NABURN LOCK, YORK - March 2018
At this time of year it’s difficult to find an ideal place to have a rally. Preferably, we need a site with a meeting room or a nearby pub so that we can gather socially, plus we need a location that has plenty to see and do - whatever the weather.
Naburn is a lovely site but the lack of a meeting room and distance of the pub, together with the bitterly cold weather, meant that social activities were very restricted - we even had to hold Coffee Morning in the Laundry Room.
But despite the aforementioned drawbacks, this was a fantastic place for a winter rally. A bus stop at the site entrance meant that the historic city of York, with it’s many attractions, was easily accessible.
The Jorvik Centre is a must see, with it’s reconstructed streets depicting York in the Viking era (when York was the capital of Viking occupied England). We went there on Monday, when the hordes of weekend tourists had gone, and got straight in without any queuing.
In better weather there are lovely walks along the river or around the old city walls, but indoor attractions come up trumps at this time of year.
The Castle Museum is a place where you can easily spend a half day. It’s a converted jail that is split into sections from different eras, including a Victorian Street, World War 1 and Sixties Exhibitions. There’s also the dungeons depicting various inmates, including Dick Turpin the notorious Yorkshire highwayman
At this time of year it’s difficult to find an ideal place to have a rally. Preferably, we need a site with a meeting room or a nearby pub so that we can gather socially, plus we need a location that has plenty to see and do - whatever the weather.
Naburn is a lovely site but the lack of a meeting room and distance of the pub, together with the bitterly cold weather, meant that social activities were very restricted - we even had to hold Coffee Morning in the Laundry Room.
But despite the aforementioned drawbacks, this was a fantastic place for a winter rally. A bus stop at the site entrance meant that the historic city of York, with it’s many attractions, was easily accessible.
The Jorvik Centre is a must see, with it’s reconstructed streets depicting York in the Viking era (when York was the capital of Viking occupied England). We went there on Monday, when the hordes of weekend tourists had gone, and got straight in without any queuing.
In better weather there are lovely walks along the river or around the old city walls, but indoor attractions come up trumps at this time of year.
The Castle Museum is a place where you can easily spend a half day. It’s a converted jail that is split into sections from different eras, including a Victorian Street, World War 1 and Sixties Exhibitions. There’s also the dungeons depicting various inmates, including Dick Turpin the notorious Yorkshire highwayman
The City is a famous centre for confectionery of the chocolate variety. The history of York’s famous chocolate families (Rowntree, Terry and Craven) is told at ‘The Chocolate Story’. Kit Kats, All Gold and Chocolate Oranges are the most famous brands to have been born in York.
Chocolate isn’t the only food on offer here. The City centre is a foodies heaven. Dozens of eateries cover every taste and price range (Also,the official best fish and chip shop in Britain 2018 is at Haxby just outside York - Millers Fish & Chips).
The shopping is good too. As well as the normal large stores there are hundreds of small specialist shops to wander around.
With a web of winding streets flaunting designer stores, independent shops and boutiques, shopaholics are well catered for.
We enjoyed a day out at the Yorkshire Air Museum, the UK’s largest independent Air Museum. It is found on the former site of RAF Elvington, a WW2 airfield that was used extensively by Allied bomber crews during the war. It is the most original RAF Bomber Command station open to the public.
A large proportion of the crews were escaped French airmen. A testament to the French connection is the 1964 Dassault Mirage which was gifted to the museum by the French Government and is the only one outside of France.
As mentioned earlier, the lack of a meeting room and the harsh weather conditions kept socialising to a minimum but we did finally manage to get together for Sunday Lunch in the nearby Blacksmith’s Arms where we had an excellent meal and a good natter.
Finally, no trip to York would be complete without a visit to the National Rail Museum, not because it’s free entry but because it’s the biggest Rail Museum in the world and ranked as York’s No.1 attraction on Trip Advisor. Even if you aren’t a train buff you have to marvel at the ingenuity of the designs and be amazed by how big they are.
To sum up: With all it’s attractions, York was a fantastic location for a Winter rally but would be even better in Summer.
Chocolate isn’t the only food on offer here. The City centre is a foodies heaven. Dozens of eateries cover every taste and price range (Also,the official best fish and chip shop in Britain 2018 is at Haxby just outside York - Millers Fish & Chips).
The shopping is good too. As well as the normal large stores there are hundreds of small specialist shops to wander around.
With a web of winding streets flaunting designer stores, independent shops and boutiques, shopaholics are well catered for.
We enjoyed a day out at the Yorkshire Air Museum, the UK’s largest independent Air Museum. It is found on the former site of RAF Elvington, a WW2 airfield that was used extensively by Allied bomber crews during the war. It is the most original RAF Bomber Command station open to the public.
A large proportion of the crews were escaped French airmen. A testament to the French connection is the 1964 Dassault Mirage which was gifted to the museum by the French Government and is the only one outside of France.
As mentioned earlier, the lack of a meeting room and the harsh weather conditions kept socialising to a minimum but we did finally manage to get together for Sunday Lunch in the nearby Blacksmith’s Arms where we had an excellent meal and a good natter.
Finally, no trip to York would be complete without a visit to the National Rail Museum, not because it’s free entry but because it’s the biggest Rail Museum in the world and ranked as York’s No.1 attraction on Trip Advisor. Even if you aren’t a train buff you have to marvel at the ingenuity of the designs and be amazed by how big they are.
To sum up: With all it’s attractions, York was a fantastic location for a Winter rally but would be even better in Summer.