Stanbury Hill Bingley Moor 30-4-11

I'll put on a couple of notes and links in answer to Marks comment, at the time it was all I could do to post the photos with something like a migrane headache making lines of writing swim on the page and painfull behind the eyes. The shiny green butterfly is a Green Hairstreak http://www.ukbutterflies.co.uk/species.php?species=rubi and there were hundreds about all over the moor, and the copper one is a Small Copper http://www.ukbutterflies.co.uk/species.php?species=phlaeas and there were dozens about in twos and threes on the moor. I don't know what the eggs are though Curlew or Plover at a guess but photo's of each look the same to me, there were both flying about but I didn't see any near the nest ? anybody ? It was cracking flags hot but the wind was really strong and with the moor really dry I didn't take a primus. After the egg photo it looks like a robbed out burial cairn, but I don't know just a guess I'll ask the Bear
cheers Danny

Brenda, Teddy and more cup stones

Having spent Wed. morning on chauffeur duties which consisted of driving Brenda around the bank and building society to pay bills we stopped on the way home and bought some Yorkshire roast ham, vine tomatoes, water cress, French bread and a bottle of Californian Petite Syria. Made up a picnic and headed through Grassington to park in the layby on the Pateley Bridge road just before Stump Cross caverns see:- http://teddytourteas.blogspot.com/2011/03/crumpet-after-breast-pits.html
and walked along the Skyreholme track to the first cup boulder on the top of black hill (photo #3 in link above) Picnicked finished off the wine and I left Brenda with the haversacks here and set off cup stone prospecting spotted the mound first then the boulder next to it at mark 001 on the map looking down Wharfdale

out with the marbles

then onto mark 002 

back to the track then over onto the rough pasture until mark 003 came into view, that's the track walls behind

lots of cups and channels

the Bear knows what they mean but he’s not saying

it was then across to a lime kiln in the top corner towards the track

where I had one quick shot of some Geese ? flying over

plenty of ferns growing inside in the shade

back to the track and found Brenda talking to a Lady who lives in Skyreholme and works in the Isle of Man !  put a drip coffee Lavazza on, still in warm sunshine,

before heading back via Barden Bridge to Skipton just in time for the nightly rush hour traffic what a contrast Skylarks to commuting traffic. 

just thought I'd share cheers all Danny

  

Smearsett Scar Teddy Tour

Smearsett Scar trig point SD 80253 - 67802  looking to Penyghent

Drove to Settle and over Buck Haw Brow to turn off and park at Feizor, walked through the village and along to Wharfe wood where I turned right on the Stainforth path

Spotting an Erratic at #1 on the map I thought Erratics 1 Drystone wallers 0

a quick loop over the clints and there were lots of erratics showing, here at #2 on the map

I then headed up to the Trig Point on Smearsett Scar for dinner. Trig point coming into view at #3 on the map

Dinner at the Trig Point Menu :- Steak and Onions

Crinkle cut chips cooking

 Steak and Chips with Nando's Peri Peri Ketchup and a glass of Australian Merlot

 Finished off the wine overlooking Stainforth

 Before heading back along the ridge and passing
Zen and the Art of Dry Stone Walling at  #4

and as the light dropped a silhouette before the track back to Feizor at #5 on the map

just thought I'd share and say yes there was a "Mike Knipe - Was Ear" blue plaque on the trig! but did he have steak and chips ? cheers Mike and all, Danny

Attermire Scar Settle Teddy Tour

I think I'll post a couple of Teddy Tours, before it turns into a cup and ring stone blog.
If I walk up the field at the back of the house I can see Warrendale Knotts and Attermire scar so it's easy to nip over for a quick brew into Limestone country.Drive to Settle and park on the Malham road and walk along the bridalway to Attermire scars

The Victorian Rifle Range soon came into view. Here it's looking down on it from the scars behind. SD 83866 64098

Attermire Rifle Range, Settle
In the mid-19th century, with the threat of war with France hanging in the air, County lieutenants throughout the country were authorised to raise volunteer rifle corps. In 1854, in Settle, 30 volunteers were signed up. By 1864 they had a drill hall at the foot of Castlebergh in the town. The Settle Volunteers took their shooting practice seriously and Attermire Range was set up for them in 1860. Competitions took place and Settle won many of the top prizes in the county. The shooting platforms laid out at regular intervals away from the targets can only just be made out. More obvious are the remains of the butts at the base of Warrendale Knotts half a mile away, which originally had pairs of two metre diameter targets. The Volunteers were transferred into the Territorial Army in 1908 and they continued to use the range up until the First World War. During the Second World War, the local Home Guard reused the range.
Source:-http://www.outofoblivion.org.uk/record.asp?id=108
Where the kettle was soon on for a brew

Russian Caravan Tea.
From Wikipedia, Russian Caravan is a blend of Oolong, Keemun and Lapsang Souchong teas. Although a Chinese tea, its name originates from the 18th century camel caravans that facilitated the transcontinental tea trade to Europe via Russia. "It took at least half a year to make the six-thousand-mile journey from the Chinese border to Russia, Russian Caravan has a distinctive smoky aroma caused by the Lapsang Souchong in the blend, originally intended as a natural preservative. Stoves a Samuel Heath & Son Birmingham.
with a brew on the go it was time for a steak and onion butty with home made bread. Mind the hot fat splashes!

