Christian - A travel guide to Yorkshires Weird Wolds: The Mysterious Wold Newton Triangle

A TRAVEL GUIDE TO
YORKSHIRES WEIRD WOLDS

The Mysterious Wold Newton Triangle

Charles Christian

A travel guide to Yorkshires Weird Wolds

The Mysterious Wold Newton Triangle

Published by Charles Christian

www.urbanfantasist.com

ISBN 978-1-907043-10-9

copyright 2015

The right of Charles Christian to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the publisher/author. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the publishers/authors prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

To Jane: my collaborator, editor and all-time great partner.

Introduction

Stand on the brow of Staxton Hill looking north and in front of you lies the now well drained farmlands of the Vale of Pickering. In the far distance is the purple-hazed, heather-covered uplands of the Yorkshire Moors. To the east lie the coastal resorts and long sandy beaches of Scarborough, Filey and Bridlington. While behind you are the rolling acres of the Yorkshire Wolds, sloping away down to the market towns of Driffield and Beverley.

Fold upon fold of the encircling hills, piled rich and golden, is how the writer (best known for her posthumous 1936 novel South Riding) Winifred Holtby, who was born at Rudston (and now buried in All Saints churchyard there) described the Wolds.

Eighty years on, heres how a couple of tourist guides currently describe the area... With hidden valleys, chalk streams and peaceful villages, the Yorkshire Wolds make a refreshing change from city life or a seaside break. Its a fabulous place to unwind and enjoy the English countryside at its best. Idle along a leafy lane with its banks of wild flowers... discover a sheep-dotted valley with dramatic views... sit with your legs in a clear fast flowing stream... and enjoy the sound of silence.

And Many of the walks take you through the bustling market towns that dot the landscape. Quintessentially Yorkshire, these charming stone built places each boast their own ancient churches, whitewashed byway inns, willow-fringed duck ponds and family bakers.

This is agricultural country, with more sheep and tractors than people. This is holidaymaker country, with its queues of cars heading for the coast in summer and on any fine Sunday in winter for the ice cream parlours, amusement arcades and fish n chip shops. This is heritage country, with its ruined castles, pinnacled church towers and stately homes smelling of beeswax polish and Victoria sponge cakes.

But, there is also a darker side to this country.

It is a place where kings built hospices to protect weary travellers from wolves and werewolves. A place where cloistered monks chronicled the predations of zombies, vampires and aliens. A place dotted with henges, barrows, tumuli and ancient burial mounds that superstitious locals once avoided for fear of encountering the fairy folk who dwelt there. A place where, in prehistoric times, the first settlers in this countryside worshipped before stone monoliths, while wearing masks fashioned from the skulls of animals. It is a place where in later times, the countys squirearchy had their masques disturbed by the screams of an unquiet skull. And, it is also a place associated with some of the greatest heroes and villains of recent pulp, crime and science fiction.

The Yorkshire Wolds first came onto my radar in the mid-1950s when, as a child sitting in the back of a Standard Eight car, wedged in between my grandmother and a maiden aunt, my parents would indulge in the weekly routine of the Sunday afternoon drive in the country.

One particular afternoon, as we were returning home, my mother pointed to a farmhouse and casually mentioned it was haunted and one of her friends refused to drive past in the dark. That caught my attention and my fascination with the area has stayed with me since that time.

So join me on this road trip around what I have called the Wold Newton Triangle, where rather odd events have occurred, unmatched anywhere else in Britain.

The cast of characters and creations you will meet on your Weird Wolds Tour include werewolves, zombies, vampires, green skinned fairy folk, headless ghosts, screaming skulls, ancient warlords, valiant sea captains battling to the death as volley after volley of cannon fire rake their warships decks, miracle-working priests, very eccentric gentry, disappearing rivers, a good Queen and an avaricious Queen, a black skeleton, a Parkin-eating dragon, sea serpents, turkeys galore, Englands oldest buildings, shape shifters, enchanted wells, giant monoliths and a grid of ley lines, as well as a surprising amounts of Quite Interesting Facts.

And all this was before the peace of the Yorkshire Wolds was disturbed by the crash of a giant meteorite falling from the sky.

Welcome to the Wold Newton Triangle and the weirdness of the Yorkshire Wolds.

Charles Christian

If you would like to download a map of The Wold Newton Triangle Roadtrip please click here: http://www.urbanfantasist.com/wold-newton-triangle-map.html

Orienteering

Where is the Wold Newton Triangle and how best to explore it?

The western side of the Wold Newton Triangle broadly follows the path of the B1249 road across the Yorkshire Wolds from Driffield in the south, then down Staxton Hill and on into the Vale of Pickering.

The eastern side of the Triangle is bordered by the North Sea, running the length of the A165 coast road from Gristhorpe and Filey Brigg along to Flamborough Head and Bridlington Bay. The southern and final side of the Triangle runs parallel to the old Woldgate Roman road, which heads out from Bridlington and across what used to be called the East Riding of Yorkshire towards Stamford Bridge and York. The modern A614/A166 shadows the Roman road.

Travelling the Triangle

How best to travel around the Wold Newton Triangle? My all-weather, all-seasons default would be by car for the following reasons:

Trains? Although there is a line from Scarborough to Hull, that runs via Bridlington and Driffield and broadly follows the eastern side of the Triangle, it skirts the hinterland so you are still going to be in need of some alternative form of transport.

There is the East Yorkshire Motor Services (EYMS) company running bus services across both North Yorkshire and the East Riding that will reach far more locations than the train, particularly if you use Bridlington as a base. Unfortunately some of the most interesting locations, such as Wold Newton and Rudston, are not served by year-round services.

Walking? This is a possibility but it should be noted that as a result of recent and ongoing erosion, some of the coastal footpaths along the eastern side of the Triangle have fallen into the sea and have not yet been rerouted. And, by way of a further word of caution, some routes, particularly the B1249, are relatively narrow, windy roads, with too many blind corners and brows of hills and also too many speeding motorists using them as a rat-run from Hull to Scarborough. Add in the fact these routes have no defined kerbs, nor accompanying footpaths and the hapless hiker can often find they have no option but to walk along the highway itself.