Tykes Abroad - Page 9 of 12 - The Travels of a Couple From Yorkshire

Western States Road Trip, September 2014

By Robert Hillery

We have just finished the first six days of a driving trip of the Western States with Molly’s brother Robert.

We flew to Salt Lake City and met him there late Monday evening following his flights from London via Dallas.

Welcome to the USA!

We had two full days in Salt Lake where we spent much of the time in and around Temple Square, learning about the LDS Church and admiring its remarkable headquarters and the beautiful surroundings in which they stand.

We saw the “This is the Place” monument where Brigham Young declared the end to the Mormon trek from Illinois

The 21,000 seat LDS Conference Center

This is The Place Monument

and began the settlement that is now Salt Lake City. We also saw the relatively new and amazing Conference Center built by the Church and heard an organ recital in the world famous Tabernacle. We were not in town for any of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir performances or rehearsals but the visit to Temple Square was nevertheless of great interest, as it has been for Molly and I on every previous occasion.

Mormon Tabernacle Organ

Salt Lake City LDS Temple

The world famous Mormon Tabernacle

We also visited the Utah State Capitol – a beautiful building inside and out – and spent a very pleasant afternoon in the ski resort of Park City.

On Thursday we drove over the Wasatch Range (eastwards and then north) to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where we stayed two nights. Here we spent a morning in the “Wild West” town center and then took the cable car from Teton Village (at 6100 feet) to the top of Rendezvous Mountain (10,500 feet), from where we had magnificent views of the Jackson Hole Valley as well as the Teton Mountain range, including Grand Teton at almost 14,000 feet elevation.

Town Square, Jackson Hole, Wyoming

The Grand Tetons from Rendezvous Mountain

Today (Saturday) we drove north through Grand Teton National Park and its magnificent scenery with stops at the small but beautiful Jenny Lake (where we had great views of Grand Teton across the water) and Summit Mountain (7700 feet) which afforded almost 360 degree views of the mountains and valley.

Grand Tetons from Jenny Lake

Jackson Hole Valley from the top of Summit Mountain, with the Snake River

We then crossed into Yellowstone National Park to our hotel for the next five nights in West Yellowstone, which is just outside the Park and in the State of Montana. One of the major roads within the Park is now closed for the season and it resulted in about a 50 mile detour for us today but we think it will not significantly affect our sightseeing over the next four days in Yellowstone, at which time, we hope to file our next Post.

California, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Utah, Wyoming

Permanent link to this article: http://tykesabroad.com/western-states-road-trip-september-2014/

Sacramento August 2014

By Robert Hillery

We are visiting Christopher, Cyndi and Samantha this weekend in Sacramento. We arrived late Thursday night and spent Friday afternoon with Sammy. We picked her up from her Lego Camp (she has been involved in week-long camps all summer) and then spent two hours in Chuck E Cheese’s, where we had lunch and a very lucrative time on the games machines.

One hundred fifty eight tickets for prizes!

A lucrative session on the games!

Lunch and Rides at Chuck E Chees

Later in the afternoon it was time for Sammy’s karate class (she is a very busy five year old) and then an early dinner with the whole family. We spent some time in the evening showing a slide show of our spring visit to Israel.

On Saturday there was an open house at Samantha’s new school. They plan to move from rented quarters in another facility to their brand new purpose-built school less than a mile away. Supposedly school will start in two weeks, but one had to have a good deal of faith to believe that this new building would be ready to operate as classrooms at that time. Fortunately, our guide (who happens to be the owner of the school) does have that faith, so we shall see. A barbecue lunch was provided so, regardless of the exact opening day, it was a pleasant way to spend two hours on a beautiful day.

Ready in two weeks???

Artist’s rendition of Sammy’s new school

Later in the afternoon we completed the Israel slide show and had dinner at a very nice Italian restaurant downtown. This was a belated anniversary dinner for Christopher and Cyndi.

On Sunday we met for brunch at a sixties-style ice cream parlor (which also had an extensive meal menu) and then spent some time in the pool at Christopher and Cyndi’s home. We also showed them our slide show of the visit we made to Russia in June and enjoyed a lovely barbecue dinner (with wonderful corn on the cob) at home before we said our farewells for this trip. We left with the promise to be back in only four weeks, at the conclusion of our next driving trip of the Western States.

Pool Time!

California, Grandchildren, Sacramento

Permanent link to this article: http://tykesabroad.com/sacramento-august-2014/

Alaska Cruise, July 2014

By Robert Hillery

Alaska Cruise, July 2014

This trip was one that we had arranged so that the whole family (two children and four grandchildren) could be together with Molly and me for a cruise from Anchorage to Vancouver on board the Crown Princess. Cyndi, Christopher and Sammy had traveled to Fairbanks on July 5 and had slowly driven to Anchorage where we all met on Thursday (July 10) when the rest of the family arrived from Cincinnati.

We met everyone at the Glacier Brewpub in downtown Anchorage, just two blocks from our hotel. It was a great reunion and a good meal (in busy and noisy surroundings) but those who had traveled from Cincinnati were soon beginning to lag and Hayley actually left for bed before we finished our meal. Nevertheless it was a good start to the vacation and one of many meals together over the next ten days. It was about 10:30 (and still light) as we walked back to the hotel.

On Friday (the day before the cruise started), the Shepard family spent some time in Anchorage and then went out of town to spend the night in sight of Mt McKinley (which they DID see) before driving back to board the ship on Saturday). Meanwhile we were picked up by Christopher, Cyndi and Sammy at 10:15 for our trip to a glacier and the Alaska Conservation Park.

It was about an hour’s drive south from Anchorage to the Begitch-Boggs Visitor Center during which we experienced a few sprinkles of rain on a very misty and overcast morning. However, as we arrived at the Center, it started to rain in earnest and also became extremely windy. We quickly ran to the shelter of the visitor center from where we got a great view of a beautiful blue iceberg that had flowed downstream from the Porter Glacier that we had come to visit. The rain had now picked up considerably and was coming down essentially horizontally – but we still decided to take the 1.6 mile round trip path to the glacier.

Our first “iceberg” of the trip

damp day in Alaska!

The path was more or less level and well paved with gravel so it was a relatively easy walk and, on a nicer day, would have been extremely pretty. As it was, we followed a raging torrent of a glacial river and walked in a torrential downpour until the path ended in sight of the glacier. Christopher, Cyndi and Samantha tried to find a path to get to the actual glacier and touch some ice or snow, but were thwarted by several small streams and then the river itself. Despite that, we had a great view of the glacier that actually spans the river and could clearly see many deep fissures – about which there had been a number of warnings along the path. Clearly one of these had resulted in some separation to form the iceberg we had seen earlier.

