A Day In Settle

Introduction

Settle is a favourite holiday haunt of ours. The first time we stayed we brought a car. It was parked, and it never moved til we left. Since then we have stayed for a week or two each year, getting there by train from Newcastle to Carlisle, then Carlisle to Settle over the Ribblehead Viaduct.

We have an excellent Penthouse that you can see here, photographed from Castlebergh Crag, it's the one with the table and chairs, and is amazing inside.

A Day In Settle

I have documented many of my visits to Settle and will share some of the articles to illustrate why twenty-four hours in Settle is always well spent by us.

One of its most famous residents is the writer/comedian/musician Mike Harding, and I met him in The Royal Oak a couple of years back, a really nice, funny and interesting man. This is his Substack:

Another is my friend, the writer Alan Stevenson

So you can see some very interesting people are residents.

Often we will take breakfast at Ye Olde Naked Man, a great café and dining place. I often go for the vegetarian option there.

Our holidays tend to be in December, so we can partake of a certain speciality at The Talbot Arms:

From Settle, there is a great bus and train service that gives easy access to Skipton and Ingleton, as well as other villages, but there are many walks. I always take a walk to Scaleber Force/Foss, which I have documented a few times, but here is one.

I always climb Castlebergh Crag to take photographs and take a walk to the Hoffman Kiln, stopping by the Ribble Weir. I still haven't a clue what happened in the Hoffman Kiln, but just being there is an experience, and is always part of my visits to Settle.

When in Settle, I take time to go to Skipton Castle Woods and visit The Huntress. I take the bus, which is a little slower than the train but is more frequent and stops in the middle of Skipton.

It is close to the Three Peaks, Ingleborough, Whernside and Pen-y-ghent which inspired this poem when I saw the photograph.

My photographs had no snow.

I know this is a bit of "things I have done and enjoyed and will do again", but that is what makes it a perfect twenty-four hours for me. I still feel there are things I have not done or discovered, so every time I am there I look for new ideas.

The penthouse also means I can write at leisure, or watch TV, listen to music, or read or just enjoy the quiet. When I am there, I know I am moments away from food, drink, scenery, walks and more.

This is a short bus ride to the west, and when I visited, I felt like I was walking into Jurassic Park. There were no dinosaurs, but it was an excellent two-hour walk.

Conclusion

I suppose a perfect twenty-four hours is having the option to do what you want and gain fulfilment from whatever you do. When I am in Settle I am always happy being there, and it is the only place that tempts me to move from Newcastle, although I need to be in Newcastle for the excellent health treatment I have on my doorstep.

I think the station may have featured in a Harry Potter Film and the Victoria Hall is an amazing building and theatre that opened in 1853.

So this is a way I could spend a perfect twenty-four hours, and I will be doing that this December.