I've just got back from a cosy break in North Yorkshire and felt the need to blog about it! It's been a while but I'm back to tell you about a great place to stay called Settle!
Located in the Yorkshire Dales, Settle is a quaint market town surrounded by peaks, dales, caves and waterfalls- perfect for those of us that love the outdoors and beautiful scenery. It's also really accessible by car or the train, making it ideal if you don't drive or fancy a scenic way to travel up instead.
There's some lovely independent shops within Settle, such as
Ye Olde Naked Man Cafe and Bakery. Their coffee was gorgeous and the shortbread is to
die for! I loved the little antique shops dotted around the town and various gift shops where I picked up a few treats for home. Everyone was very friendly and welcoming and if you or your partner are into cycling, I'd recommend
3 Peaks Cycles, an independent bike shop which also has a cafe! My husband was in his element in there and had we not had the dogs with us, we'd have taken full advantage on hiring bikes from there too.
There were three pubs we found whilst in Settle, one was closed the week we were staying (just our luck), but we found The Golden Lion which was a great pub. It was dog friendly, served delicious food and had a roaring fire- all the key ingredients for a perfect evening after a days walking! We also needed a cosy place to stay and I found the perfect place.
Castlebergh Cottage is one of the loveliest cottages I've ever had the pleasure of staying in. Firstly it takes two dogs and pets go free, which gets a huge tick from me. I always find it frustrating when a place is dog friendly but charges an additional fee, but maybe that's just a bug bare of mine? Anyway, this place was well equipped for the dogs, with a boot room as you walk into the property (see the photos here) to kick off your muddy boots, park your bike and dry off muddy mutts.
We were welcomed with a hamper, containing biscuits and fresh coffee to enjoy during our stay. The kitchen was well equipped with everything you could need. The knives were sharp, there were plenty of utensils, glasses for all the drinks. Seriously all the drinks- red and white wine glasses, gin glasses, champagne glasses, pint glasses, tumblers... There was a dishwasher which is heaven on holiday. Who wants to wash up whilst they're away!? They even had a slow cooker, which had I realised, I'd have left ours at home!
You could really sense that the owners have really thought about what people need whilst they're on holiday and this followed on throughout the cottage. Not only was it cute and aesthetically pleasing, it was really functional and spacious.
The bathroom was another gorgeous space, fitted with a walk in shower and a beautiful freestanding bath. Both were perfect to warm tired bones and the
locally sourced soap was another lovely touch.
There were lots of beautiful walks right on our doorstep, such as Scaleber Force Waterfall, just under 2 miles away and the "Settle loop" which took us up and out of Settle, past Attermire Scar and out towards Langcliffe before heading into Giggleswick and back into Settle. That loop was around 6.5 miles with some hiking which was a shock to my fen legs! The loop gave us brilliant views over Settle and beyond.
A twenty minute drive away is Malham Village and from there you can walk to Malham Cove and hike to see Gordale Scar and Janet's Foss.
The cove is pretty gnarly, so if you are looking to hike up it as we did, you'll need some sturdy walking boots. It's definitely worth it though and the views are spectacular.
Gordale Scar was definitely my favourite part of the hike. The waterfall was spectacular and I can see why its been dubbed "one of the jewels in the crown of the national park".
Janet's Foss was also beautiful, although my photo doesn't do it justice. From here onwards we were on a path looping back into Malham village so the hiking got significantly easier. If you're not confident hiking, you can skip climbing Malham Cove and stick to the paths that take you to both Gordale Scar and Janet's Foss. Luckily for me I had two crazy spaniels helping me up hills when I got tired!
So that's a little insight into my break in Settle. It was a very chilled break away, but one that was well needed after a crazy December to reset and recoup. I'd love to hear about your recommendations of places in the UK to go hiking, as it's something I'd like to do more throughout 2024, that and blogging! But for now, I'll leave it here for the day.
