Daisy and me, Skipton Castle, May 2010.
Skipton Castle is a shining example of dog friendly days out destinations in the UK that I would be hard pressed to find equivalent in the US. But before I dive into how awesome it is for your dog to be able to climb stairs that were built more than 800 years ago alongside you, let me tell you a little bit about one of my favourite places in Yorkshire.
Drainage Pipe Detail, Skipton Castle
Skipton Castle, according to their very informative website, was built more than 900 years ago. It was the home of the Clifford family for generations, and also played an important role in the English Civil War. The castle was the last Royalist stronghold against the Parliamentarians, and despite being damaged by order of Cromwell the building was faithfully restored by the Lady Anne Clifford. Evidence of her handiwork is still visible within the castle, including drainage pipes on the inside bearing the year of their installation, 1659. While there are none of the original furnishings or decor in the castle today, it is not hard to imagine a giant table surrounded by noble men and women in the great hall, or to smell roasting meat cooking in the enormous fireplace in the kitchen.
As you walk through the castle, you can really get a sense of the purpose of such buildings in the time period in which they were built. You can crawl into the tiny spaces used by archers to defend the castle and peer out through the narrow slits to see the castle grounds as they would have seen it. The stairs, while a bit hazardous due to their age and the irregular wearing down of the stone, have been traveled by so many in the long history of the castle – and it really gives the visitor a sense of connection to history to just stop on one of the staircases and reflect.
Yew Tree, Courtyard, Skipton Castle.
A favourite spot of mine and Hubby’s is the yew tree in the central courtyard. The tree was planted there in 1659 by Lady Anne Clifford to commemorate the loss and sadness of the English Civil War. To stand by this tree and think about all that it has seen is immense. There is another yew tree on the castle grounds by the tea room/gift shop, and I wonder if it is an offspring of the amazing tree inside the castle walls. There is a seating area around the trunk of the original tree made of stone, and it is a favourite place for souvenir photos as well as a nice spot to sit and soak up the history that is springing to life around you in the castle.
Chapel window from inside, Skipton Castle.
Of all the spots in the castle grounds, however, my absolute favourite is the chapel. I have an amateur photography habit that I feed on a regular basis now that I live in such a photogenic place, but the chapel at Skipton makes my hobbyist heart soar. From the little architectural details inside that allow you to invision what the building looked like when it was used actively to the giant skeleton of what was, I’m sure, an impressive stained glass window at one end, the chapel is worth seeing and experiencing. I feel compelled, however, to note that it is a ruin, so if you’re looking for the type of grandeur seen in church structures that are still in use today, it won’t impress you. But seriously, just look at the window, how is THAT not gorgeous? The cherry trees in the courtyard that were just starting to bloom made up for the lack of coloured glass, and the entire building just feels calm and peaceful and still.
Now on to the Daisy part. Dogs are allowed on leash in all parts of the castle and the castle grounds with the exception (I would imagine, we didn’t try the day we went) of the tea room and the gift shop.
There is no charge for leashed dogs, but they don’t qualify for a free “I explored Skipton Castle” badge like kids do…
Yeah, I got a badge, what of it?
I know this because I made a bad joke when purchasing admission for me and Hubby and the kind woman at the till thought we had a 5 year old child called Daisy. Daisy got her badge, but I had to buy it for 20p from the gift shop. I think she was far less happy about that than I was. Anyway, moving on…
While the inside of the castle has places that, due to the wearing of the stone in the floors and stairs, is a bit tricky for dogs that aren’t so good on stairs, there is generally another route that can be taken with your four-legger if he or she, like Daisy, is too big to be carried. Hubby and I found that the people we met as well as the people that worked at the castle were generally very good natured about having to wait to come down a staircase because our BambiOnIce was having trouble, or about getting goosed by her needle nose when she got bored of us reading all the historical information. There are green spaces where you can stretch out with a picnic or just a book to read, and I’m totally looking forward to the Shakespearean performances on the green there…it will be Daisy’s first play!
Skipton Castle is not to be missed, with or without a dog. Take a camera and explore a piece of English history. You’ll be glad you did, just probably not as glad as Daisy was…
While it is one of my interests, this installment of traveling in the UK with pets is also a bit self-serving. In an effort to reduce the amount of time I sit watching American television, eating Kraft Mac&Cheese and wishing I was back in the land of the free and the home of the BRAVES, I’ve decided to get out on my days off and see what’s around me, at least in West Yorkshire for now.
