Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #baysdale, aggregated by home.social.
A Bridge, a Bench and a Certain Disregard for Permission
The names clinging to these moors deserve more than just a passing glance. Beyond their historical weight, they carry a strange novelty. Take Great Hograh Moor. A name that gives nothing away until you have buried yourself in old documents, dusty dialects and philologi ...
http://www.fhithich.uk/2026/03/01/a-bridge-a-bench-and-a-certain-disregard-for-permission/
#Baysdale #GreatHograhMoor #NorthYorkMoors #20thCentury #history
The Bridge at Baysdale: A Relic of a Lost Priory
This bridge in Baysdale is more than a quaint curiosity. Its single arch spans Black Beck with quiet dignity, yet the quirky little parapets give it certain character. These are later additions, added in the seventeenth or eighteenth century by someone with a flair for decoration but little se ...
http://www.fhithich.uk/2025/10/01/the-bridge-at-baysdale-a-relic-of-a-lost-priory/
The Pike Stone: From Waste to Common Land
The Pike Stone marks the boundary between the common land of Westerdale and the “wasteland” of Baysdale Moor. At first glance there is little difference: both are heather moor, both are Open Access. Yet the distinction matters, and the Open Spaces Society is seeking to have Baysdale Moor r ...
http://www.fhithich.uk/2025/09/06/the-pike-stone-from-waste-to-common-land/
#Baysdale #InglebyMoor #NorthYorkMoors #Westerdale #AccessRights #history
When the Beck Runs Dry: Hob Hole’s Ancient Ford Revealed
The word was that Baysdale Beck at Hob Hole Wath had dropped so low the old ford surface was showing. Thank you, Stephen. I could not resist.
Hob Hole has drawn picnickers since the Edwardian age. The name alone — ‘hob’, likely from ‘hobgoblin’ — conjures something hidden and ...
http://www.fhithich.uk/2025/07/18/when-the-beck-runs-dry-hob-holes-ancient-ford-revealed/
Baysdale and a Digression into the Art of Grave Digging
Baysdale today, perhaps the remotest dale in the North York Moors, accessible by car only from its head. This is Shepherd’s House, the last in the dale—or perhaps the first, depending on one’s perspective. I have already posted about Baysdale ad nauseum, so instead, I shall give you a litt ...
http://www.fhithich.uk/2025/03/02/baysdale-and-a-digression-into-the-art-of-grave-digging/
Armouth Wath: “Here Coal was Expected”
In March of 1803, a notice in the York Courant trumpeted the forthcoming sale by auction of the “MANOR and DEMESNE of BASEDALE ABBEY,” an estate furnished with a “COALMINE supposed very considerable.” One imagines that the allure of a rich seam of coal lent the whole sale a dash of speculative glamour. The “considerable” seam, however, appears ...
http://www.fhithich.uk/?p=36621
#Basedale #Baysdale #NorthYorkMoors #19thcentury #CoalMining
The Baysdale Barn That Time Forgot
Ah, the approach to the decaying edifice—otherwise known as a barn—familiar to anyone who has spent time wandering this remote part of Baysdale. Here I am, hurrying along a bridleway on the northern side of the dale, with the tantalising memory of veering off and subjecting myself to the rigours of climbing over into the vale of Leven. Otherwise, this damp track m ...
A Glimpse of Baysdale
This morning's short walk along Battersby Moor offered this view towards the upper reaches of Baysdale, formerly known as Basedale. From here, you can see the two main tributaries—Black Beck and Gain Beck—separated by the ridge aptly named Middle Head, while the moorland edge is dominated by commercial plantations that create a stark contrast to the lush valley pastures.
The dry-stone ...
The Wayward Nuns of Baysdale Abbey
This rickety cairn seems to teeter precariously over Baysdale but it has stood for at least half a century. A former resident once informed me that it was constructed by Roland Close, an estate worker and renowned local archaeologist who grew up in Shepherd's House, the ‘last’ house in the dale. Close would pass by this way on his journey to school in Kildale.
Yet ...
Smoke Signals from Baysdale
I am always saddened when I see those great plumes of smoke drifting across the skyline. It's a stark reminder, according to the State of Nature Report 2023, that the UK has earned itself a reputation as "one of the most nature-depleted countries on Earth", with biodiversity taking a significant hit.
