Day 4 was the big one for us. My eldest son who is 8 has been wanting to climb a mountain ever since he was 5, but with a 1 year old younger brother, it just wasn't possible, fast forward to 8 years old and 4 years old and we decided to give it a try and do Pen Y Ghent a fell near Horton in Ribblesdale. Its the lowest of the three peaks at 629 metres, so perfect for littler legs. Even as babies go on approaching Pen Y Ghent it did seem like this was going to be a challenge for our little family, but we had the whole day, a picnic packed, so decided to go for it. We took the easier route on the way up, which as it turned out was my favourite not for ease, but for the vast views of the Yorkshire Dales as it links up The Pennine Way to the summit; it was really rather special. It doesn't feel like you are climbing a mountain for quite some time until you get to the summit, which the trail gets steeper and thinner until you get to some steps that takes you to the top. After some rest and refreshment we decide to descend the harder route. This involved a bit of climbing down, which of course ticked all the mountain climbing boxes in my eldest's mind and brought much joy to the kids; parents were slightly more cautious, but in fact if you take it slowly and carefully it is fine to do with a young family. When you get back to the village there is a pub for refreshments, which we very much needed after our thirsty work, where we congratulated ourselves as a family at doing something really very awesome. As an additional treat on the way home we got to glimpse the Ribblesdale Viaduct, probably worth a walk but after the day we had we had to just admire the view and head home. The next day was my eldest's day of fun. We picked The Forbidden Corner, which I have to say is the most bizarre place I have ever been to. What started as a man's folly in his home has turned into a visitor attraction to see it's many tunnels, labyrinths, chambers, follies and stepping stone paths, and fantastic interactive sculptures and water features, in a 4 acre garden in Tupgill Park. My eldest thought this was the best place ever but in places it did freak my 4 year old out a bit, as it was understandably so strange. However it also has a great play park which suited our youngest when it got a bit much. It was so fun, in parts like being in the film Labyrinth, and well worth the visit. On our final day we decided to walk the Ingleton Waterfall trail to do more waterfall chasing, which unwittingly has become a theme of this week in the Yorkshire Dales. The 4.5 mile trail runs close to two rivers, but there is a lot of steps and climbing to do so sturdy walking boots are a must. The trail is claimed to have some of the most beautiful waterfall and woodland scenery in the north of England, and it certainly didn't disappoint. Well worth taking your time and a picnic there are many beautiful spots to sit and appreciate the beauty of your surrounds. The only thing we didn't bring and certainly will next time is bathers as there are are at least three places where you can bathe in the pool of the waterfalls, which would have been the cherry on the cake. However we did make sure we got our cake with a wonderfully pre-booked luxury cream tea at Elaine's Tea Rooms in Feizor, which was a gem of a find. It's certainly going to be very difficult saying goodbye to the Yorkshire Dales and heading back to reality, but it really is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been too and can't wait to return in the future.
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