A walk from Grassington

Taking advantage of a rare, crisp, blue sky day, I set off for a walk from Grassington that was supposed to be along the Dales Way, through Grass Wood and then back alongside the River Wharfe. In the shady areas the ground was frozen and pleasantly crunchy underfoot. Where the sun hit, there was a lot of mud! A slight wrong turning took me along a steep, narrow path through the woodland that had even more mud... thick, endless and very hard work to navigate. Thankfully that was eventually remedied and the right track located and after that the walking became more pleasurable. 

It was certainly a lovely day for it, with a light covering of snow on the hilltops and little wind, so that the air was very cold but bearably so. I returned with rosy pink cheeks and a light heart (and very dirty boots and trousers!) 

Grass Wood - broadleaved deciduous woodland on a limestone bedrock - is now a nature reserve. To be honest, there wasn't much to see at this time of year though I was interested to see a 'prehistoric settlement' marked, which from what I've read seems to date from the Iron Age. Apparently there is a further Iron Age settlement higher up in the wood. Unless you are an ancient history specialist, you wouldn't really know; all that is visible is a few random piles of moss-covered stones but it does remind us that we are only the latest in a long line of people that have called this area their home. 

Between Grass Wood and Grassington itself, there are a few fields with the typical stone Dales barns. I never did get as far as the river... Too. Much. Mud!