the train for our 20min journey to Bolton Abbey. Not a great deal to see enroute, but as always, very pleasant – bar screaming kids and people scoffing food – but that’s just me. Following a 20min turnaround, a donation to a locomotive being rebuilt and then the return journey, we were soon finished and heading towards Tesco in Skipton. Here we picked up a couple of items and then returned to the site. Weather has been a little cloudy, but dry mostly.
Wed: No booked trips arranged for today, so instead we took a leisurely stroll around Grassington, after trying to find a space in their rather busy carpark. This we did and then walked along to the village main street, passing ‘Chuffers’ the cat along way. It’s a very small village with not much to see, although they do have a lovely Christmas shop. We didn’t explore too far, as it was quite hilly in nature. Within an hour we returned back to the site. Following tea we took the bike for a good ride up and down the long driveway, ideal for Cath to get used to it.
Thu: Canal cruising was the order of the day. I had booked a boat for 12pm, so we duly arrived and parked at the car park quite literally outside the canal itself. As usual with all of the bookings this trip, tickets were swiftly collected with no problems at all. The boat was a covered one, it was full and we had the pleasure of kids in front of us! Not the best for me, I would have much preferred an open, smaller boat. But lesson learnt for next time. Returning back to the site, I filled up at the Spar/Shell just down the road from the site and then we relaxed for the rest of the day.
Fri: Usual last day routine – do nothing! Weather wasn’t the best in the morning, but it picked up later on. Chilled for the day, although the activity on the site was picking up for the bank holiday weekend. Glad in respect to be going home tomorrow, a bit too much for us, especially being right next to the playground.
Sat: Our usual pack-up apart from it wasn’t! Bike and roof rack now have to be worked into this routine. We got there though, roof rack quite easy now, having gotten used to the ratchet straps. The bike, we laid onto the spare tyre laying flat rather than upright as on the inbound journey. This worked well and we had a ‘solid cargo’ ride back home. Might still get some more ratchet straps for the boxes to kepp them in check as well.
Overall the site was very nice, it’s been a great place to visit with lots to do, maybe could have done with a few more days to take it all in at a relaxed pace. Negatives to note: Pitch etiquette doesn’t exist here, everyone, his dog and child wanders freely around the pitches, the easy route is the one taken here it seems 🙁 Also, our pitch was the toughest ever to whack your pegs into. I bent 4 rock pegs putting the awning up and even then, I couldn’t get them all the way in. Not sure if every pitch is like this, or just ours and a few more recent upgrades? Despite, a site worth visiting if you’ve never been here before.
- Date: 16th August 2025
- Nights: 7
- Pitch #: 80
- GPS: 54.074128, -2.030130
Arrival: A59 > B6265 > B6160 > The Drive > Grass Wood Lane