The sun is shining on Great Busby

The North York Moors are easily as gorgeous as the Peak District, I think!

Walking the Cleveland Way 

We had our first short walk this afternoon and there are stunning views out over miles and miles of countryside from the top of the hill just behind our current campsite, South View Farm. The Camping And Caravanning Club are our hosts here and the CS site, between Carlton In Cleveland and Great Busby, is an open field, again with good views. It's fairly windy, but warm and sunny and pretty peaceful other than the eerie cries of peacocks from a neighbouring farm. (Dave recognised the sound - he's good at identifying birds by ear.) We certainly didn't expect to get warmer as we trekked further north! The only facilities are electric, water and waste but then the site is only £12 a night. We've patched the tear and got the awning up allowing us to eat a lunch and two evening meals outside. It was so soporifically nice out there early evening today that I struggled not to doze off to my audiobook!

I will just jump back to York to tell you about a lovely garden nursery and farm shop on the outskirts of the city, in the village of Bishopthorpe. The Brunswick Organic Nursery And Craft Workshop is not only a mouthful (!), but also a charitable enterprise offering workplace opportunities to adults with learning difficulties. We had a lunch invite to old friends of Dave's, Frances and John, and I was able to create a giftset of jams to take. Brunswick also has fresh veg, bird food and feeders, and fun gifts for gardeners. Pop in if you're ever nearby.

We supported local shops in Stokesley this morning visiting two butchers and also getting lucky (or not from a parking point of view) by arriving in town on market day! The town is pretty with a vibrant High Street and the small market added an extra bustle. We got our veg there and also two fresh mackerel from a fishmonger's van. There is also a Co-Op and a great shop called Boyes which sells an amazing variety of products - we got sealant for the shower, a trivet, a four plug gang and a roll of cling film! Stokesley is only about three miles from our campsite so I am planning to walk or cycle in on a quieter afternoon next week to have a proper look around.

Our gorgeous view 

We have another anniversary to observe in my fortieth year - the 125th anniversary of Bram Stoker's visit to Whitby. The town is on our to-do list and apparently we must eat fish and chips there, but the CS owner here made sure to tell us not to try visiting on a weekend. In a fun coincidence, one of my free AudioSYNC downloads this week is a full cast recording of Dracula which I have taken as a good omen!

And, I almost forgot, I have won a book too thanks to Sophie and Suze's Netgalley Challenge which has now finished but had several mentions in my recent book reviews. I will be receiving a signed copy of The Judas Scar by Amanda Jennings. Very excited!

More good news from 38 Degrees today. I am trying to do my bit to

reduce food waste and, thanks to publicity including a now 170,000 strong petition, Tesco is the first UK supermarket to announce that they will donate all their unsold food to charity. "The Tesco’s move is a positive step, but unless it’s inscribed in law, tonnes of perfectly good food will still end up in landfill sites. So while it’s hot in the news, let’s ramp up the pressure on the government to force all big food chains not to waste their unsold food. Momentum is on our side. Green MP Caroline Lucas has championed the campaign since the beginning, and now Hackney Labour MP Diane Abbott has submitted a parliamentary motion calling for it to become law." If you haven't already done so, please sign and share the petition too.

Enjoy 3 for 2 on all fruit, herbal and green teas at Twinings throughout June 

We arrive in Bishopthorpe and get our first sight of York

It isn't very far from Hope to York so we only had a leisurely two hour

Bailey pitched up at Foss Dyke CL 

drive today. The outskirts of Sheffield were busy enough to be a little stressful but otherwise everything was fine. Foss Dyke Caravan Club CL is at the end of another single-track-with-passing-places which are becoming Dave's favourite type of road (not!). This one is much shorter and less twisty and hopefully we won't encounter any racing Yodel drivers on it. We have the CL to ourselves apparently until Tuesday which is fantastic. There is some traffic noise, but we are surrounded by tall trees that mute it and the views are green in every direction - not far-reaching as at Hope, but it feels tranquil and we should be more sheltered from the forecast gales. The site is neat and tidy with electricity and water on each pitch - luxury! We did have trouble persuading a small flock of what may be turkeys to move out of our way on arrival. Dave ran at them and they ran off the track. They are still pootling about but are nowhere near as curious as the hens at West Stow.

