Post 297: 27 September 2018, Kirkstall Abbey to Otley.
After an exciting summer, with visits to Bavaria, The Orkneys, Faroes, Iceland and Greenland, it was now time to start a new long-distance walk in Yorkshire, my 57th, The Abbey Trail.
This runs for 116 miles from Kirkstall Abbey to Whitby taking in seven historic buildings at Kirkstall, Fountains, Byland, Rievaulx, Lastingham, Rosedale and Whitby. However, we would be completing the walk mainly in day circular walks giving a mileage of probably over 200 miles.
However, on the first section we decided to drive out to Otley, catch a bus to Kirkstall Abbey and walk back to Otley, 11 miles walking according to the guide book. After parking in the centre of Otley (£3.60 for all day and hence a lot cheaper than York at about £10) Sid the Yorkshireman used the public conveniences at 30p, which is a lot cheaper than Iceland at between £1-£2! This was quite a historic occasion for him to pay to go to the toilet!
As we left the car park we started to chatting to a very friendly elderly local who turned out to be catching the same bus and was able to act as a ‘guide’ to the area telling us of all the changes that had happened over the years. He also told us to catch the 9.31am bus as it was free for those who had bus passes (Contrast York is free after 9am). Out of 5 of us only Geordie Caz had to pay, but even that was only about £3, again a lot cheaper than York especially as the journey was to take 50 minutes!
The elderly gentleman kindly told us where to get off the bus and we posed at the impressive start of the walk in exceptionally good warm autumn weather.
The walls of the abbey are more complete than those of any other Cistercian abbey in England. 13 monks and 10 lay brothers from Fountains Abbey established the abbey on 19 May 1152. The monks grew rich through the keeping of sheep and the wool trade. The Abbey was surrendered to the Crown on 22nd November 1539.
The strange thing was that although we had had lived within about an hours drive of the abbey for over 30 years, it was the first time some of us had been, although we had often seen it from the train.
We then followed the River Aire to the Leeds-Liverpool Canal and past some student residences (formerly the Mackeson Brewery). A sign says Liverpool is 124 miles and by coincidence I had only recently been there. Horse drawn barges would have made the journey at a much slower pace than the train I had caught to Liverpool. 
There are some impressive locks on the canal, making a good stop for our coffee and banana break. 
We followed the canal for a few miles to Rodley where we left it. 
After passing the Railway Pub and a large packhorse bridge, which has grooves from cartwheels, we reached and followed the River Aire.
The river bank was being repaired by Leeds City Council staff and volunteers. We found the repairs made a good back rest for our lunch in the sun. They were doing a splendid job of keeping the path open. 
Here we left the river and started heading north towards and through Guiseley. It was bear country. 
We passed the imposing St. Oswald’s Church, which was originally built in 1150, being rebuilt in the 13th-century. 
Continuing north we passed through Greenbottom and under the flight path for Leeds-Bradford airport. We eventually reached Chevin Forest Park.
Surprise View can be found here with fabulous views below towards Otley and Wharfedale. 
All that remained now was a steep descent into Otley and a chance to put the feet up. 
Otley is quite a cycling area and this area, centred on Harrogate, will host the World Cycling Championships in September 2019. 
The jokes on the walk were as bad as ever. When we passed an old asylum now an upmarket housing estate, Sid the Yorkshireman said you would have to be mad to live there. When we approached the Abbey on the bus the elderly gentlemen said you go up at the cemetery. Sid the Yorkshireman quipped “I thought I would not be going up today”.
Miles Walked (Fitbit) 12
Calories 3790
Steps 28,212
We had a little time to spare before the opening and so were able to walk around William, Brown and Lime Streets.
Nearby, at the top of William Brown Street, is a huge memorial to the Duke of Wellington, known as Wellington’s Column or the Waterloo Memorial. 
Less impressive is the Unite building! 
There is also the library with an interesting entrance.
In the distance could be seen the St John’s Beacon Viewing Gallery. 
Eventually it was time to enter the exhibition to be met by China’s first emperor. 
For over 2,000 years, an underground army of life-sized terracotta warriors secretly guarded the tomb of china’s First Emperor, Qin Shi Huang, until a chance discovery in 1974 unlocked mysteries of a vanished empire. If your confused below about a different name for the First Emperor it is because he changed his name from Ying Zheng to Qin Shi Huang. 