The KWVR is a local commuter line that connects the villages of Oxenhope, Haworth, Damems, Oakworth, and Ingrow to the larger city of Keighley. It operates a steam train an a diesel engine service several times a day, and is a draw for locals to leave their cars at home when traveling down to Keighley for shopping or business reasons. From 
Ingrow West told Daisy how lovely she was and that she needed to cover her ears because the train was quite loud when it arrived. The conductor on board the train smiled as he stepped over and around her in order to pass through the carriages to sell tickets. We didn’t get to see too much of Oxenhope before starting back down the line because I didn’t want to miss the train. You see, unlike other “regular” train lines the KWVR is a single track line. Train goes up, train comes back down. Granted it isn’t far from Keighley to Oxenhope, but if you’re waiting on a steam engine to come back and fetch you it may have to fill back up with water at a station first…or, as happened to us, it may come off the rails as it goes to fill up, and you have to wait for the diesel engine to rescue you! Again, I can’t say enough good things about the onboard and Oxenhope station staff (who are all volunteers, mind you) during that delay. They kept us not only informed, but entertained.
has an adorable tea room just off the platform that used to be a buffet car on the line. There are shops at the larger stations (Haworth and Oxenhope) where you can get everything from railway memorabilia to ice cream. The railway presents a chance to step back in time for a few hours and see what a working railway was like in the days of steam train travel, before everything was high speed with digital timetables hanging from the ceiling. The timetables on the boards at the KWVR stations are written by hand, either on paper or chalkboards.
Travels With Daisy, Part Four: York
The Abbey of St. Mary's, York
This time out, Daisy and Hubby and I visited the seat of Yorkshire, the Viking/Roman/etc etc stronghold of York. York is a city with an incredible history that seems to spring to life as you wander its slightly slanted streets and cobbled alleys. In this gorgeous northern city you can see the development of the entire country, from its earliest recorded history through the invasion of the Vikings and Romans, as well as the devastation caused by Henry VIII’s Reformation.
We were in York to meet up with some other American expats, and there was a walking tour of the city arranged for us. I highly recommend booking something similar, whether you’ve been to York a million times or are there for your first visit. Our guide pointed out things that Hubby and I had never seen before and we were not first time visitors. We learned how to spot the difference in Viking and Roman walls (as York is a city that loves her walls!), we saw a building that was built 700 years ago as a home for clergy, and looked for mice that were included in doors as a signature of the architect/builder. With the exception of the walk around the city on the wall, Daisy was welcomed to come along on the tour, and again she handled the city streets like a champ (the ice cream that Hubby got for her to enjoy in the shade while I tromped around on the wall in the sun probably helped her disposition a bit).
There isn’t anything that is more dog-friendly about York that you don’t find almost everywhere in the UK, but I did see lots of dogs around the town. The only problem we ran into was dining, because most of the restaurants with outdoor seating don’t have any sort of shade, and it was 27C that day so we had to find a shady spot. I left Hubby with Daisy and took off to find food to take away, when I stumbled across Cafe Concerto just across from the Minster. I had planned to check out the same restaurant where my family ate when we visited fifteen years prior, and was terribly disappointed to find that it is now a coffee shop, so I wasn’t holding out much hope for Cafe Concerto. How wrong was I? The food was fantastic, fairly priced, and the staff were so nice. I want to go back when I can try something on the menu that isn’t easily packed into a carrier bag and eaten while sitting on a low wall around a park!
One of the must-sees in York is Shambles, one of the oldest streets in the city and definitely the most picturesque. The name Shambles comes from the medieval word Shamel, and describes a time when this street was full of butcher shops, also called Flesshshamel. It is the most well preserved medieval street in Europe, and is unique in its architecture. The houses and shops along Shambles are wider on the top floors than they are on the ground floor, due to a tax on the amount of land on which a building stands, and they almost touch in the middle. The street has wide gutters running along each side, once used for the butchers to wash away the blood and other waste that came as a by product of their trade. Along with the town where I currently live, Keighley, Shambles is listed in the Doomesday Book which places its age at least around 900 years. I dare you to walk down it without imagining that you’ve somehow landed in J.K. Rowling’s Diagon Alley.
While I have not visited Jorvik Viking Centre, Hubby has and raves about it. The only reason we didn’t visit while there back in May was that Daisy was with us and we felt certain she wouldn’t have been admitted. According to the official website, “Everything in JORVIK Viking Centre is based on archaeological evidence unearthed during the Coppergate excavations undertaken between 1979–81 by York Archaeological Trust.” You can visit the dig site, appropriately called DIG as well as the recreation of Viking life in York at Jorvik (the Viking name for the city). Jorvik is open seven days a week (excluding Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and Boxing Day), from 10am-5pm in Summer and 10am-4pm in winter (10am-2pm New Year’s Eve and 11am-4pm New Year’s Day). Please do visit the site linked for more information on this must see attraction.
For a day out, you can’t beat York for history, beauty, and fantastic food. For a weekend out, York has accomodation ranging from historic B&Bs to standard hotels as well as pubs and nightlife that range from the traditional (The Black Swan is the oldest in town, built in 1417) to the quirky (The Evil Eye lounge is a multi-story pub with a different theme on each floor). York is easily reached by car but parking can be a bit tricky so I would recommend the train. The station is close to everything you need, and will save you from driving around looking for a place to park. Visit York. You won’t be disappointed.