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| York Minster from the city walls |
The week before (24/11/17) the Ouse
had spilled onto the quay above Lendal Bridge following heavy rain in the
Pennines earlier that week which provoked the Swale to rise (also flood
warnings on the Lune, Eden on the Wednesday-Thursday; and more briefly on the
Greta at Keswick and Caldew in Carlisle). Guys hosing away the mud deposited on
the quay left when the overflow receded. Then a switch to a drier, cold,
northerly airstream bringing snow to NE England / NE coast; including
Thornton-le-Dale 30/11/17. Feeling very cold throughout that week.
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| Millennium Bridge |
Tuesday 28th November
Park
and Ride, Grimston Bar, east at Hull road intersection.
Near the car park, Space
Port BP garage, with daleks on roof of shop, Planet Wash, Inner Space Centre,
Storm Trooper inside. Got off bus at Piccadilly, outside The Merchant's House;
near Coppergate and main shopping area. Both a bit disorientated because of
time gap and streets very busy. Xmas market in Coppergate area.
Made
our way through streets to the Minster and walked the City Walls walk. Got up onto the wall at Botham Bar, the
west gate opposite art gallery. Botham Bar, with Minster behind, the subject of one of my father's paintings done in the 1980s. Walked clockwise round wall. Views of north side of Minster.
Views of York Minster
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| Monks Gate model shop |
Monks Gate - down to road to dodge "Richard III Experience inside on the upper floor of the gatehouse. In so doing, the Chief Chartered engineer got diverted into the model shop, especially planes.
We
seemed to lose the wall when we got to the River Foss. I think we should have carried on along the
main road and not the river. Presumably
the mill chimney across the road was a listed structure, now standing alone
amid modern superstore premises: Morrisons, Office Outlet .
The path along the river petered out modern apartment blocks. We found ourselves back into city centre where we'd got off bus. Eventually found Clifford's Tower, Castle Museum. Crossed the Ouse at Skeldergate Bridge, rejoined wall there. Followed wall round to Lendal Bridge. A view of the Minster behind chimney pots on the south side of the wall. Railway and railway station.
The River Foss, east side of city
The path along the river petered out modern apartment blocks. We found ourselves back into city centre where we'd got off bus. Eventually found Clifford's Tower, Castle Museum. Crossed the Ouse at Skeldergate Bridge, rejoined wall there. Followed wall round to Lendal Bridge. A view of the Minster behind chimney pots on the south side of the wall. Railway and railway station.
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| Lendal Bridge |
Quick
packed lunch on bench by river near Lendal Bridge. Out of wind, in sun across
river, so not too cold. Some muddy debris beneath benches: legacy from last
week's input's from Swale (as mentioned later by other Waterstones cafe
customers). Flow now fairly gentle.
While here, noticed that the toilets at the
foot of Museum Gardens had gone. As a sign of the times, replaced by a
restaurant. Seems in this city, have to pay to pee now. Not funny when needs
really must…
In
the early afternoon, I strolled along the river to Clifton, walking along the left
bank, underneath Scarborough railway bridge; past some playing fields; under Clifton
Bridge; and up onto the big flood bank by the sluice at Clifton Ings. It was
clouding over, but already (about half-one) the light was going; the sun
dropping. Walked back, crossing Clifton Bridge to the right bank where willow
trees with the last of their leaves drooped towards the water.
Christmas decorations - Museum Gardens
Crossing
back over Lendal Bridge, I went into Museum Gardens and did some very quick pencil
sketches of the glitterball baubles hanging from one of the trees and
reflecting the trees. These were among various large Christmas art
installations here. The following day, a miserable wet and wintery Wednesday at
Thornton-le-Dale, I made some other drawings from these and my photos. See my painting and sketching blog.
Friday
1st December - Second
visit, coming after a snowy day in the NE on Thursday.
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| Kings Staithe from Queens Staith |
Arriving
in the city centre on the Park & Ride as before, we walked along the Ouse
between Skeldergate and the Millennium foot-cycle bridge, before lunching in a
restaurant near Lendal Bridge. Though the river level had fallen, it had turned
a paler, glummer shade of brown, a bit like weak tea. I’d say the sort of brown
lots of people seem to give into clothing-wise come the winter; prominent among
M&S’s cardigan range when I looked in there later. With memories coloured
by the sunshine we’d had here this time in 2001, I’d hoped for more sun. Still
showery when we got down to Skeldergate and it was chilly; but it then cleared;
and reflecting the brighter sky, the river looked a better colour, too. Turned left under Skeldergate Bridge and came
across construction work to our left, associated with the Foss Flood Barrier
ahead. Barrier gate to our left as we crossed the footbridge over the Foss near
where it joins the Ouse. This work follows very floody problems here involving
widespread flooding in York Boxing Day 2015 (see part 2).