The walk back was into the wind and rain so we arrived at the gift shop/cafeteria soaked thoroughly. The lady in the gift shop helped Cyndi and Sammy to get some clothes dried (and loaned substitutes) while we all ate a very good lunch in the cafeteria. When we were all more or less dried out we drove about ten minutes back towards Anchorage to the Alaska Conservation Center. Here we saw many native animals (elk, muskoxen, bear, bald eagle, moose, and wood bison among others) which were being held to preserve from extinction and/or increase their population and, in fact, a herd of wood bison were due for release back to the wild sometime in 2015.

Lunchtime for the bear

The Alaska Wildlife Conservation Park

By now the rain had more or less stopped and we had a very pleasant 1 ½ hours strolling through the various areas near the wild animals before starting our trip back to Anchorage. We arrived back about 6pm to a very pleasant evening with temperatures near 70F and ended our day with a good together.

Saturday was a much brighter morning as Christopher, Cyndi and Sammy left their B&B and picked us up at the hotel just before 10am. They had sent most of their luggage ahead to the ship so there was plenty of room in the trunk for our three bags.

We drove down the same inlet that we had traveled yesterday and arrived at the tunnel just north of Whittier at 11:30. This is a single road and rail track tunnel which opens for road traffic for twenty minutes in each hour in each direction, so missing a window can cause a one hour delay to the journey. However we made it through the small and general rough-hewn tunnel at the prescribed 25 mph and emerged to the town of Whittier well before noon.

Cyndi and Christopher had purchased tickets for the Porter Glacier cruise (on a small catamaran) as an anniversary gift for us and it turned out to be a wonderful way to spend a (belated) anniversary afternoon.

Beautiful family and beautiful waterfall

The cruise lasted 3 ¾ hours during which we saw about six glaciers, dozens of spectacular waterfalls, and tremendous views of mountain peaks, most of which were still snow covered. The boat stopped at two of the glaciers to give us a close-up view of the magnificent blue walls and we were lucky to see several examples of calving of the ice. Even though it appeared that relatively small chunks were being released, the cracking and falling process sounded like large claps of thunder. The captain said we were about 200 to 300 yards from the shear faces but it felt as though we could almost reach out and touch the packed ice. Certainly when he pulled within 200 feet of a massive waterfall, those of us standing on the forward deck received a very refreshing (!) cold shower.

We had lunch on board (the set meal was fish and chips – although these were American chips!) but alternatives were available. The food was certainly adequate and the service and commentary by the crew were excellent. There was a US Forestry Ranger on board to offer insight into the glaciers and surrounding lands as well as to point out sea life and birds along the route. She also provided children under 15 with a chance to become a Junior Ranger by completing four aspects of a quiz book – and, of course, Sammy took to this with relish and was duly given her badge at the end of the journey.

Sailor Sammy

Our home for the next week

The weather stayed beautiful for the entire afternoon and it was even nicer (clear blue skies) as we settled on the Crown Princess for our departure from Whittier. Following the requisite life jacket drill, Cyndi, Christopher and Sammy joined us for dinner (very good) and then Molly and I joined Chris and Elizabeth for a late night drink.

It was almost 9:30 before Molly and I got up on Sunday morning and went for breakfast in the buffet. This was to be a day of sailing so there were no shore excursions scheduled but later in the afternoon we were anticipating getting close to our first glacier on the large ship.

We were sailing into Yakutat Bay in the mid-afternoon and sailed right alongside and up to two beautiful glaciers where once again there was some calving and lots of small “icebergs” in the surrounding waters. The whole region was stunningly beautiful with glaciers, icebergs, snow-packed mountains and blue water in all views. Unfortunately a leak developed in our cabin and I spent a good deal of time making vain attempts to get it fixed, with communication with the mostly non-English speaking staff resulting only in a very noisy fan being placed in the room to dry out the carpet.

Formal Night with four wonderful grandchildren

Close up view of glacier from cabin balcony

We did, however, have a pleasant dinner with the whole family on our this first formal night and of course we had family portraits professionally taken – the whole family and each “sub-group”.

Monday was another day of up-close glacier viewing, this time in Glacier Bay.

Glacier and mountain on a beautiful clear day

Once again the scenery (and the weather) were magnificent but I missed some of the sights while “negotiating” with the Princess staff on really fixing the leak in the cabin.

When we awoke on Tuesday we were already docked in Skagway, together with three other huge cruise ships.

From the White Pass Railway train (built in late 19th century)

Skagway, Alaska: start of the White Pass Railway to the Yukon

Molly and I took a shuttle ride into the town (about a mile), strolled around the attractive 1890s downtown (the Gold Rush here was at that time) and then walked back to the ship. I had an appointment with the Customer Service representative at noon to discuss a possible move of cabins,so I canceled my shore excursion, although in truth I was somewhat reluctant to go too far from the ship with continuing stomach issues.

So, I spent the rest of the day doing some computer work, had a little lunch and – for one reason or another – climbed the stairs between decks 5 and 15 several times! I am claiming that as a substitute for my daily walk.

Molly had enjoyed the White Pass railway journey (which we knew was spectacular as we had both taken it on a previous Alaska cruise) and returned to the ship about 7:30pm. Meanwhile arrangements had been made for us to move cabins and have our contents transferred while we were at dinner. Unfortunately – and for reasons that no-one has been prepared to discuss or explain – this transfer did not occur so we had to postpone it until the next morning.

I had an appointment with the doctor on Wednesday morning (we were now in Juneau, the State Capital) at which she said that she saw no reason to visit a local hospital. I walked into town, meeting with all members of the family who were doing their own shore excursions ranging from whale watching to dog sled riding. Molly enjoyed her visit to the Glacier and on a cable car ride close to the ship and we were all back on board and set sail soon after 4pm.

Cameron and Samantha dog mushing

“I’ve been there” says Sammy in Juneau

The ten of us had dinner together once again and, it being another formal night, everyone (at least at our table) was in their finery, with Sammy sporting another beautiful outfit and Hayley wearing one of her mother’s formal dresses. It was an excellent dinner and a very enjoyable time before most of us retired around 10:30. We believe Elizabeth and Chris were headed to the casino!

On Thursday when we docked in Ketchikan, each family had different shore activities planned so we didn’t see Elizabeth, Chris, Christopher and Cyndi until an “all adult” dinner and we didn’t see our grandchildren all day. However, the tour that Molly and I took was 4 ½ hours on the water in the passages and fjords mostly to the east of the island on which Ketchikan stands.

Standing on the glacier after helicopter landing. (Where did it go?)

We took a high speed catamaran to the Misty Fjords region of the Tongass National Forest. The Misty Fjords area is now designated a National Monument within the wilderness area and so is completely uninhabited and unspoiled. The scenery was spectacular and both Molly and I commented how similar it was to that we had experienced during our Russian river cruise just last month. The only significant difference was the few snow-capped mountain peaks and the generally more mountainous landscape here versus Russia, but the type and density of the forest was strikingly similar.

