Farndale fling

I WAS experimenting. I wanted to know if it was possible to see something of Farndale's famous daffodils from the saddle of a bicycle rather than on foot.

I set off from Hutton-le-Hole and climbed up a hill before swooping into the valley at an eye-watering 38 mph. My first stop was at Low Mill. The bric-a-brac sale in the bandroom was doing a roaring trade, a result largely of the crowds that are drawn to Daffodil Trail. The hamlet is home to just 200 but at this time of year around 50,000 people visit.

It was once thought that the daffodils were planted by the monks at Rievaulx Abbey but this is not so. They are natural. Nearly as fanciful is the idea that the flowers provided inspiration for the Wordsworth poem. Some think he must have come here when he was courting his wife who lived at Brompton, near Scarborough. There is doubt also over the reason for the name of the valley. It could have been named after "Farendale" meaning the dale of the fairies or take its name from "Fernadale", ferna being the Gaelic for alder tree.

I had much to ponder as I resumed the ride. Where the cars ended their adventure, mine began. Suddenly I was alone - or almost alone. A convoy of mountain bikers whirred past in a flash of quick smiles. In the distance on the opposite side of the valley, high above Church Houses, I could just make out the white walls of the Lion Inn on Blakey Ridge.

Part of the reason for the lack of traffic is that the road is a dead end. However a "route with public access" - only highlighted in the new edition of the OS Outdoor Leisure map - exists that handily links the road to what is another dead end for cars running along the east side of the valley. The River Dove that runs through the valley is merely a stream at this point and easily crossed via a footbridge. No doubt the mountain bikers rode this short stretch but I walked it pushing the bike. Unusually, this was a bridleway that involved no mud or swearing.

As I emerged back on to tarmac, I prepared to labour up another hill. At the top I encountered my first daffodils on the grassy bank in front of a house. Not sufficient profusion to inspire me to verse but some daffs nonetheless.

The first non-agricultural building I came across since Low Mill was the High Farndale Methodist Chapel. Remarkably, it's still in use and only that evening was due to host a performance by the Lealholm Church Choir. It seems odd that such a lonely church should exist so close to the village of Church Houses which, despite its name, doesn't have a place of worship. Next to the Feversham Arms daffodils were on sale at 50p a bunch. A rip-off? No, actually, since picking your own in what is a nature reserve is prohibited.

The chink of plates and the hubbub of conversation drifting from the pub failed to lure me in. I rested instead in front of High Bragg House. I could not make up my mind who was more at peace. Me or the lazing sheep in the lush grass on the other side of the dry stone wall.

With the rumble of a cattle-grid I bid farewell to Farndale and returned to Hutton-le-Hole. A vintage sports car passed me and disappeared into the distance, the headscarf of the lady passenger flapping in the wind. It was like the end of an episode of All Creatures Great and Small. No daffs to speak of, no matter. This is a ride for all seasons.

Distance: 18 miles.

Time: 2 hours excluding stops.

Parking: Hutton-le-Hole car park. £1.50 for the day.

Directions: R out of the car park then R at t-junction out of the village. First L, past another (free) car park then R to Low Mill. Keep going north along this road. After a gate the road starts to peter out. Keep going straight ahead along a white, stony track.

After Spout House pass through another gate and then the track opens out. Look for a group of three gates to the R and go through the wooden one in the middle and down a steep lane, walled on both sides. Cross the river via a footbridge next to the ford and pass through another gate. Make your way back up to the road via a broad grassy lane walled on both sides and a final gate.

Turn R and head to and through Church Houses. 500 yards after the village turn right at the top of a hill. At the end of this road turn R back to Hutton-le-Hole.

Click here to view a map of the ride

Updated: 09:05 Saturday, April 20, 2002