The junction of the Ouse and the Foss / Foss Barrier
Crossed
over the Millennium Bridge and walked back into the city centre along the right
bank. After Skeldergate Bridge, went away from the river along the streets for
a while, then returned to the water’s edge at the cobbly Queen’s Staith. Fairly
bright now, with light on the buildings across the water by the King’s Staithe.
Among them was The King’s Arms. This is notorious as a pub that floods; but
they are prepared for it. Though beer and banter maybe tricky when the flood is
completely submerging the room during bigger floods. Otherwise, as far as I
know, it’s usually business as usual very soon after the water recedes; though
it helps not having fitted carpets or soft furnishings. I keep meaning to go in
there again sometime soon, though in the summer months the premises and river
bank are brimming over with people.
I
took another stroll along the Ouse after our big lunch; this time to Lendal
Bridge to compare water levels with Tuesday. They were down, the concrete quay
which had been underwater now high and dry. People still hosing the mud from
last week’s spillage around the benches in front of the Museum Gardens. Walked
up to the footbridge alongside the Scarborough railway bridge and crossed over
it to the right bank. On from there and across Skeldergate Bridge. Clifford’s
Tower catching the setting sun (before 4pm) when I got there.
In
Waterstones, I bought a couple of water-related books: William Thomson – The Book of World Tides – published this
year to his similarly covered The Book of
Tides I bought in Rossiters bookshop in Ross-on-Wye last year. That one
focused on the tides around Britain. The new one goes global.
Neil
Sentence – Water and Sky – Voices from
the Riverside. Illustrated by Jonathan Gibbs. Little Toller / Caught by the
River.
courtyard
much easier than it had been last night.
A walk through the Shambles and neighbouring streets after dark
York
trips past
4th May 1979 - my very first trip, including a family photo by the Ouse at Skeldergate. A cold winter; and, judging from the leafless trees, a late spring. Visited the Minster and Shambles and Castle Museum. Even at the age of 11, the city made a last, postive impression on me.
Late August 1983 – A two-night stopover at YHA York following the family holiday in Glencoe and Perthshire (my introduction to Scotland) ; again
left a last positive impression), we broke the journey home in NE England:
first as a family foursome at Durham; then, after Mum headed south by coach to
get back to work, a further extension with Dad, staying at YHA York for two
nights. Again we went into the Minster, which no doubt Dad would have stopped
to at least sketch, if not do a much more detailed painting. We walked round the
city walls and went to the Castle Museum. On the second evening, we walked
along the River Ouse from the YHA near Clifton Bridge to Lendal Bridge. A
pleasant summer’s evening with boats on the river. Dad sketched. The river
tranquil and friendly in complete contrast to how it had been in the floods of
early 1982; about which the news reports at the time painted a duly grim
picture of what I remember as an unhappy dark, cold winter. During our walk, we
saw flood defences (banks) being built up in alongside the field below Clifton
Bridge. Coming down to the river walk via the slipway by Clifton Bridge: two
flood marks painted as white lines on the brick wall to our left facing the
river: late December (28th?) 1978; above that 5th
January 1982. There would later be one higher still, for November 2000. After
that, they weren’t added to and began to fade. By 2017 they were indiscernible
from the background.
There was another family holiday with my parents in 1987; then several solo trips based at YHA York, involving the River Ouse and trips to York's many varied museums, including the National Railway Museum, Castle Museum and Yorvik Viking Museum.
I saw the June 2004 Transit of Venus from a telescope at an event in Museum Gardens, lucky to get a break in the cloud cover as my turn came in the queue. These are very rare events: two come eight years apart (as in 2004 and 2012) then nothing for over a century. The next transit won't be until 2117.
I also took a trip to the tidal Ouse at Selby and had a look at the Ouse just downstream of York at Naburn Lock. I'll say more about this some other time.
Today (2017) - Historic city centre
much the same, though considerable growth / development in past 10-20 years:
tourism (packed in high summer season), now pre-Xmas busyness; posh waterfront
apartments; also retail parks / development around ring road, including Monks Cross,
Grimston Bar B&Q etc. Not really aware of ring road / development until now
as solo trips have been by coach or train.
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Books and Websites
Yorkshire more generally: Richard Bell – Yorkshire Rock – A Journey through Time, Earthwise (2006) – geology
across Yorkshire, early Mesozoic era to Quartenary.
Cool Geography - York Floods – causes, photos, recent floods
York Stories – Why does York flood? http://yorkstories.co.uk/why-does-york-flood/
Flood
Heights on the Ouse | York Civic Trust
River
Foss Barrier - Wikipedia
York's
Foss flood barrier: New pump to be installed - BBC News
