Walking Yorkshire : Middlesmoor, Angram Dam, Scar House Dam With Stevan in mind, here's another of my guided tours of God's Own County. A day off, I know, I know. That's five in five months, I'll be getting idle. This is a strait bit of road, something that's not very common in North Yorkshire. The driver that left the skid marks gets no points for observation on a road like this, if you can't see oncoming traffic here, you really shouldn't be driving at all. I parked at Middlesmoor car park (space for about 10 cars), 093743, tried to ignore the couple exchanging saliva in the only other car there, really, I didn't expect dogging in Middlesmoor, then struck out north and west along the Nidderdale Way Moor Lane. VOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!! If you can see a tiny dot in the centee of this picture, it's an RAF Tornado on sheep frightening manouvres. It makes a lot of noise for something so far away. Coming down Scar House Pature, a nice view of some crags (067764). Now I'm not so daft as to think that hikers don't cause any damage to the countryside, but these horrible gouges are made by motorbikes. Hikers cause some damage, mountain bikers can cause a lot more, motorbikes (and in some cases off road 4x4's) shouldn't be allowed on to any footpaths or bridleways. The problem is, it just can't be policed at the moment. I like walking along the Pennine Way where it crosses the M62, anyone familiar with the area will also be familiar with the devastation caused by motorbikes. Footpaths have become 20 foot wide mudbaths, the top soil, always very thin on moors, has been ripped away by the bikes tires and washed off by rain. Popular parts of the Pennine Way are becoming a virtul no go area for walkers, the very people the route was intended for. Tarmac + bikes + motorbikes = Good Moors + feet = Good Moors + bikes + motorbikes = Bloody awful quagmaire Scar House Dam and the Scar Plantation, and some sheepshit. About a mile further west, Angram Dam, a very impressive bit of early 20th century engineering. It is a nice bit of architecture, it's big and imposing but at the same time fits in nicely to it's surroundings. Credit where credits due, thanks to James Watson for a really nice dam. Looking north along Angram Dam to Carl Fell side. Baa, baa, bugger. This one won't make it to market. Geese below the weir at Blowing Gill Dike (036756) Blowing Gill Dike Weir. Looking down the very steep path to the Nidd Weir (031759), I was very sursprised here when I saw lambs that were clearly only a few days old, I know the upland ewes lamb later than valley ewes but it still seems very late in the season to be birthing. A family of geese in the pools behind the Nidd weir. Looking west up the Nidd valley towards the Nidd head Spring. It was a very hot and humid day, quite hazy, so not the best day for distance and panoramic pictures. A female pheasent at a feeding bin close to Shore Gill Lodge (048774) The battlement like structures at the base of Scar House Dam, looking from the north. Having walked through High, Middle and Lower Woodale farms, this isthe view of lovely Nidderdale from the eastern end of Woodale Scar (088767) Last picture for today, an increasingly uncommon sight, proper bales rather than those huge round things, this is at Haver Close Farm (097764). I took me just short of six hours to complete the circular route back into Middlesmoor, and lo and behold the dogging couple were there again, although having done a days walking they were noticeably less frisky. There were hundreds of rabbits to be seen today, you could count hundreds in the fields north of Middlesmoor, but I saw a lot of dead ones, untouched by beast or birds, a sure sign of myxomatosis. I saw a few stumbling, blind myxi rabbits around, and put one out of its misery, it's a nasty disease, not that I like rabbits, but I wound't wish that on anything. To explore this wonderful part of Yorkshire, buy yourself the OS Map OL30, Middlesmoor is on the south sheet. More pictures to follow but I thought it was getting overly large for a single post.