You'll love the fun of Skipton Yuletide festival (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

You'll love the fun of Skipton Yuletide festival

8:06am Monday 30th November 2009

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espite the economic gloom, the country is filling up with goodwill and merriment.

Perhaps, when times are hard, we make even more effort to enjoy what we can, and there’s certainly plenty of enjoyment to be had at Skipton’s Yuletide Festival and Christmas Market, which takes place on the first two Sundays in December.

The air will be filled with the evocative smell of roasted chestnuts and mulled wine, accompanied by the sound of carol singers and brass bands, as Skipton pulls another Christmas cracker.

Last year, after 14 successful years, the Yuletide Festival got itself a new name to give it a festive boost, but it still has all the old favourites, but, say organisers, with a wider appeal.

For me, Skipton is rural yet cosmopolitan – a place where you can buy everything from a rush basket to a designer handbag. It weaves its magic at any time of the year, perhaps because of its setting and the fact that it’s a mix of a traditional Dales market town and a hugely-popular tourist attraction. So you get the best of both worlds, and within a relatively small space.

There’s only one problem with the Yuletide Festival: not only is it my favourite venue to get into the Christmas spirit, it’s also the favourite destination of more than 60 coachloads of tourists. So you can be sure the town will be packed, with car parking at a premium.

Skipton’s famous market will be in full flow on the UK’s official High Street Of The Year, and you’ll be able to explore the whole town with its unique mix of small, independent shops and famous-name stores.

Add to this a whole day of entertainment, music, games and rides in ‘themed’ areas across the town centre and regular performances in the High Street Arena.

Britain’s Got Talent finalists will no doubt be a big draw with dance troupe Nemisis and teenage singer Elliot Evans heading a long and varied list of entertainment.

Then, as the winter twilight descends and the Christmas lights come on, the atmosphere is enchanting as the children’s lantern procession makes its way along the High Street to the grounds of Holy Trinity Church where, in the perfect end to the day, there will be some stirring carol singing.

Even regular visitors to Skipton can find many surprises and delights just off the beaten track around the town, and while you can happily spend hours enjoying the festival and market, it is well worth taking a detour or two.

If you want to get away from the hustle and bustle of Market Street, head down to the waterfront of the Leeds-Liverpool canal, which offers urban comforts and some pretty locations.

Just off Newarket Street lies The Ginnel, a secluded corner which leads down to the ancient Quaker meeting house where a stream known as Waller Beck cascades down the hillside and sweeps through this part of town.

Skipton Castle may be more than 800 years old, but it is one of the best-preserved and most complete medieval fortifications in England, having survived the Cromwellian destruction. And, because it is still fully-roofed and floored, there are plenty of rooms to explore.

It is said that King Edward I stayed at the castle twice in 1292, and five of his silver pennies were discovered in a wall during restoration work in the 1950s.

The Leeds-Liverpool canal gave the town a major boost when it was constructed to bring in cheaper coal and take away limestone and wool. More than 200 years later, it is still playing its role in Skipton’s economy, but perhaps not in a way in which those early canal entrepreneurs would have envisaged.

Even in winter, people flock to the town to stroll along its towpath while watching the picturesque canal boats. Just out of the canal basin, Springs canal will lead you to the delightful Skipton woods, where the gushing Eller Beck flows on one side of the footpath, with the tranquil canal under the steep crag of Skipton Castle on the other.

If you come by train, then just opposite the station is Aireville Park – one of the jewels in the town’s crown. The public swimming baths are here, but it is a wide-open space surrounded by trees which many Skiptonians use as a place to exercise.

So, whatever the weather and the fiscal state of the nation, why not enjoy some innocent entertainment? After all, atmosphere and window shopping doesn’t cost much, and you’re sure to return home with a smile on your face.

Factfile * By road: take the A650; by train: the Airedale line * Skipton Yuletide Festival and Christmas Market is on Sunday, December 6 and 13, from 10am to 6pm.

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