Skipping off to Skipton

I must admit I find it hard to keep my spirits up at this time of year. The few brighter, crisp days don't offset the interminable dull, damp ones. I'm determined to get out most days, either for a local walk or a bit further afield. So one day recently, I skipped off to Skipton, a drive of about half an hour or so. 

I mainly went looking for some new winter walking trousers, waterproof (ish) and fleecy lined, but I couldn't find any to fit. I must be getting smaller as they were all really long! Skipton has a shop that sells large bags of nuts, seeds and dried fruit too, so I stocked up on those. It's cheaper to buy the big bags than the tiny offerings in the supermarkets. Then I had a short walk by the canal. 

There's a canal basin there, where the Springs Branch canal forks off the main Leeds-Liverpool artery. That's where all the day-hire and trip boats moor, so even in winter there's reliably some welcome colour. Not many people about though... perhaps they were all on the main street, shopping at the market. 

There are lots of older buildings alongside the Springs Branch Canal. One of them (on the right of my photo below) is a pub called the Royal Shepherd Inn - reputedly the only pub with that name in Britain. The building dates back to the 17th century but the name is said to have been adopted in the early 19th century to honour George III, nicknamed 'Farmer George' and to link with Skipton's sheep farming connections. It's said to be haunted since 1782 by the ghost of John Southworth who was murdered there, and by a young girl called Molly Barker, who is seen on the canal path with her dog, Tag. 

Looking south along the Leeds-Liverpool Canal, the Victorian church tower of Christ Church is prominent.