And there I was, away again!  This time was the occasion of a special birthday and there were eleven of us, together in the beautiful Yorkshire Dales.

This is November, so it was a delight to be greeted by blue skies on Saturday.  The Wensleydale village where we stayed, gives direct access to the countryside so we all set out on a short (four-miles or so) walk.

The ripples from the two ducks barely interrupt the reflections of the clouds in the river.

The fields are separated by dry-stone walls, barriers created by carefully locating each stone so exactly that it remains lodged next to its companion without the use of cement. The colour of the stones and the lichens upon them are beautiful.

Farm buildings, made from the same stone, blend perfectly into the late autumn landscape.

Seeing the black sheep of the family raised a smile.

On Sunday, our destination was Aysgarth Falls, and once again we enjoyed blue skies.

There is a stone bridge over the river here.

This is the view of the falls from the bridge.

Above is a view from upriver.

 

While below the bridge, the water runs calm and clear.

And after such a enjoyable exposure to the lovely English countryside, what’s a self-employed designer-maker to do? Well, frankly, get back to work! There’s a quilt binding to finish, a quilt design to tweak, and a quilt to piece…