Misty Fjord

The ride to the Misty Fjord was a 110 mile round trip and was billed as a “luxury” cruise. Indeed the two deck seating was very spacious and comfortable and we were served three small but very enjoyable snacks during the trip. In addition, the guide was very good, pointing out places and animals of interest (we saw a whale, several seals and a number of bald eagles) as well as giving us a good overall history of the region and the life in and around Ketchikan.

The whole National Park area is a rain forest and generally receives about 165 inches of rain per year. However, both the on board guide and a local Native American artist who talked about his life in this area were concerned about the lack of rainfall this year and its potential impact on the forest, the salmon spawning and other aspects key to the local ecology. So, while we as tourists were thrilled to have a clear day to enjoy the scenery, the locals were less enthusiastic for the area that they want to thrive and continue in its current form. As the guide put it so well, the whole natural state is so dependent on its parts in order to be preserved, citing as just one example the fact that salmon returning to their spawning grounds depend on a flow of fresh water (from rainfall or snow melt) within the salt water basin to find their “home”.

The Native American (probably in his late forties) compared his early years in a small village to the life that he now leads and how dramatically things have changed just in his generation. The implication was that the lifestyle that perhaps had existed for centuries or even millennia (there is evidence of human habitation here dating back 10,000 years) had almost disappeared within about 50 years, which is quite a sobering revelation. He was not critical of the forces of change (“Westernization”) nor of the lifestyle he now enjoyed but was rather sanguine and conveyed a sense of inevitability, but at the same time it was clear that he was proud of his ancestry and felt a need to protect its history – even if his only contribution was to talk about it (to us) and to record it in his new life as an artist. I believe we all sense some nostalgia for the life we knew as kids and generally regard it with a certain fondness – but his descriptions seemed to go beyond that and (while he did not put it this way) it was akin to that of the naturalist on board as she spoke of the many endangered species of animals in Alaska.

The Misty Fjord itself (a three thousand foot gorge cut by millenia of glacier movement) was certainly a magnificent sight but was not as impressive as I had expected and not on a par with those we have seen in Norway. However, the weather was great (for the tourist!), the scenery in general was spectacular and the cruise ship, its personnel and the service on board were first class, making for a very enjoyable and relaxing day out.

We sailed from Ketchikan around 6pm and enjoyed a “grown-ups” dinner while the grandchildren entertained themselves with food and movies in their cabin.

Friday was another “at sea” day, and the final full day of the cruise, so we began the process of packing, form-filling and “winding down” on our final leg to Vancouver. We were invited to a very interesting and informative tour of the bridge during which we saw first-hand the technology that makes possible the efficient movement of this small floating city (about 4500 people with passengers and crew). We learned a number of interesting facts about the navigation and propulsion system on board but it was the enormous numbers (people, fuel, supplies and waste product) supported that were staggering. As just one example, 60 tons of desalinated water are produced on board every hour, which is about equal to that used every hour the ship is at sea.

The rest of our day was one of relaxation before we enjoyed our final family dinner on board and prepared for our early morning arrival in Vancouver. Today (fortunately for us) was the only one where there was a lot of rain since the cruise started and there was a few hour period of relatively rough seas. In fact, the outer promenade deck, which I had walked around about two dozen times in the past week, was closed for a time as it was considered too dangerous for passengers to be out. However, things calmed down towards evening as we headed south and no-one suffered any ill-effects.

Yesterday (Saturday) was a relatively early start as we had to vacate our cabins by eight and disembark around ten. So, by mid-morning our cruise together as a family was over but the vacation was not quite ended for any of us. Christopher, Cyndi and Samantha picked up a rental car and headed to Vancouver Island by ferry where they were to stay overnight with a visit to Butchart Gardens being the main attraction. Elizabeth and family were to stay in Vancouver for two more nights before flying home on Monday and Molly and I also stayed in the city trip home on Tuesday.

Alaska, Grandchldren, Vancouver BC

Permanent link to this article: http://tykesabroad.com/alaska-cruise-july-2014/

Returning Home

By Robert Hillery

We are just a couple of days from the end of a 10+ week vacation during which we visited England, Israel and Russia.

We left home on April 21 and then spent 10 days in Israel, visiting Jerusalem and Tel Aviv and making side trips from each city. It was a remarkable experience and we visited most of the Biblical sites that had been on our agenda. It is difficult to single out one, but certainly the day spent in and around Galilee and the River Jordan was a highlight as well as just about everything we saw in Jerusalem.

The Mount of Olives and the Garden of Gethsemane

From Israel we went to England and had six weeks in our nephew’s flat in Ilkley. Actually, Molly was gone for about ten days for her annual sibling reunion in Warwickshire. We also had a two day visit by two friends from Mason, together with their daughter, all three of whom were on a two week European vacation prompted in part by the fact that Lauren (the daughter) is in the middle of a period of university studies in Spain.

Yorkshire countryside

In early June we joined two friends from England on a twelve day river cruise in Russia, starting in Moscow and ending just a few days ago in St Petersburg. This was a very interesting trip and we were all very impressed with the part of Russia that we saw – from the Kremlin in Moscow to the beautiful buildings of St Petersburg and the heavily forested countryside between the two.

St Petersburg, Russia (The Church on the Spilled Blood)

We came back to England from Russia but for just less than a week and we are now getting ready to return to the US on Tuesday. The Tour de France cycle race starts in England this year and one the first towns on its route is Ilkley so the town – and indeed the entire area – is decorated in preparation. If the weather cooperates, it should provide wonderful publicity for the County of Yorkshire and its beautiful countryside so we will be watching TV for great camera shots of our “home away from home”.

Ready for the Big Race

And we will be home, in Mason, OH by late Tuesday after a very different and extended vacation period. For our family and friends that we missed in England this time: apologies, but we will be back!

England, Israel, Russia

Permanent link to this article: http://tykesabroad.com/returning-home/

Russia, June 2014. St Petersburg

By Robert Hillery

This is the final post (again, a little late) on our twelve day trip to Russia and covers the final three days in St Petersburg before we returned to England yesterday (June 24). Enjoy!

On Saturday (June 21) we started our time in St Petersburg with a visit to the Hermitage. It is impossible to describe this palace/museum/art gallery with its 600 rooms, each it seems more beautiful and ornate than the last. We had visited the Hermitage on our last visit here in 2008 and so we were prepared not only for its beauty and its contents, but also its crowds. Our group of 40 people from the ship had one guide who somehow managed to herd us through several dozen rooms and describe in some detail perhaps 50 works of art.

