2nd Kilburn walk

Yorkshire, England - World of James Herriot and second walk to Kilburn

We went to the World of James Herriot in Thirsk in the morning. The exhibit at the original Veterinarian's office included a 20 minute movie about Alf Wight and the gradual success of his writings, narrated by Christopher Timothy, who played the part of Alf Wight, pseudonym James Herriot, in the BBC series (via PBS) All Creatures Great and Small. With it's classic British humor, full of irony and mirth, this show achieved a huge following.

Alf Wight had to take the pseudonym James Herriot because Vets were not allowed to publish anything but scientific treatises under their own name, to avoid the appearance of advertising.

The movie at the Herriot museum mentioned how difficult it was to be a Vet back in the time (1940s and 50s) before modern day antibiotics & diagnostic tools were available. It was a poor paying profession, due to a lower success rate and poorer farmers tended to ignore Vet Bills when there was an unhappy outcome concerning their cows, sheep and horses.

On the second floor was a display of the changing technologies that Vets have used to treat animals since Herriot's time, and, a separate set of displays showing how women have gone from being a nearly non-existent percentage among Vets to being by far in the majority in England.

note - you can enlarge any part of a picture by left-clicking in and then out again.

	author James Herriot		the museum is in his former back yard		the Vet Alf Wight		Alf had clients in the Kilburn area
		home & office		on the back streets of Thirsk

A few years before our Yorkshire visit, I read a biography of Alf Wight, written by his son Jim, who is also a Vet (as is his sister). It was The Real James Herriot, and I'd recommend it for anyone who was influenced by the All Creatures Great & Small books, or TV series.

Jim Wight states that his Dad Alf unexpectedly changed the economy of the formerly sleepy Yorkshire area, because once Americans saw the gorgeous Moors & Dales scenery on TV, they poured in, in big numbers, since the late 1980s, and still do.

Yorkshire is a popular place to visit even for UK residents. According to Wikipedia, up to 12 million visitors come to Yorkshire annually, generating as much as 6.3B British pounds of income, and, supporting about 240,000 jobs. (2016 ref. data)

Later in the day my wife wanted to rest, so I went to look for the third trail coming back from Kilburn, as shown on my OS map. I took the old muddy lane (that we'd been on before) to town.

The third way back worked great until it vanished. Facing impenetrable hedgerows, I instead jumped a few fences & crossed private properties and found myself not far from the cottage, when I ran into some escaped cows.

heading uphill to Kilburn on the bridle path				big oak
	old muddy road & hedgerows		a lane into town		Kilburn again, 2 weeks later
old houses				B & B		the path to High Kilburn
					High Kilburn has six homes
near views from a high point above High Kilburn				back down the hill...		through the churchyard....
	....& into the pub		this place had an innovative dinner menu		photos of everything but the clients here
leaving Kilburn w/White Horse on Sutton Bank		afternoon light on the hedgerows		if you find a gate, you're on the trail		impressive tree
	where is the trail ?		the trail was plowed under on the other side...		..impassable
had to cut across a neighbor's lot		I was lost but at least I had company....	....note tiny White Horse of Kilburn, in the background...	....perfect for a farewell-to- Yorkshire shot.

Well, actually I was not lost, because the property I cut across was the one just north of our cottage, based on my first morning's walk (with coffee).

But this small herd was clearly lost & should not be wandering about freely. As I approached, the cows seemed shy & confused, and I had the sense they wanted me to tell them what to do, as they milled about, trampling down fresh crops. Being a city guy, I had no guidance. and continued past, leaving the herd in a state of collective uncertainty.

Having made some kind of bold escape, maybe because a gate mechanism broke or was left open, for them it was probably a rare break in the daily cow grind. It must have been thrilling at first but cows are not known for innovation, so what do you once outside the box ?...it is so unfamiliar, and I assumed they had not wandered far.

At the far end of the gravel drive was a pensive woman, about my age, with a property-owner look, observing the small herd of escapees on her land.

As I approached on her driveway, I said "I'm sorry for cutting across your property, but the old footpath ran out and I got stuck in the hedgerows." I added that my wife & I were staying next door at Jackie's cottages.

She said "Its no problem. We sometimes are allowed to plow a trail under, if there are others around."

I asked - did she mind that someone's cows were trampling her crops? She shrugged it off, saying "it's not my problem" but still looked concerned.

My take was that this is her leased farmland, someone else's crop, and, a nearby neighbor's cows got loose and really are only doing minimal damage. For her this is a minor inconvenience, but as responsible owner she tends to the situation until the (sometimes distant) owner shows up to lead the cows home.

She asked where I was from & when I said 'near San Francisco', she lit up, looked into the distance for a few seconds, and said "Yes, I went there once" then she smiled & wished me "a good rest of my visit." Well, you just can't beat the Brits for politeness & good manners !

On our last evening in Yorkshire, as dusk turned to night, we heard adults and kids outside making musical sounds to move cows along, the escapees passing by our cottage, and they were from an adjacent farm property.

On a moonless fall night, then, our Yorkshire visit ended with the cows coming home.

go to next page - week two, part seven - York National Railway Museum

return to Yorkshire trip index

return to mdimage site index

Postscript

Before we leave our rental cottage, I wish to mention an unanticipated & therapeutic influence during our stay, which worked wonders.

This had to do with the inherent quietness at Kilburn Park. There were absolutely no sounds of traffic or trains or even planes overhead. Day and night, this may have been the quietest place we've ever stayed. Well, at 6:15 am each morning (and again at sunset) a flock of Jackdaws (Crows) flew about madly for 15 minutes, making a lot of noise, near some huge trees maybe 300 ft. south of the cottage.

With windows & skylights open at night, we enjoyed great air quality, comfortable fall temperatures, and especially the silence, both sleeping well.

go to next page - week two, part seven - York National Railway Museum

return to Yorkshire trip index

return to mdimage site index