What is surprising about the exhibition is the number of artefacts on display, which were buried with various emperors.
Horses, carriages, animals, servants and concubines were all buried with the emperors
However, the highlight of the splendid exhibition are the life-sized warriors.
There are examples of how the warriors were made. 
The detail is staggering. 
Leaving the exhibition, it seems fitting, on seeing the memorial nearby, to remember the victims of the Hillsborough Football disaster who, on the 15th April 1989, went to an FA Cup semi-final and many (96 fatalities) did not return or had severe injuries (766 ). I used to go to semi-finals at Villa Park when a teenager, but always came home.
Also to remember those who gave their lives in the World Wars
It is not only Emperors who should be remembered……………………
We would all like peace and John Lennon was a great promoter of peace. It is ironic that his life was cut short by a violent action when he was shot in New York in 1980. 
What is staggering and shocking is the number of people killed in the U.S.A by guns since Lennon’s death. 
Lennon used unorthodox methods to promote peace. 
Seriously, Celia had actually booked tickets for the Terracotta Warriors exhibition the following day for a 10.00am timed entry. Arriving at Lime St station
it was a short walk to the Premier Inn using our google app on the phone. Very useful but it certainly drains the battery on the phone and being of ‘bus pass age’ it took a bit of getting used to.
I could think of a few other cities, but sufficient to say at this stage that the cruise terminal welcomes more than 57 ships and 100,000 passengers and crew. It brings £7 million into the city’s economy. A new terminal under construction at Princes Jetty will enable bigger liners to berth in Liverpool and start and finish in Liverpool. It tends to be only the smaller cruise ships that can do this at present.
You might even meet the Beatles there. 
Also prepare to be dazzled with colour 
We were fortunate to be able to do a tour of the Edmund Gardner pilot ship, obtaining free tickets from the nearby Liverpool Museum.
We then went to the Museum of Liverpool to visit the Double Fantasy John and Yoko exhibition. This runs until 22 April 2019 (see next blog).
After Airyholme and Howthorpe Farms we headed to Wath Beck and crossed it over a footbridge. The immediately raised alarm bells as some years previously I had sunk up to my knees in the ONLY proper bog I have ever found in the Howardian Hills.
We carried on to Terrington and sat on a bench at the public school with a view over the fairly new tennis courts.
We then visited All Saints Church, Terrington, which dates from the Norman period. What struck us was the board with all the names of the Rectors going back to 1234! All the Kings and Queens are listed too. 
What also hit us was the number of people who had sacrificed their lives in two World Wars, particularly the First World War, from such a small village and parish (the population in 2011 was only 459). Some families had up to 4 members lost. 
Rolling Yorkshire countryside beckoned us on. 
Until we got to Thurtle Wood and were surprised to find an abandoned camp. 
Geordie Caz thought it was very ‘convenient’ of them to leave some toilets for us, until she found they were all locked.
There was also a mosaic to commemorate the trail and millennium, with Castle Howard featuring strongly. 
Sid the Yorkshireman found a sign on the floor and decided it might be a good idea to take the sign with him so as not to get lost. 
I think he had been on the mushrooms. 
After Fryton West Wood we descended back to Hovingham. 
There is an interesting memorial to a master mariner. 
A plaque shows the rents in 1712 were a little less than now. 
Slingsby Castle is in need of some tlc.
From Slingsby we headed to Barton-le-Street where the St Michaels’ Church was also rebuilt in 1871.
Then we headed on to Appleton-le-Street, which has a population of approximately 117 (2001).
The bench there made a good coffee and banana break overlooking the garden area.
We headed up towards Coneysthorpe Banks Wood, where there was some interesting flora. 
After having lunch we passed Castle Howard in the far distance. 
After Slingsby Banks Wood, we descended back towards Slingsby and a horse encounter. 
It had been a hot and humid day.
Then we came to an interesting exhibition about the port and ships that visit it. The train was one of two which were used in 1913 to construct the port.
It is situated in front of the Art Museum.
Currently over 135 cruise liners visit the port each year with over 128,000 passengers. Cruise liners have been coming since 1906. 
Controversially, whaling ships have and still do use the port.
Between 1915-1973 many passenger ships used the port.