The palace had been built by Catherine the Great and she and subsequent rulers must have spent a huge amount of time (not to mention money) filling the rooms with the works of masters from across Europe.

As with our last visit, the three hours spent in the Hermitage barely scratched the surface and was conducted at almost breakneck speed. Certainly it was by no means sufficient time to get more than just an overall impression of the grandeur of the place and a sampling of its contents and one could imagine spending days or weeks there and still missing a lot. On the other hand, for tired legs and brains that can soon get “overloaded”, this was an excellent tour. I had thought that Photography would not be allowed so have no pictures; however, all would have contained dozens of heads as well as the piece of art. I bought the book!

The bus trip to and from the palace gave us an introduction to the city and its amazing architecture which will be amplified and seen close-up during the next two days of tours. For today, however, we had a four hour break back on the ship before our evening trip to the ballet. We went to see a performance of “The Nutcracker” at the Rimsky-Korsakov Theater and it was excellent. We have no idea where the troupe fits in the hierarchy of Russian ballet companies but to us they seemed very professional and (to my eyes) flawless in their performance.

Sunday was a beautiful sunny day as we drove to the summer palace of Tsarina Elizabeth in the town of Pushkin (named after Russia’s most famous poet). The palace was designed in 1752 and named in honor of Elizabeth’s mother Catherine who originally owned the estate.

The palace is not as big (nor as crowded) as the Hermitage but it still contains numerous works of art and, especially, very ornate rooms within its beautiful walls, which have a predominantly pastel blue and white exterior.

Catherine Palace main facade

Catherine Palace “Front Door”

Inside the palace our guide took us through all the rooms currently open to the public – from ballroom, to entertaining rooms, dining rooms and some much smaller containing works of art – often of the czars of the Romanov dynasty. The overwhelming sense is of gold, with virtually all of the rooms being lavishly decorated with gold leaf. Often mirrors or windows added a lot of light to these rooms so the effect was almost dazzling at times.

Gold was very popular……..

The ceiling of the entrance hall and staircase

Delft was also quite common (the early czars loved Holland) particularly in what were enormous stoves (for heating) in corners of many rooms. Some dining tables were set out with original or copies of fine china and silverware and gave the impression that a state occasion was about to begin! The majority of the floors were parquet (we had to wear booties) and, in the enormous ballroom, perfectly matched the golden figures and shapes of the ceiling. It really is a palace of beauty and one can only imagine the enormous cost to build and decorate.

Delft “Boiler”

Time for lunch in the intimate dining room

In actual fact, there are recent figures that give an idea of the value of the palace since much of it was destroyed or desecrated by Nazi forces as they retreated from St

in World War II. There were several pictures taken just after the war showing open rooms devoid of decoration, walls fallen and rubble almost everywhere. One room (the famous Amber Room, almost completely covered in all shades of amber) had its contents taken by the retreating army and have not been found to this day. However, this and many of the other rooms have been reconstructed exactly as they were when built and, hopefully, will provide a continuing statement of Russia’s monarchy as well as a tourist mecca for years to come.

The gardens of the palace estate are also quite beautiful and typical of those found in many other great European cities. Although started as a copy of Versailles it is not as ornate but, with its two lakes and beautiful “out-buildings”, provides a tranquil sanctuary now as it must have for the rulers.

In the grounds

One of the lakes in Catherine Palace grounds

Our afternoon tour was of the most famous sites in the center of St Petersburg. Once again, we find it difficult to convey the stunning architecture of every style found in this wonderful city. For those who have visited Vienna, Paris, Budapest or Rome, you have seen somewhat similar examples – but, to my mind, St Petersburg outshines them all. Perhaps the history is not as extensive and the cathedrals are unfamiliar to Western eyes but I doubt there are any cities with so many iconic buildings.

We first visited the St Peter and Paul Cathedral and Fortress, which as its name implies is a huge complex, the centerpiece of which is the cathedral in which all the Czars of the Romanov Dynasty are entombed.

St Peter and Paul Cathedral; Burial Place of the Czars

Inside St Peter and Paul

This includes one tomb containing what they believe are the remains of Nicholas and Alexandra and their family who were slaughtered in the 1917-1918 Revolution which saw the beginning of the Soviet Communist rule. As with all Orthodox churches, this one is ornately decorated but it is surprisingly “Western” (Roman Catholic?) in its interior. There is no iconostasis and there are a number of pillars supporting the structure and there is even a pulpit – although our guide suggested that it had never been used as such.

The next highlight was the visit to the Church on the Spilled Blood (also known as the Resurrection of Our Savior), perhaps the most recognizable of St Petersburg buildings.

St Petersburg “Venice of the North”

The Church on the Spilled Blood

It has numerous onion domes at differing heights and which are very brightly painted, giving the whole a surreal and wonderfully ornate appearance. It was built on the spot where Czar Alexander II was assassinated in 1881. We didn’t have sufficient time to go inside the church but it was sufficient to gaze at its exterior – along with many tourists and local families out on a beautiful Sunday afternoon, alongside one of the many canals of the city.

The final stop (actually we had several “photo opportunity” quick stops en route) was for an hour outside the enormous Cathedral of St Isaac.

St Isaac Cathedral

Peter the Great and Molly the Wonderful

This is one of the world’s largest cathedrals, completed in 1858 after forty years of construction and decoration. In the Soviet era it was converted to a museum of Atheism and is still a museum (rather than a functioning church) today – although now containing 19^th century works of art. Again we did not enter the church but it is possible to climb to its dome (much like St Paul’s in London) and walk around its exterior on two levels.

We walked past the cathedral to the massive bronze statue of Peter the Great which overlooks the river and is bounded by another beautiful park. St Petersburg is very green and its streets are generally very wide boulevards (“prospects”) and with the density of iconic structures seen at every turn, it is certainly the jewel in Russia’s crown. It had been the capital through the Romanov period and is still the cultural and financial center of the country leaving, it would appear, the politics to Moscow.

In the afternoon of our final full day in Russia (Monday) we took a one hour boat trip on the rivers and canals of central St Petersburg. The weather was not so good (drizzle and cool) but the trip gave another perspective on this magnificent city. Most of the buildings we had already seen on other excursions but naturally we got a different perspective and view from the water. In addition, passing under some of the very low bridges (reminiscent of Venice) added another level of excitement!

Thus our twelve day cruise through northern Russia and extended visits to Moscow and St Petersburg came to an end and I believe that everyone – and certainly our party of four – had enjoyed it thoroughly and had experienced another part of the world together with its peoples, its history and its culture. It was – certainly for Molly and me – an eye-opening experience and changes our image of this country forever.

Russia, St Petersburg

Permanent link to this article: http://tykesabroad.com/russia-june-2014-st-petersburg/

Russia, June 2014. The Waterways of the Czars.

