Orgate Visit 2009
June 25, 2020
In July of 2009 my husband Richard and I, along with our son Isaac and his wife Joanna, enjoyed a 10 day vacation in Yorkshire. We rented a 1731 stone cottage in Grinton just 5 miles or so from my ancestral village of Marske. One gorgeous sunny day we rented bicycles and set off to find Orgate Farm where my great great great great grandparents lived as far back as the 1630s!
The kind fellow at Dales Bike Centre explained the route to Marske and when I asked about whether it was possible to ride directly to Orgate Farm, he said that the gate might be closed but that it was permissible to go ahead through it and take the route passed the farmhouse and back to Marske through Clints.
Just as we were about to leave the bike centre it started to drizzle so we donned our rain gear and set out undeterred.
Although I had prepared months in advance, working out on my stationary bike at home, I was not expecting the difficulty I had with the steep hills we encountered along the route. Many times my family had long rests at the top of hills waiting for me to catch up, usually arriving on foot pushing my bike!
At the top of one of these hills was a breathtaking reward… my first glimpse of Marske! Such an emotional reflective moment for me! As was the moment we spotted the sign announcing our arrival at Marske!
When we reached Marske we stopped to chat with the local postmistress, Mrs. Simpson. When I mentioned that my family had lived at Orgate and were lead smelters, she rushed into the house and brought back a pig of lead to show me.
After getting our bearings and some pointers from Mrs. Simpson, we headed off to find Skelton Lane, the road to Orgate. I fell in love on that bike ride along that road. It was so peaceful and every direction you looked breathtaking panoramas emerged against the now dramatic sky! And then… my heart skipped a beat when there before me was my first glimpse of Orgate Farm!
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A few photos from the bike trip to Orgate
Click each photo to enlarge it
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Soon we were gathered at the closed gate to Orgate, just as the guy at Dales Bike Centre had said. However a division arose among our family group. Rich and I figured there was no problem to go through, but our son thought it wouldn’t be right because of the ‘Private Road’ sign. But, he was out-numbered so we went on through!
First stop inside was Orgate Force, a wonderful babbling waterfall on Marske Beck. I couldn’t help pondering and my thoughts wandered back through the centuries and imagined my ggggg grandfather as a young boy playing along those banks!
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The sun broke through the clouds just long enough for me to get a dramatic shot as I took a last look back at Orgate. We stopped to chat with Orgate’s resident equine, and as we entered Clint Wood, the skies opened up and the clouds let go of the rain they had been holding back! It was refreshing though, as was our stop at the pub when we arrived back in Grinton!