Best laid plans ....

So, at the end of August we should have been here ....

starting our special three month retirement trip round France and Spain.

Well it was not to be ... sadly, real life got in the way with a long sorry tale of hospitals and an aged parent and impending surgery. So trying really hard to put a brave face on things, we managed to get a few days away in Yorkshire before the op. Not quite the south of France, but perfectly pleasant.

We stayed in Knaresborough, which was so lovely we wondered why we had never been before.

 The woodland walks around Nidderdale were wonderful...

We especially enjoyed a sculpture trail one evening.

After hosting some stages of the Tour de France in July, Yorkshire is still yellow with bikes and bunting everywhere.

The remnants of an amazing party. Wish we'd been able to join in at the time.

 One of the highlights of our little trip was a visit to Brimham Rocks. A weird and wonderful ancient landscape which is great place to explore. When we were there it was still the summer holidays, and the rocks were filled with children scrambling all over them. What a great place to let off steam.

Inca loved it too and scampered through the rocks checking out new sniffs ...

but as always, she reverted to what she loves best and found the only water for miles around for a spot of dog snorkelling.

SPLASH!