Coastguard vessels have operated since 1926 to date 
There are a number of companies that run whale watching trips from this area, Elding being one of the main ones. 
A little further on there is the Maritime Museum 
There is also an area where ships are overhauled.
Fish and chips are available at a price – £13.80! 
By the end of the day I had done 10.5 miles in total, 22,019 steps and burnt 3,315 calories. 
However, we had signed up for a cocktail tasting at 16.00 hours – 6 cocktails for £6.99. The surprise was that the cocktails were not small tasting glasses, but large ones. We had bellini, pina colada, kamikaze (down in one), ruski, Long Island iced tea, mai-tai.
The result was that some passengers ended up being helped out of the bar at the end by the staff and I ended up as in the photograph below! 
Before the real celebrations began we had to go through the Pentland Firth between Hoy and John O’Groats. It is notorious for strong tidal currents, but fortunately was relatively calm. 
The top of The Old Man of Hoy can just be seen peering over the top of the cliffs to the left. 
Viking Sun passed by. 
The lighthouse near John O’Groat’s could just be picked out in the mist and diminishing light. 
It was interesting that Saga brought along one of their ships, Saga Pearl II especially for Celia’s birthday. That is forwarded, targeted marketing! 
Now I know you should never reveal a ladies age and it would be more than my life’s worth to do so. So I will just show the card I brought out at the formal farewell dinner in the evening. Just after the cruise it would be our 45th wedding anniversary and we have known each for 47 years. I must be doing something right!
It was a great menu for the meal and birthday celebrations. 
Our waiter Iqbal had been superb throughout the cruise. 
The Gala Dinner was later followed by the Gala Buffet, not that we had room for any more food!
We then caught a coach to Hull and on arrival had a 2 hour delay as the taxi firm had sent a car instead of people carrier for 4 of us with full luggage! It was good to be back in England!
It was a deja vu moment as when I got back to Manchester Airport from Bavaria in May it was the first day of the new train timetables and chaos reigned supreme!
A container ship from St John’s in Eastern Canada was just leaving. 
We passed the Hallgrimskirka Church, which I had been to before in 2015 and which is the tallest building in central Reykjavik, its tower shaped to give the impression of basalt. 
The coastguard was in dock, no doubt looking for smugglers. I do know someone who smuggled gin onto our ship! 
We passed Videy Island where, on 9th October 2007, Yoko Ono and Sean Lennon inaugurated the ‘Imagine Peace Tower’ (Icelandic: Frioarsulan meaning ‘the peace column’) on John Lennon’s birthday. The ‘Imagine Peace Tower’ was relighted on December 21st, winter solstice, and beamed until New Years Eve 2007.
We were therefore docked ‘near the Reykavik sign’ on the far top right shown on the map below. The city has one of the highest standards of living in the world, possibly paid for by the shuttle bus fares of £18 return per person from our dock to the city centre! 
We decided to walk along the Sculpture and Shore Walk to the main dock area; it is about 2.5 miles to the Harpa Concert Hall and Conference Centre. In 2015 we had already seen much of the city centre. It was a bit dank but is a pleasant walk with a proper tarmac footpath. A guide said that this year was the worst weather in Iceland for over 100 years. Even in a good year the weather is very changeable as Arctic Polar and Atlantic fronts do battle over Iceland. 
There is a lot of interest to be seen in the Laugarnes area. 
A leprosy hospital existed here and two French seamen died of smallpox! 
The hospital and military huts are no longer there. 
The skyline of Reykjavik soon came into view. 
There are angelica plants growing wild which, once crystallised, are used in cakes. 
There are good views across the Vioyjarsund to the mountains.
There are some unusual homes and gardens in the area! 
A little further along there was a sculpture from 1991.
Some of the rocks acting as storm defences showed evidence of previous volcanic activity.
Some made a good sculpture. 
We then passed the beautiful Suncraft (Solfar) designed by Jon Guunar Arnason and installed in its present location in 1990, a year after his death. The sun ship symbolizes the promise of new, undiscovered territory. It is not a Viking ship as thought by many. Jon argued that Sun Voyager should be seen as a vessel that transports souls to the realm of death. It was envisaged as a dreamboat, an ode to the sun symbolising light and hope. 