A good three-quarters of our moorlands are eit ...
http://www.fhithich.uk/?p=34975
#Baysdale #CodhillSlack #NorthYorkMoors #Burning #GrouseMoorManagement
Gin Garth — A Smugglers’ Retreat
In the 17th through the 19th centuries, Yorkshire's coast was notorious for smuggling, and today, places like Saltburn, Staithes, and Whitby all have their smuggling attractions and yarns.
They had this intricate operation going on, and it was no secret — everyone knew about the 'coopering' business in the North Sea. Dutch ships, sailing under the ...
Wildlife in Peril: The State of Nature Report/The Felling of the Sycamore
Two pressing matters have graced the headlines this week.
First, the State of Nature report has been published, casting a dire shadow upon the condition of the UK's wildlife. The findings are nothing short of catastrophic — one in six species teeters on the brink of potential extinction. The population of 753 land ...
On the lookout for fairies in Baysdale
An early morning saunter around Baysdale, that remote dale in an expanse of moorland, its lush fields gleaming in the sunlight. In the distance, Ingleby Moor draped in a shroud of clouds, though it would disperse within the hour, leaving with a bright and dry morning. But this tranquil scene is soon to be disrupted, for Storm Agnes is due from the west come after ...
Woolly Olympics—High Jumps and Clever Ewes
"The sheep is said to be naturally dull and stupid. Of all quadrupeds it is the most foolish: it will saunter away to lonely places with no object in view; oftentimes in stormy weather it will stray from shelter; if it be overtaken by a snowstorm, it will stand still unless the shepherd sets it in motion; it will stay behind and perish unless the ...
The Cairn, the Schoolboy and the Vulpicide Outrage of 1903
A rickety cairn, perched precariously over Baysdale. I was told by a onetime resident of the dale that the cairn was built by Roland Close, an estate worker and archaeologist, who was brought up in Shepherd's House, which can be seen in the distance. Close would walk this way on his way to school in Kildale.
A curious report appeared in the Sunderla ...
Benchmark on Kildale Moor
I unexpectedly stumbled upon this benchmark a week ago. And yesterday, seeking a breather after a gruelling climb from Hob Hole, I concealed my bike amidst the heather, then ambled a couple hundred metres to revisit it.
The mark, showing little sign of erosion, distinctly directs attention to a notch atop the boulder. Clearly an Ordnance Survey benchmark, though no longer of any use ...
Bell Heather—The purple beauty of the North York Moors
Bell heather is my most favourite of the heathers. I love thee richness of its purple hue, and unlike the more prevalent and lilac-coloured ling, which The North York Moors is renowned for, bell heather boasts an extended display. It blooms earlier in June and lingers longer, often extending into September. The National Park proudly boast ...
St. Helen’s Day, the Rowan tree, and their connection to warding off witches
Wikipedia says St Helen's Day — Helena, mother of Constantine I — is honoured in the Church of England on 21st May but in the Episcopal Church on 22nd May. The Rev. R.C. Atkinson, however, suggests it falls on the 2nd May.
So who's right? Yer pays yer money ...
It matters if you wish to use the Rowan-tree, or ...
In Baysdale Beck
Two stoops or gateposts mark a long-lost crossing of Baysdale Beck about 275 metres upstream of the modern-day ford at Hob Hole. The width between the post suggests a passage on foot and for pack horses only.
"Ploughman", writing in 1908, observed that "the supports of an ancient bridge is still preserved, by the interweaving strength of the numerous roots of trees".
...
http://www.fhithich.uk/?p=31597
#Basedale #Baysdale #NorthYorkMoors #18th-century #medieval
Some days photographic opportunities are few and far between
Today was such a day. Rain, drizzle, a brief interlude of bright sunshine, then more drizzle, followed by a touch of rain.
I was on the bridleway mapped as Skinner Howe Cross Path crossing Great Hograh Moor when the sun made one of its brief appearances. This is looking north-west across Baysdale ...
http://www.fhithich.uk/?p=30817
#Basedale #Baysdale #GreatHograhMoor #NorthYorkMoors #18th-century #Christmas #MincePies