First Snow of Winter

We woke this morning to the first covering of snow this year - not very heavy but enough to make it necessary to concentrate on driving the SKODA Yeti carefully on the snow-covered track.  Lawrence & Michael Atkinson had very kindly cleared the small snow drifts at the top gates so it was no problem at all to drive down the track - the temperature was just above freezing all the way down and warmed to about 3C in Reeth.

When we came home mid-afternoon we were greeted by a family of 5 Partridge who were perched on the garden wall - we stopped the engine and just watched them strutting about on the garden wall - lovely birds.

The Met Office forecast suggests that the weather will turn mild & wet within the next few days so hopefully this will clear the snow - sadly this year we shall not have time to sledge or ski as we must concentrate on packing ready for the move.

 

Hilltop Visitors

 

Yesterday morning at breakfast we were pleased to see five Red Legged Partridge on the garden wall - they are such lovely birds and do not seem to visit us that often - the shot below is a zoom of the above photo to show the lovely plumage in more detail.

First Sign of Winter

View across to Punchard Gill from Gales Gate on Hilltop Track

Yesterday morning we had to go to Northallerton Hospital for an early appointment and it had been a clear cold night and everything was frozen solid when we came down the track at 07:30.  This view across Arkendale towards Punchard Gill was wonderful with dark frosted fields in shadow in the foreground and Punchard Gill and the surrounding hills in bright sunlight with a totally cloudless sky - breathtaking.

Hilltop Gale

Last Saturday the weather was really bad with driving rain and very strong winds and during this gale I was working in my office when I heard the concerted bellowing of cattle that seemed to be very close - when I looked out of the office window I saw a very wet and bedraggled herd of cattle huddled by the gate bellowing away and seemingly pleading to be inside and away from the appalling weather.


Laurence tells us that they will be inside the big barn within the next two weeks but of course that means the start of the usual ever-mounting feed bill for Laurence & Michael.  But whilst there is still grass available in the now sodden meadows I suppose it makes sense to leave the cattle out?

Bright October Day at Hilltop Farm

Janet called-in at the estate agents this morning in Leyburn & brought home the final edition of the sales brochure for Hill Top Farm and in a way the move is now suddenly "real" - all the phone call and visits and photos have now culminated in this and the "penny has finally dropped" that we'll be leaving Hill Top Farm.  Odd -but when it's on-paper like this and next Friday in the Darlington & Stockton Times as a quarter- page ad then it's started.  The sales brochure is on the GSC Grays site at www.gscgrays.co.uk

We have had this place for 25 years now and lived here full-time for over 14 years - the longest time we have lived anywhere in our married life - and together will all the work we have done on the house I have come to know every inch of the place and we shall miss it for sure when we  move down to Reeth.  But it will be a different life there and a life that fits better with our future as we grow older together - someone else will have the joy of Hill Top and the amazing life we have had here high in these wonderful hills.

Anyway just a couple of photos taken this bright morning - one looking North-West from the garden down into Arkle Beck valley and across to our two neighbouring farms - Park Head to the left & Dale Head Farm to the right - the other photo looking down towards Whaw.

View North-West from Hill Top looking down into Arkle Beck valley

Looking down Arkle Beck valley towards Whaw

 I love the way that from almost every front window one sees Arkle Beck winding down to Whaw - this shot of the Autumn morning sun making the beck a bright ribbon of silver is what I'll miss waking up to.

Autumn in Arkengarthdale

Suddenly the weather has turned - its feeling colder and this weekend the weather forecast says we shall be having a really stormy time - particularly in the South of the country.  So its likely we shall have the autumn leaves stripped from the trees by the beginning of next week.  We're a bit short of woodland up here in Arkendale so I got out and took a couple of photos of the woodland we have and the autumn colours before the leaves go.

Scar House Wood from CB Inn

This is a shot of Scar House Wood taken from the CB Inn in Arkengarthdale.  Scar House belongs to the Duke of Norfolk who also has the shooting rights on North side of the dale which includes the moors behind Hill Top Farm and the High Faggergill valley.  Occasionally there are shooting parties shooting over the Arkle Beck valley directly below our house.

There is a great walk that I use when training for my summer hut-to-hut trips in the Austrian Alps which goes left up the skyline in the photo above and traverses left to right along the skyline turning down to Booze which is the small hamlet "off frame" to the right in the photo and returning to Hill Top Farm by walking through Scar House woods and along by Arkle Beck up to Whaw then up to Hill Top Farm past Low Faggergill Farm.  The views from the top are just wonderful taking in the whole of Arkengarthdale all the way down to Reeth.  I guess I'll miss these walks when we move down to Reeth - it's great having them literally "on the doorstep" where I can just open the back door and start my walk.  I must compile a list of favourite "on the doorstep" local walks for whoever buys Hill Top Farm - it would be satisfying to know that someone is following my favourite walks from Hill Top. 

It will be rather strange waking the right-of-way past Hill Top Farm when it belongs to someone else - but I'm sure I'll get used to it very quickly.

Hilltops Wood from Hill Top Farm

 This is the wood directly opposite Hill Top Farm taken from our kitchen window - its just starting to change colour and looks lovely in the sunshine.  In the 25 years we have been here this wood has really taken-off & grown.  Its sad that when all of Swaledale & Arkengarthdale were Royal Hunting Forests in the Middle Ages one would have seen dense natural woodland everywhere carpeting the whole of the valleys - but the need for charcoal for the smelting of  lead put paid to that and now we have just got small "pockets" of woodland here and there.  However there has been extensive re-planting across the dale and in time - probably long after I have gone - the dale will be forested again.

Anyway Autumn chores call and tomorrow I shall be over at Lake Ullswater stripping the gear off my Freedom 21 DAYDREAM and bringing my tender back from the sailing club.

Hilltop - In the MIst

Hilltop in the sunshine - Thursday 17th October 2013

Today we have the kind of Autumn day that encourages one to stoke up the fire or sit by the AGA in the kitchen reading - its very misty and the clouds are down on the hills.  This is in marked contrast to yesterday when it was sunny and relatively warm and we were out  about in the garden replacing the lean-to greenhouse roof hatch which come loose and blew away in a Spring gale and only now have we got around to buying another & fixing it in place.  

We managed to get a 4 day fine weather spell a couple of weeks ago when the decorators came and painted the ooutside of the house - it now looks wonderful and sparkling again.  This time they used Dulux Professional Weathershield experior paint which hopefully will outlast the previous exterior paint I used.  I must be getting old - in that I am now less willing to climb ladders when it is windy and do all the preparation for exterior painting as well as the painting itself so I finally saw sense & got the professionals in and the result is great.

The lovely thing about this time of year is the colours that one sees everywhere - the bracken in Whaw Lane is turning an amazing rusty-brown and the Rowan in the garden will soon be turning red as well - the photo attached shown this Rowan as it was last year around this time.


Janet  is already planning Christmas, who sleeps where and how we can accommodate the usual Bishop/Parker/George family clans which now expands with granddaughter's boyfriends - we are expecting 12 to 13 depending upon who can get up to us.  We had the estate agents photographing Hilltop on Wednesday and we have to accept that this will probably be the last big family Christmas at Hilltop Farm - the end of a lovely 25 year long era - but there it is - things do & must change.  But it will be a Christmas tinged with sadness I guess.
 
Anyway with long term weather forecasts predicting a cold & snowy November we are stocking-up on essential supplies and I'll get my winter tyres on the SKODA Yeti by the end of the month so we'll be fully prepared for whatever happens.  The bright side of course is the skiing & toboganning on the back field - why have all that wonderful mountain gear & not use it I say.