By Robert Hillery

This is the second post from our visit to Russia. This covers the cruising portion of the trip between Moscow and St Petersburg, taking five days. Once again, I am afraid that the length is a little overwhelming but we have seen such a lot and it is difficult (for me) to summarize it adequately and still convey the enjoyment of the sights, history and culture that we have experienced throughout the journey. Perhaps the pictures will help! Bob

On Sunday afternoon (June 15) we started the cruise proper and left Moscow, first on the Moscow Canal and then on the Volga River – with our ultimate destination of St Petersburg on Saturday. In the meantime, however, we were to experience some beautiful views from the waterways, learn more about Russian history and culture, and enjoy several shore excursions as we traveled north.

Shortly after lunch on Monday, we docked at the small town of Uglich for a three hour stay.

Entrance to Uglich Church

The town has a population of only 50,000 but has played an important part in Russian history, being the town in which the young next-in-line for the throne, Dmitry, was allegedly executed by his uncle. This was in the middle of the Romanov period and resulted in a break in the direct lineage and the influx of Prussian royals as the future Czars.

Consequently, while in Uglich, we visited the Church of the Spilled Blood, built on the site where Dmitry was killed and saw frescoes depicting the event and its consequences. We also visited two additional cathedrals – one of the Assumption and the other of the Epiphany. In the latter we listened to a six man a capella group with an absolutely marvelous deep bass. They sang one sacred song and then the Volga Boatmen: not enough, so I bought a CD.

The iconostasis in Uglich Cathedral

Cathedral in Uglich

Russian afternoon snack – with vodka!

Also in Uglich we visited a private home where we (about 14 of us in the group) we entertained by the lady of the house who provided us with tea, vodka (homemade), pickles, peppers, sweets and cake and let us look through the one storey home. Viking River Cruises has a habit of showing the “local life” in this manner (although in China and Cambodia it was by visiting schools) and it is not usually our favorite part of the tour. However, in this case it was a very enjoyable experience and a nice way to see the very hospitable and friendly locals. Perhaps the vodka helped!

On Tuesday we had an early departure for a tour of the city of Yaroslavl. The city was founded in 1010 – making it one of the oldest in Russia – and had a brief period as the country’s capital. However, its major claim to fame seems to be as the city that brought Christianity to Russia after Vladimir the Great embraced the Orthodox Church based on his emissaries’ visit to Constantinople. As late as the early 20^th Century the city boasted over 50 churches and 15 monasteries at a time when the population was much smaller than today’s 650,000. The Stalin era brought the destruction of many of them and only in the past 25 years have some been converted back to churches from the non-religious use that they were given in the 1930s.

The first Cathedral we visited was that of the Transfiguration. This church was completely destroyed in Stalin’s time and has just been re-built, the construction completed for the city’s millennium in 2010. As with all the Orthodox churches we have seen, the iconostasis (the “wall” between the worship space and the altar) is covered with beautiful icons and the other walls and ceiling with frescoes.

Inside the Governor’s Mansion, Yaroslavl

Yaroslavl Cathedral and War Memorial

We also visited the Cathedral dedicated to Elijah the Prophet which had survived since the 18^th Century and its “frescoes” we were told were actually egg tempera which are much more durable and retain their vibrant colors for a longer period. Indeed, many of the blues, reds and greens were in what would appear to be almost new condition.

Following a brief visit to a market we went to a viewpoint overlooking the Volga and one of its tributaries that formed a natural defense for the city. In fact, this river barrier formed two thirds of the exterior of the city’s kremlin and the churches we had visited were inside the old fortress. We were reminded that the kremlin was the central fortress of Russian cities and also included the political, cultural and religious buildings and functions, just as the more famous one we had visited in Moscow.

Our final stop was at the Governor’s Mansion. Yaroslavl is the capitol of its region and this building and its grounds had been the leaders’ residence and office in earlier years. It is now referred to as a Gallery (it has numerous paintings of Russian royalty, for example) but is basically a museum to past glories. It is a beautiful building inside and out and we were given an excellent tour by the “governor’s daughters” dressed in period costume (late 19^th Century). We were also given a short dancing demonstration with a three piece instrumental accompaniment – and the audience we approached by the “professionals” to join them in a dance. It may be telling that I was the only one of the four of us not asked to join in, with Keith, Zena and Molly each performing with their beautiful or handsome partners. However, I consoled myself by recognizing that someone had to take the photographs!

Although it is a large city, the part we visited was quite compact (we walked everywhere) and in most European cities would be classed as the Old Town. In fact, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the only 20^th century building in the area was the ugly concrete structure built as the Communist Party Headquarters. Certainly the city we saw (with that one exception) was very picturesque and with the weather cooperating (cloudy but bright) it was pleasant to end our visit with a coffee sitting in one of the outdoor cafes.

View from the River leaving Yaroslavl

After once again sailing overnight, on Wednesday we docked at the town of Kuzino. The first stop was on the dock where a Viking long house replica was used to give us a taste of the Scandinavian invasions of this part of the world in the 12^th Century. The brief show was interesting and quite amusing and added yet another dimension to this country and its history.

We were then driven about 15 miles to visit the town of Kirillov-Belozersky where we visited a school. School was no longer in session but we were given a tour by a student and shown the classrooms and given a description of primary and secondary education in this northern part of the country. It was interesting to see a physical facility not that different to the one Keith and I had attended sixty years ago and to get an idea of the curriculum – both now and as it had existed during the Soviet era. Our local guide (not the student who escorted us in the school) had been a teacher (before retiring at the customary age of forty for many professionals!) gave the impression that she perhaps preferred the discipline and range of study “in her day” more than the “easier” course work of today. I suppose that was a reaction that many of us get as we age: “You have it easy; not like in my day”.

We then went to the monastery dedicated to Saint Cyril (“Kirillo”). As our handout said, it looked more like a fortress than a monastery with high, imposing walls much like the Moscow Kremlin – and almost as big. Within the walls were several churches as well as the old monastery of The Assumption (which had been a place of pilgrimage for the Czars) and the much smaller one dedicated to St John where a handful of monks still reside.

Kirillov-Belozersky Monastery and Cathedral

Fortress/Monastery, Kirillov-Baelozersky

There is a great deal of archeological work and reconstruction taking place on the huge site but the major building that we visited was basically a museum containing frescoes, icons, paintings and church pieces which had adorned the monastery (and others) over the 600 years of its existence. Photography was not allowed but we were able to view some fantastic pieces of art put together both here and in the capitals of St Petersburg and Moscow. Once again, the primary pieces were icons, although there were a number of frescoes remaining and many fabric works of art on various materials and often including much gold, silver and precious stones.

