Off the Beaten Path: Ripon

County: North Yorkshire

Where It Is

If you’ve watched Downton Abbey or Last Tango in Halifax, you may have heard the city name of Ripon mentioned. The town is located along tributaries of the River Ure in North Yorkshire and is a wonderful place to use as a hub to visit the Yorkshire dales and moors. The following map would be my suggested itinerary for your stay in Ripon. You’ll either need a car, a friend and a car, or a bus/train to get around these locations. Of course, there’s plenty to keep you busy just in the city of Ripon!

Touring around Ripon

Market Town

Ripon is a lovely market town located in the borough of Harrogate. I’m writing this from a fading memory of having lived there and having revisited a few times since. There are things I’m only now discovering about Ripon which makes it an even more enticing destination in Yorkshire. I’ll feed you what I know from experience, and then give you a few things that I’m only just now learning about the town.

Why did I want to live in Ripon? Well, Harrogate is just too busy a place. Ripon, like Knaresborough, is a very quaint market town. On Thursdays, you can get what you like at the vendor stalls in the square. Everything from socks to meat and electronics to dairy. I love a good market town, and Ripon is about as good as it gets.

Ripon Market

The Wakeman

The market square is the nightly scene of an historic event when the Wakeman of Ripon blows his horn from the four corners of the obelisk in the market square to announce the beginning of curfew at 9:00 pm. The Wakeman has belted out this alarm for centuries and, in fact, the horn is a part of Ripon’s coat of arms!

Food and Shopping

Ripon is rife with quaint stores and small restaurants. I especially enjoyed the Royal Oak Pub who turned me onto a new delight… a goat cheese, fig, and honey sandwich!  Try it - I'm not kidding.  Like heaven on earth!

The Cathedral

Ripon is a quiet town on most days. It’s not on any rail route. But, it beckons welcomingly with its ancient cathedral dating back to 962 AD! Only the crypt remains of the original church, but can you imagine? People have been worshiping there for 1350 years! When I studied history with my favorite professor from the University of Leeds, he took us here to view the cathedral with an historian’s eye.

Ripon Cathedral

The church has some of the most beautiful stained glass windows anywhere. He particularly pointed out the “misericords” which are small shelves that allowed the choir members to rest without sitting down. Misericords in Ripon Cathedral are very ornate and somewhat pagan! Look at the fabulous carvings on the pews as well.

Dragons in Ripon!

Fountains Abbey

 Fountains Abbey is famous as one of the most complete abbeys left standing after Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries in 1536.  More a way for Henry to fill his coffers than a religious statement, much of Britain's history was also wiped out during this time.

Fountains Abbey is beautifully set in the grounds of Studley Royal Park, an 800 acre landscape complete with a Georgian water garden.  This beautiful setting is located only 8 minutes by car southwest of Ripon and is a must-see on any given day.

Canals

How I could have missed the canals along Ripon astonishes even myself. I lived in the town for a year and a half and never knew it existed! These days, canal front apartments command a hefty price and you can go on a canal tour yourself!

Walking and Events

The Sanctuary Walk is a great way to get your exercise while seeing all there is to see around Ripon. Each year, the founder of Ripon Cathedral is remembered on St. Wilfred’s Day with lots of family fun and a procession led by St. Wilfred, himself! The procession takes place The Saturday before the 1st Monday in August and begins at the Market Square around 2 pm.

Memories...

But, what I remember most about Ripon are the days spent walking my dog along a lovely, hedge-lined lane to the football pitch. If you walked into the grounds and beyond a line of shrubs at the back of the pitch, there was another area of pasture trimmed with a small stream. This pasture had a commanding view of Ripon Cathedral and gave my dog hours of swimming enjoyment! My last memory of living in England was sitting on an old tree stump taking in the view there for the last time. I seared it into my brain and into my heart. How could I not love Ripon the way I do?

Where I walked Sheba all those years ago...
(credits to Google Earth)