It looks like Dads army used more than black powder muskets and 303's on the cast targets

It seems like a piece of history is slowly being lost, took me awhile to clean the muck of this target back

Back to the van and took the Malham road to the Airton turn off
Looking back at Settle

Another Teddy Tour just a quick one but non the less enjoyable. Just thought I'd share.
cheers all Danny
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I'll add a bit more history :- for Alan from http://www.settledistrictu3a.org.uk/nchtjournal/Journals/1998/J98A9.html#Rifle
From the Stockdale road, to the butts at the foot of Warrendale Knotts, was half a mile. A 6' target at that range is but a speck, and very few shot at the distance. Today a keen eye can still see what remains of the shooting platforms, which were raised areas of about seven feet square at distances of 150 yds, 300 yds, 450 yds, 600 yds, 750 yds and 880 yds, the latter by the lane wall. About half way along the range by the west wall, stood a wooden hut which contained a water boiler for the refreshment.

The target end of the range consisted of a very substantial building which housed the score keepers. This was equipped with a pair of mirrors to give a periscopic view over the boundary wall along the range with the semaphore communications to the shooting positions. Two pairs of 6' dia. targets rotated on an iron axle. The score was recorded from the bottom target, the shot holes being papered over while the top target was being shot. Then the pair were reversed. Shooters drew numbers from a bag for the order of shooting so the target end only knew the number of the shooter and not his name, but for all that it was said that tricks were played between mates when one of them was on duty with the score sheet.

After the end of World War I there was no more TA at Settle and the Attermire range was silent, but 30 years later during World War II the Home Guard was issued with rifles and the range was used again. The iron plates by the ruins were used to shoot .22 in short range practice, but towards the end of the war the H.G. received some armour piercing equipment which they tried out. It proved to be very effective on the 1860 iron plates. Now some 50 years later little more than a pile of stones and bits of scrap iron mark the shooting butts, but spent bullets can still be found among the stones on Warrendale Knotts.

and for Steve - bits of scrap iron mark the site of something that will soon be lost !
thanks for comments Danny

Teddy Tours to Wandjina Stone

Earby - Foulridge where I called in the Pennine Cauldron Cafe and scored another free Oat Square (see http://teddytourteas.blogspot.com/2011/02/plan-b-four-teddys-of-gragareth.html ) from Simon, then over the hill to drop down into Glusburn and Crosshills where I come from

,

it was then on to Silsden and up the steep hill to park at the T junction on the Silsden to East Morton road

I set off along the footpath for the TV relay station but turned off to head into the forestry plantation passing several of these again, some were making caterpillars !

Into the plantation to be met with lots of these on the trees

I thought it might say trespassers will be shot, but the Bear said it says free beer at the top of the wood
neither happened and came out onto the moor half way along the wood to find the first Cup and Ring boulder almost weathered away

but the next nearer the wood was in better condition

Marble time

Followed the edge of the wood to mark 004 passing a T for Teddy carved into a boulder

Had to climb the wall to head for the Trig point

Here over looking Silsden and snacking the Oat Square, it must have been the hottest day so far this year with not a cloud in the sky I was glad of my water bottle. Set off along Rivock Edge

where it meets the wood the Wondjina Stone another badly worn with time, here's an idea get English heritage to enploy a good stone mason to re-cut them ? here overlooking Keighley

and a close up

a near by boulder on the edge had some cups

this looking over the Aire valley bypass and railway, to Cononley moor just see the Lead mine chimney the industrial eyesore at Kildwick with Crosshills to the left and the road heading for Lothersdale and then up and over to Earby. Mike Knipe will recognise the aerial on the sky line for years it was called Big Ears

It was then into the wood

to find another boulder covered in pine needles but I had a brush in the haversack

most of the cups have a ring around

It was then back down to the van where I was glad of the water stash before I drove to the Whetstone quarry marked top right on the map photo #2
I pulled in and made dinner in the back of the van out of the wind - Lavazza drip coffee and Crumpets with Wooky hole cave matured chedder cheese no butter though as it had melted !

I then set off for Whetstones gate

with a view of Cowpers cross (twelfth century)  to the left

followed the track down with Ilkley coming into view

and then cut across the moor

to come to the Badger Stone with Menwith Hill Echelon in the background again

someone had used a black wax crayon to high light the carvings

at least it's better than the white chalk

the whole face is covered in carvings

The Bear opened the the bar a South African Pinotage Shiraz

had a wander along from here then it was an uphill slog back to the van and it was still cracking flags phew!
just thought I'd share cheers all Danny
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Update on sign in woods, I just had this via e-mail :-

  I  do thnk its   either  someone trying  very crudely to nvent russian via  some other language or it is polish kabel the first wird  sounds   like   what I know as male dog. But I jcan't find it, to say  not knowing the spelling I cant find it. what I do find is   the russified word cabel,(electric cabel) from the German  Kabel. 
next word предостор   does not exist in russian but has elemnts of the russian word for  Attention, danger  which  is: предосорожность
then  ежениа does not exist in Russian  ежик  exists which is one of those animals   with spikes people give milk to what  s its name???Kids all love it
внутри a russian word indeed meaning 'inside',' within' and  its that word that made me think you were making it all up because  one says in English within 10 meteres  but you definitely cannot use that word in the context of distance
and метров  is meters.  so  I loosely thought  you meant  Teddy. although Teddy or bear is  медвед  in Russian.  but looking at it again   they are obviosly warning  whomever  about the electric  cabel.  but it aint Russians  doing it.
yours Avis.