This, together with other cathedrals we have seen on this trip, provided another level of detail on the Orthodox Church to which we had been introduced in Israel and which has been probably the major theme of the past six days in Russia. It is amazing that, in a country that was officially atheist for much of the past century and during which many religious sites were destroyed or put to other use, so much emphasis is on the church today. For those faithful to the Christian tradition, Russia must provide great hope for the future; for others those not so inclined it still provides a tremendous collection of beautiful architecture and art comparable to that of the great Western European countries.

Back on board ship we soon set sail, later enjoyed another good dinner on board (tonight’s was a Russian theme) followed by a vodka tasting session at 9:30. We were given six different vodkas to taste, together with appropriate snacks, and for each we had a toast and a different way of holding the glass – or, in one case, glasses! We were taught how to drink from two cascading glasses at once; some more successfully than others, the less skillful getting another shirt for the laundry.

Thursday was essentially a lazy day on ship, although there were plenty of activities to attend if one felt so inclined. I attended another good lecture on the Putin years to round out our History of Russia series.

At 3pm we docked at a small island, Kizhi. There has been a settlement here for over 500 years, principally populated by peoples from Finland originally. In fact the area is called Karelia, presumably named for (or perhaps with) the area of the same name in Finland. Most of the villages had disappeared by the 1950s but more recently the island has been re-populated with buildings from various parts of the province to preserve them in what is in fact an open-air museum.

Kizhi Cathedral with 22 Domes – everything made in wood

The wooden buildings of Kizhi

The unique feature of the buildings, including the magnificent 22 domed Cathedral of the Assumption, is that they are built of wood. Even the onion domes are made up of dozens (probably hundreds in some cases) of shingles, each cut and shaped from aspen trees. In addition to the church and its belfry, there are perhaps twenty additional structures that made up villages of this type – two storey homes with housing for a large family and its animals, a windmill and various craft shops. Our guide was very good and made the place come alive with her descriptions not only of the dwellings but of the life that the inhabitants followed in this remote area. Since we were now at a latitude of 60 degrees, we could believe her descriptions of the very hard winters and see the benefit of the entire family bedding down in one room for about three months every year.

Iconostasis in Kizhi

Typical ornate home in Kizhi; living quarters on upper floor

Our only shore visit today (Friday) was at the town of Mandrogy. This was in many respects similar to Kizhi in that it is fundamentally a living museum. The town was destroyed in World War II but an enterprising Russian built a reproduction in the late nineties simply as a tourist attraction. Again, most of the buildings are wooden and many are very brightly painted and decorated with impressive carvings. We walked around the entire small area in about 90 minutes and made the obligatory stops at craft shops where the typically Russian stacking dolls are carved and painted and where other very beautiful – but expensive – wooden and fabric souvenirs were available. Keith and Zena went to a Russian Banya where they experienced the sauna and (at least for Keith) a cool dip in a lake. Both thoroughly enjoyed their experience.

Wooden home in Mandrogy – with local peasant!

One of many beautiful views from our ship as we sailed the Waterways of the Czars

Small Mandrogy Home

Colorful Mandrogy Hotel

This completed our shore excursions from the rivers and lakes and tonight, as we cross the biggest lake in Europe we will be approaching our final stop of the tour, St Petersburg, where a full three days of sightseeing are planned.

Russia, Waterways of the Czars

Permanent link to this article: http://tykesabroad.com/russia-june-2014-the-waterways-of-the-czars/

Russia, June 2014. Moscow.

By Robert Hillery

As a result of the intermittent WiFi availability on our current trip, this (and future blogs) will suffer a few days delay in publication! We apologize for this – and for the minimal editing (therefore extensive prose) of the posts. Nevertheless, we hope you enjoy. The tour started on Thursday June 12.

We are currently(June 15) in Moscow on the first leg of a twelve day visit to Russia with two English friends of ours, Keith and Zena. Keith was a high school friend of mine but we lost touch for almost fifty years, only “finding” each other again about eight years ago. Since that time all four of us have become good friends and we see them every time we visit England and spent a three week vacation together in the Western United States in 2011. We had arranged late last year to take this Russian river cruise together, so here we are on the Viking Rurik about to sail for St Petersburg.

On our first day (Friday) we booked our afternoon tours of the city of Moscow: Molly and I choosing the bus tour and Keith and Zena opting for the walking tour.

Our bus took us on a quite extensive tour of the center of Moscow from which we saw the Kremlin, the Bolshoi Ballet Theatre and many more public and private buildings – the most spectacular of which were the dozens of onion domed churches. Obviously we had seen pictures and TV programs about these magnificent buildings but the “real life” versions are so much more impressive. I think that the most distinctive difference between the images we had had and the sites we saw today were twofold: first the size and secondly the number. We must, in just the few hours we were downtown, have seen dozens of absolutely marvelous churches (usually with five domes representing Christ and the Four Apostles) and we were told that the country has 50,000 such buildings.

The colors are the same as we had seen on photographs but so much more vivid and spectacular as we got close and were able to look at them in a little more detail.

The Moscow River

While still on the bus we stopped at an overlook where we had a great panoramic view of the city – churches, the Kremlin, the KGB Building, civic and government buildings and ultra-modern skyscrapers; and so much more. Crisscrossing the entire city was the Moscow River which essentially loops the downtown area and over which span numerous wide bridges span, each providing another perspective.

After this two hour plus tour, we got off the bus and were ushered into the Metro system to travel for about 15 minutes and four stations in distance. The Moscow Metro is the largest in the world and, in addition to being a major mode of transport (as many as 9 million passengers per day) it is something of a work of art in itself. Each station is built in a different style and each has its own character, architecture and art work.

The world famous Bolshoi Theater

We climbed up from the underground (as much as 100 feet below street level) and were close to the Bolshoi Theatre and only five minutes’ walk from Red Square and the Kremlin. We were led by our guide to the center of Red Square and then into the three storey exclusive department store, GUM, containing many store brands, ranging from Gucci, to De Beers and including every name that might be found in Paris, London or New York – and probably many more besides.

Red Square with (from left to right) GUM department store, St Basil’s Basilica, the Kremlin Walls and Lenin’s Tomb

Molly and I chose to spend most of our time walking around Red Square (rather than GUM) where we saw the magnificent St Basil Basilica, one side (about a quarter mile in length) of the Kremlin wall, Lenin’s Tomb mausoleum, a magnificent History Museum and several other onion-domed churches – as well as the outside of GUM, a beautiful stone edifice that could grace any European city as a civic or government building.

St Basil’s Cathedral, Red Square

The Kremlin is much more than the austere walls that one normally sees; much more on that later. Red Square itself – a cobble stone plaza – is also enormous and much more appealing than the iconic setting for Red Army parades and Soviet display of strength. It is much like many similar open areas in other European cities (Vienna sprang to my mind) but on a much larger scale.