We then reached the Harpa and went in to watch a complete 360 degree sound and visual 15 minute film about Iceland, the volcanoes, landscapes, waterfalls and mountains. It was quite stunning and well worth the highish cost (£15). Also there are free toilets in the building, which gives a discount in Iceland as some toilets cost between £1-£2 in Iceland – credit cards can be used!
An indredibly brave security guard then jumped in and swam towards him, holding him until a rescue boat arrived. It was very concerning as the water would have been very cold. Eventually he was hauled into the boat by the three strong young men and not long after an ambulance arrived.
It is located on the Qaqortoq Fjord alongside the Labrador Sea.
There are a number of walks in the area and Cumbria Man and myself decided to walk to the far end of Tasersuaq Lake, again leaving the ladies to browse around the town. The walks are not signed. 
The Tourist Office and souvenir shop seemed a good place to start our walk. 
Just along from there is the Church of Our Saviour..
Near the church is the oldest fountain in Greenland, Mindebronden, which was finished in 1932. It was the only fountain in Greenland until another was built in Sisimiut.
The oldest standing building is a black tarred log building from 1797.
we soon came across some of the rock art which is part of the Stone and Man project. From 1993 to 1994 Qaqortoq artist Aka Hoegh presided over the project, which involved 18 artists from Finland, Sweden, Norway, Iceland and Greenland carving 24 sculptures into the rock faces and boulders in town. Today there are over 40 sculptures.
There are some interesting street names!
Our lake destination soon appeared and there is some colourful flora in the area
Although the temperature was only about 10C degrees (50F) children were swimming in the lake.
There were a few mosquitos around further along the lake and so we needed our nets on our heads.
Soon after passing some local joggers we got to the far end of the lake.
In view of the limited time we decided to return the way we had come along the lake. 
Before diverting past the football pitch
To the busy residential part of town. 
We had walked just over 8 miles.
Interestingly there are water taxis.
There was a short shuttle bus journey to the city centre. We only had until 14.30 when our ship was due to depart. However, it is possible to walk around the city which, although the largest in Greenland and its Capital, is quite small. The population is only 17,316 (2016), although it is expanding as people migrate to the city from poorer more remote regions of Greenland. A third of Greenland’s population live in Nuuk. It has a cosmopolitan feel about it. There seems to be a lot of new building work taking place, 
although it still only has 62 miles (100km) of road, the latter the most advanced road network in Greenland.
After alighting from the bus we visited the Tourist Information Office and I purchased a fabulous, stunning, photographic book (their last one). I highly recommend it although I am not sure it is readily available in the UK. It covers Greenland, Svabard, Iceland and Eastern Canada. The author and photographer Uri Golman has a web-site: 
We then walked to the older colonial harbour of Nuuk where the cathedral and the National Museum (no. 29 on map) are situated along a lovely waterfront. On occasions whales can be seen from the waterfront as well as icebergs/flows.
Nuuk Cathedral, the Church of Our Saviour, is a wooden Lutheran cathedral with a clock tower and steeple. 
Behind and to the left of the cathedral on a small hill is a statue of Hans Egede. It commemorates the Dano-Norwegian Lutheran missionary Hans Egede who founded Nuuk in 1728. His house, built in 1721, is the oldest building in Greenland and is found near the harbour and is used for government receptions. 
It is quite colourful near the harbour with many buttercups and other flowers. 
There are number of arts and crafts shops where it is possible to purchase local products, some carved from reindeer antlers or stone. 
Whilst Celia was making purchases and I waited ‘patiently’ outside the second shop, a local school passed and one of teacher’s heralded from Manchester – a small world. 
There are some attractive houses and views in this waterfront area overlooking a fjord. 
Below the houses is the National Museum, which is excellent. It was inaugurated in the mid-1960s and has many artifacts relating to Greenland’s archaeology, history, art and handicrafts. However, most striking are the Qilakitsog Mummies.
Leaving the museum we headed back to the city centre. Time was pressing. Near the bus stop was the cultural centre for concerts, cinema and exhibitions. 
Nearby a couple off our ship were playing instruments, which the local Greenlanders enjoyed. 
This commemorated the Arctic Winter Games 2016
Back at the ship we were quickly back to ‘our culture’ with the sail away party at 14.30. 
To be followed with an exquisite sunset….
secretwalkscom 