Our view at Foss Dyke CL 

We drove into York to get our food shopping out of the way this afternoon and, further to my previous post, discovered a giant Go Outdoors shop next to Sainsbury's. They had the Craghoppers trousers upon which I had set my heart - but I discovered they are a really bizarre fit. Tight across my leg where the shorts zip off, yet clown-flappy around the waist! I'm glad I hadn't bought online without trying them on first. Fortunately this shop also had several other convertible pairs so I am now the proud owner of a pair of HiGear Nebraska Womens Zip Off Trousers in dark blue. Fingers crossed they are as comfortable when walking as they were in the changing room! I also signed up for the Discount Card which entitles me to great deals instore and online - and saved me a tenner today.

On a less positive note, I had an email from 38 degrees today about the

UK MEPs disappointing performance in the recent TTIP vote. "This week, we had a setback in the fight against TTIP, the dangerous US-EU trade deal. MEPs failed to scrap one of the worst bits of the deal - the part that would let corporations sue our government in secret courts."

I was pleased to learn that my MEP, William Dartmouth, did vote against TTIP, but the other four UK MEPs failed to take a stand on behalf of their constituencies. "There’s another, bigger, vote on TTIP less than two weeks away" and 38 degrees "are going to expose the MEPs from the UK who aren’t taking a stand. We can put their faces across their local newspapers - everywhere their constituents will see. MEPs won’t want to be shown up in front of their voters. Can you chip in £3 for local newspaper ads calling out the MEPs who voted the wrong way on TTIP?" If we’re going to get in next week’s papers, we need to start booking the advert space today." I have sent £3? Please will you too?

The Devil's Arse is quite a sight!

Now that title got your attention, didn't it?! 

Path to the Devil's Arse 

Today we enjoyed the second part of our Castleton caves joint ticket by paying a visit to The Devil's Arse, also more politely known as Peak Cavern. The more interesting name apparently came about due to local folks in historical times believing that the sound of gurgling water that sometimes heard from within the cave was actually the Devil himself farting. Although no water gurgled today, our guide did imitate the sound and I could understand why superstitious minds made the connection! The renaming was a hasty decision for Queen Victoria's first visit, a question of decorum!

The mouth of Peak Cavern is massive, so massive in fact that I couldn't get far enough back to capture its expanse in a photograph so you've got the dramatic cliffs overshadowing the path instead. Within the entrance cavern, we were treated to a demonstration of ropemaking - from fragile flax to sturdy rope - which we both found fascinating. Parts of Hailsham are named for the ropemaking industry there, but I had never thought through its practicalities before. I now understand just what that statue outside Hailsham Tesco is doing! Troglodytes lived and worked in Peak Cavern as ropemakers from the 1600s until 1915, amazingly, and we saw what I presume is a replica of one of their tiny dwellings

Peak Cavern does have some low overhangs, but is far less claustrophobic than Speedwell Cavern and is completely walkable - no boat rides here. We were shown rock formations including flowstones and unusually dark coloured little stalactites, the result of water trickling through volcanic rock above. Another change for Queen Victoria, this time for her second visit, was the blasting through of a short bypass tunnel at one point, high enough for her to walk through. Previously visitors had lain individually in a 'boat' that looked suspiciously like an unlidded coffin and been shoved through a very small aperture along a short stream. It looked horrifying so I was glad of the manmade alternative. Most of the Cavern is still natural though.

Approaching Peak Cavern through Castleton 

Speedwell Cavern and Peak Cavern could easily both be visited in a single day, although it is possible to book a joint ticket that lasts six months. This is what we did, taking advantage of the early bird discount which didn't actually require us to get up especially early. Booking is advised for Speedwell and we got lucky with Peak Cavern today as there were only six people on our tour, but a whole school party arriving as we left! Do allow time to appreciate the pretty walk to Peak Cavern. From the car park, we walked along narrow streets between extremely cute little cottages and alongside a small river with arched stone bridges. All very picturesque! There were even Shetland ponies in a field (with the obligatory sheep).

On a different note, an urgent 38 Degrees appeal for action:
Our bees are in danger again. Toxic chemical companies are trying to get

their banned pesticides back on UK fields. On Tuesday an application was submitted to the government asking them to lift the ban on bee-killing chemicals for some crops planted this autumn. A huge petition will make it clear to the environment minister, Elizabeth Truss, that she still needs to protect our bees, not the toxic profits of bee-killing chemical companies. Please sign this 38 Degrees petition.