After walking all around the Square we left and walked a short distance to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the eternal flame outside the Kremlin walls

This is guarded by two army officers (presumably 24/7) and fronted by an eternal flame. We arrived in time to witness the changing of the guard and saw the two new arrivals replace those that had been on duty for an hour – the march in and out being in the high-stepping form that we associate with Russian (and other eastern European) armies.

We were then taken to a theater where we were to see a “local musical evening”. Molly and I were somewhat apprehensive as we have experienced several of these on previous tours and, while of some interest, have generally been of rather amateurish caliber. Not tonight, however. We were treated to almost 1 ½ hours of absolutely first class musical entertainment by the Moscow Folk Orchestra.

The ensemble were young (I thought perhaps students at a musical academy) but were of the highest quality and amassed an amazing collection of authentic Russian instruments. We were given a number of solo performances, which were excellent; there were several duets (like “dueling balalaikas!) and an amazing “competition” for supremacy between two xylophone players. In addition there was a comic musician who played (amongst other things) a saw and wooden spoons, and a beautiful soprano who sang two very graphic and enthusiastic love songs. It was a truly magnificent, beautiful, interesting, unusual – and amusing – end to our day.

Saturday was to be a day of sightseeing on our own and the bus was available simply to ferry us back and forth. In fact, the four of us decided ahead of time that we would return to the ship via the Metro so that we could leave town at our convenience.

We first went to the magnificent Cathedral Church of Our Savior, not too far from the Kremlin.

The Cathedral of Christ the Savior; built in four years as a faithful reproduction of its predecessor destroyed by Stalin

This church was built (in only four years) at the end of the 20^th Century on the same site that had housed a 19^th Century cathedral before Stalin ordered it demolished in the thirties. It was actually blown up and, as the plans also were lost, the “restoration” was a complete re-build based on photographs and, presumably, memories. The site had been designated by Stalin for an enormous “Palace of the Soviets” but funding issues stalled the construction and a swimming pool was built there instead!

When the USSR fell and the Russian Federation was formed, the then mayor of Moscow was instrumental in the decision to build a cathedral here again. Apparently the designers and builders did as faithful a reproduction as possible, even to the extent of persuading the Italian quarry to be re-opened to obtain identical red marble for some of the inside walls. The Cathedral is now the tallest Orthodox Church in the world and dominates the skyline, despite the whole city it seems being a sea of onion domed churches, and is capable of accommodating as many as 10,000 people. The central dome above the main sanctuary is 103 meters tall and is decorated with what must be an enormous Christ figure, surrounded by many Biblical paintings. The rest of the church has dozens of wall paintings, many icons and a beautiful marble floor. It is very open, very light and very inspiring.

The high altar is not seen from the sanctuary and in its place is a very ornate building within the church itself. There is what appears to be a communion rail in front of this baptistery-like structure and that is really the only clue to the existence of an altar. Nevertheless, the cathedral is an amazingly beautiful building and, in my opinion, loses nothing as a result of it being a “copy” of the original.

We then walked to Red Square where we had wanted to visit Lenin’s tomb but as we reached the end of the line, security personnel were indicating that only those actually in line would be able to get in before the appointed closing time. So, we missed it – just as we had on our visit to Temple Mount in Jerusalem a few weeks earlier! As Molly said – we shall just have to come back again. And, indeed, a return visit to this city would be a worthwhile objective as it clearly has a lot more than we have been able to cover in this visit.

We returned to the ship via the Metro, stopping at one very ornate station before completing our journey. After dinner on the ship we left by taxi for downtown once again to start our “Moscow by Night” tour from the water. The Moscow River essentially does two U-turns in the heart of the city; hence we saw most of the monuments, churches and other historical, cultural and civic sites that we had already seen in our two bus tours. However, the views from the water obviously gave another perspective and, at least towards the end of the ride, the approach of darkness and the illumination of the buildings provided yet another dimension.

On Sunday (our final day in Moscow) we went on a tour of the Kremlin. We started by walking through one of the many gates of the Kremlin on the side opposite Red Square.

One of several churches inside the Kremlin

Part of the center of Moscow from inside the Kremlin walls

Once inside the Kremlin walls (which are two kilometers in circumference in a roughly triangular shape) we saw just how different it was from the pictures we had received over the years whenever this institution was mentioned. First, its size is perhaps an order of magnitude bigger than the image I had had and, secondly, inside the walls is a small but very impressive city. We saw at least five cathedrals of various sizes (some designated for Royal Family use only when built, others in honor of various saints), many colorful and beautiful civic and reception buildings and some beautiful gardens and parks. Each was approached via broad streets (now essentially devoid of traffic) and, as a result of the location on one of Moscow’s higher hills, with great views over the rest of the city and the Moscow River on which we had sailed last night.

The first cathedral we entered was the Cathedral of the Assumption and, of course, was built in the Russian Orthodox style with few pillars but with every inch of wall space decorated with either frescoes or mosaic, painted or metallic relief icons. Apparently all Russian Orthodox churches are very similar in design but the icons and frescoes added the individuality.

The second cathedral we visited was dedicated to St Michael and also contained the tombs of most of the Czars of the past six centuries. The guide gave us an interesting perspective on the pre-Revolution royal history as well as describing some of the changes that resulted during the Soviet years when religion was banned and many icons, and even buildings, were destroyed. Apparently, however, a goodly number of these decorations were saved by moving them to “safe houses”, although whether this was a sanctioned or covert operation was not clear. In any event, the post-Soviet era has seen a tremendous resurgence in religion and church attendance (even amongst the young) so perhaps these glorious edifices will be around for future generations of locals and tourists to enjoy.

Once again, we felt that no matter what your Faith (or level of its intensity), it is difficult not to be moved by the beauty of these buildings and the “story” on which they were built and decorated and how much we owe (in architecture, art, design and music) to those whose faith did indeed inspire such expressions of beauty – all of which have provided generations with such emotion and awe.

Our final half hour within the Kremlin walls was spent walking through the park and garden areas where beautiful flower beds, trees and grassy areas provided an oasis from the hustle if the city proper and a wonderful setting for the cathedrals and civic buildings.

The gardens of the Kremlin

So are leaving Moscow following an amazing three days during which our impressions of the city (and to some extent the entire country) had been totally transformed. We had arrived with an expectation of a dour, drab, perhaps dirty (probably matched by its inhabitants) and left with a picture of a vibrant, clean, stunningly beautiful city with a wide variety of European and Asian architecture and, for the most part, a population that mirrored that image. Yes, there are still the non-smiling toilet attendants and eye contact in busy public places is minimal but on every occasion when we had direct interface with the locals it was a pleasant, helpful and rewarding experience. We were yet again so grateful that we are in a position to experience other countries and cultures and see just how different – and so much alike – we all are.

Moscow, Russia

Permanent link to this article: http://tykesabroad.com/russia-june-2014-moscow/

Three Americans in Yorkshire

By Robert Hillery

To steal a line from Garrison Keillor: It’s been a slow two weeks here in Ilkley. Since I last posted, Molly has returned to Ilkley from her sibling reunion “Down South”, we have enjoyed meals out with family and friends, we have walked a little and cycled a little – and simply followed our normal routine in this lovely part of Yorkshire.

Happy to be in “Tykes County”

At 3:59 pm on Thursday, however, a train pulled into Ilkley railway station and three American visitors alighted. Not just any Americans but our friends Peter and Leslie (from Mason) and their daughter Lauren, who is currently studying in Spain. They were here after spending three days in London at the start of their European Grand Tour. They were to be our guests in Ilkley for two nights before their next stop – Paris.

Our first evening was spent “catching up” over tea in the flat and then enjoying a pub meal at the nearby Busfeild Arms (that IS how they spell it!) Steak and Ale Pie, Fish and Chips, a pint of bitter – what more could life hold?Friday was forecast to be a beautiful day (and indeed it was), and Lauren had decided that she wanted to walk on Ilkley Moor before we started our day out in the Yorkshire Dales. So, a little after eight, she and Bob donned boots and set off up the hill opposite the apartment towards the Cow and Calf Rocks, a famous local landmark.

Lauren atop The Cow

Beautiful Ilkley Moor

After our return and a quick breakfast, we set out in the car, with the market town of Skipton our first destination. Here we strolled through the open market, saw the

Skipton Market

narrow boats on the Leeds-Liverpool Canal and were entertained by a South American group

The narrow boats on the canal

standing outside a local pub. Note the tribute to the forthcoming visit here of the Tour de France Cycle Race.

Outdoor entertainment

From Skipton we drove into the Dales proper and climbed a very steep hill for a good overview of the Wharfe Valley, before we ended our day at a tea room in the beautiful village of Grassington.

The Yorkshire Dales

Grassington

Bowls anyone?

Back in Ilkley we rested a while before going to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants in Ilkley and then it was home to bed in preparation for an early start on Saturday. We left Ilkley at 7:15 to drive our guests to the Leeds-Bradford airport where they boarded a plane for Heathrow and then on to Paris to continue their Tour – after a very pleasant, but all too short, stay in Yorkshire.

England, Ilkley

Permanent link to this article: http://tykesabroad.com/three-americans-in-yorkshire/

Le Tour et Le Moor

By Robert Hillery

A couple of weeks ago I posted a description of a walk I had done on Ilkley Moor; a week ago, I talked about cycling on Le Tour de France route; this week it’s a little of both.

Glorious Yorkshire countryside

On Wednesday I cycled just over 30 miles, virtually all of it on the route cyclists will take on Stage One of the Tour de France, when it starts in Yorkshire in July. As with the whole of the route for Stages One and Two, the athletes will pass through some beautiful countryside – although I doubt they will take the time to stop and gaze at it, as I did. With this trip and my two previous cycling days out, I believe that I have covered over fifty miles of the tour route and provide a picture of my bike and Tour poster as “proof”! Okay, so you’ll just have to take my word for it.

My bike on Le Tour Route

On Saturday, I chose to walk rather than cycle and once again headed to Ilkley Moor. I climbed slowly to the northern edge of the Moor with some beautiful views (on a not so beautiful day) over Wharfedale

View from The Moor

and also saw what is believed to be a Bronze Age carving of a Swastika Stone. (The Swastika has only taken on an evil connotation in the past 80 years).

Swastika Stone

My path crossed some beautiful open moorland and a stretch of rhododendron trees with glorious colors and I was all set to accomplish a long-standing goal of walking from Ilkley to Skipton – a cross-country distance of twelve miles.

Rhododendron near my path

Then the weather intervened! I wouldn’t want the reader to think that a drop of rain would deter me from my goal, but this heavy downpour combined with a cool breeze caused me to look at alternatives.

After four miles, rather than continuing towards Skipton, I turned on an alternative route towards home – one that followed a bus route so I could quit whenever I needed to. However, a combination of missed buses, misreading timetables (who would have expected that from a former bus conductor?) and reaching a point where I was so wet that I felt it unsociable to take public transport, contributed to walking the entire way home. I covered 10 1/2 miles, so would have virtually made my original goal had I just kept going!

Le Tour de Yorkshire!

The two days of Tour and Moor were captured on my final stretch where the Tour will pass twice, once on each of the first two days. Here the local community have really got into the spirit and have lined part of the route with bicycles mounted on the stone walls. Bikes obviously define Le Tour and stone walls are quintessential Yorkshire Dales; a perfect amalgamation.

Cycling, England

Permanent link to this article: http://tykesabroad.com/le-tour-et-le-moor/

Le Tour

By Robert Hillery

Saturday May 17

Friday and today have been absolutely gorgeous days here in Yorkshire so I finally got out on the bike to enjoy the scenery and the weather.

Ilkley is at Mile 23 on this year’s Tour de France cycle race and hence only about 45 minutes from Le Grand Depart. This marks the first time that Le Tour has ventured this far north in England and it is considered a great coup for the County of Yorkshire that the first two stages will be raced entirely within the County.

Road cycling has always been popular in England but must be at an all-time high at the moment following two consecutive Tour wins for Brits and with the additional excitement created by its start here in July. So, in my own way, I joined in the anticipation and took to the roads that, in part, will soon be traveled by the World’s best cyclists.

In two outings, covering a total of 62 miles, I perhaps traced 25 miles of their route, all of it being on relatively flat terrain (for them!) and with no “Category” Hills involved. There are several Category 3 and 4 climbs in the Yorkshire stages this year (which would almost certainly find me pushing the bike) and I can’t imagine the Category 1and 2 Cotes of the Alps.

My average speed was also somewhat less impressive than that of Le Tour cyclists, where daily averages of 30 mph are not unusual – and that over distances of well over 100 miles on some days. My total distance in two days at a pace of about 10 mph would mean that I would be “on the road” three times as long as the elite – if indeed I could cover those immense distances.

Still, I did travel a few miles of Le Tour, I saw the same beautiful scenery as they would if they could take the time to view it and, in all probability, I enjoyed better weather than they could encounter in their two days in Yorkshire.

For those interested in seeing a little of the route that Le Tour will take in its first two stage, click here. Admittedly some of the pictures were taken in winter and the terrain is therefore somewhat more foreboding than July will offer, but they do give a sense of the glorious scenery that will be passed through. They also clearly show the terrain that the cyclists will experience – and I envy the fact that they even want to try to climb those hills.

Cycling, England, Ilkley

Permanent link to this article: http://tykesabroad.com/le-tour/

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