Recent content on Ian Cylkowski Photography
Celebrating Yorkshire Day the proper way. 
 What better way to celebrate Yorkshire Day on 1st August than with a yomp up on Ilkley Moor (baht ‘at?) 
 People have been wandering around Ilkley Moor since the Bronze Age. Here one can find a variety of carved rocks featuring cup-and-ring markings, more intricate designs, and even one with a Swastika on it (the older symbol, not the…
The only chalk coastline in the north of England. 
 Though it’s a wee bit of a drive from Loftus, I really wanted to revisit Flamborough during our week of in early June. I’d not been to Flamborough’s coastline since 2015, over a decade. A lot has changed since then, personally and nationally.
Is a visit to the Yorkshire coast complete without seeing Whitby? 
 After an almost impossibly perfect and idyllic summer’s day, cloud, wind, and rain arrived to cast the Yorkshire coast in a dark mood.
If you’re a bit of a geology nerd you can’t go wrong with Saltwick Bay. 
 Just one mile east of the famous town of Whitby, Saltwick Bay is a beautiful sandy bay hemmed in by towering cliffs. On its northern side is Saltwick Nab, a headland separated from the rest of the cliffs that juts out into the North Sea. It was here that Alum was quarried. Alum was mainly used to clean water,…
Oh I do like to be beside the seaside… 
 In early June the Better Half and I took a well-earned break for a week, heading across the country to hike the coast around the North York Moors. That means places like Whitby, Staithes, Robin Hood’s Bay, the North York Moors National Park…
Summer’s here. 
 As we headed into the Spring Bank Holiday, a heatwave was approaching the British Isles. Before things got too crazy and blisteringly hot, we took the opportunity for a cooler — but still beautiful — hike in the Dales.
Early May means one thing in my head: bluebells. 
 There’s a few options I know of, and have been quite fortunate to view some extraordinary bluebell displays . However, one place in particular tugs on my desire strings more than others: Barkbooth Lot .
I have a lot of love for Newcastle. 
 The last time I visited the city was over a decade ago. Too long. 
 During our recent stay in Tynemouth we picked a more murkey weather day to take the metro inland for a jaunt around Newcastle city.
Like a mini-Pembrokeshire. 
 On our final day during our Easter break in Tynemouth , we decided to cross the Tyne south towards a coastline that looked rather interesting (to me) on Google Earth: Whitburn.
An Easter break on the other side of England. 
 Hearing that Storm Dave was on its way wreak havoc across the northwest, we did the only sensible and drive away from it.
Things are starting to feel like spring. 
 They day ahead was looking clear and sunny, if still cold. So we decided that a visit to Blackpool was in order. Something a little different.
Finally, blue sky! 
 January and February have been wet . Murk, drizzle, mist, frost have been a defining feature of this winter. But with Valentine’s Day opening up clear skies and cold temperatures, it was time to get out .
It’s been about 12 years since I last went to York. 
 That’s way too long. 
 A few days after our snowy hike around Brimham Rocks , Lisabet + extended family and I head east on a crisp clear day to one of England’s oldest cities: York.
A week off after working Christmas and New Year was needed. 
 With Lisabet’s Aussie family in the UK for a few weeks, we all took a joint week long holiday together. Our “base” was near Summerbridge, between Harrogate and Pateley Bridge, within the Nidderdale National Landscape. This gave us good access to a wide variety of places to explore.
Time for proper winter scenery. 
 Happy 2026 everyone! May you have the clarity to focus on what you can control and the composure to let go of what you cannot.
December has been very wet . 
 To quote the UK government website , “In the first 16 days of December, England has already received 80% of the long term average (LTA) rainfall for December.”
It’s beginning to look a lot like winter. 
 Recently we’ve been bombarded with a mix of arctic blasts and torrential downpours. After a Saturday of downpours, Sunday was looking nice and clear.
It’s not often you find the ruins of an abbey near a city centre. 
 Upon our visit in and around the Leeds area we also became aware of a ruined abbey right next to the main A65 road that runs from Leeds to Kendal.
The remaining bits and bobs from our time in Shropshire . 
 One of the first places we checked out upon arriving in Shropshire was Ironbridge, famous for its namesake bridge and for being the “the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution”.
It’s not often we visit cities. 
 After our week in and around Shropshire we then booked a couple of nights away in Horsforth, in the northwestern suburbs of Leeds. 
 Lisabet has family history in Leeds, which fuelled part of our reason for staying, but it’s also genuinely a lovely city. And also, apparently, undergoing massive investments, improvements, and upgrades.…
The pinnacle of historical conservation. 
 To quote Wikipedia , “Stokesay Castle is one of the finest surviving fortified manor houses in England, situated at Stokesay in Shropshire .” 
 Stokesay Castle was built in the 1280s by wealthy wool merchant Laurence of Ludlow. It’s a ridiculously well-preserved medieval complex featuring a great hall with an exceptional timber…
Another gem of preserved history. 
 We thought Ludlow was impressive with its 500 Listed Buildings. Then we went to Shrewsbury. According to its Wikipedia , “The centre has a largely undisturbed medieval street plan and over 660 listed buildings, including several examples of timber framing from the 15th and 16th centuries.”
A lot on offer in such a small space. 
 For a full nature-based day we started out at the Carding Mill Valley, probably the most well-known part of the Shropshire Hills. It is from here that you can choose any one of a myriad of hiking trails and see the sights.
A week around somewhere completely new to us. 
 Regular readers of this humble blog may know that, around October time, Lisabet and I like to take a couple of weeks off to enjoy the gorgeous autumn colours somewhere beautiful.
Some places are just overdue a visit. 
 I’ve lived in Cumbria for twelve or so years now, and in all that time have never once visited the beautiful Holker Hall & Gardens .
Time for a wee break. 
 It’s been a busy, and sometimes eventful, summer and we needed a break. 
 Lisabet donned her sleuth attire and found us a few deals, one of which was here: Chollerford in Northumberland .
Finally, time for a proper hike. 
 With a cooperative Saturday in the pipeline, we decided to head into the [Yorkshire Dales](/blog/tag/yorkshire dales) for a new—to us—location: the oft-overlooked valley of Crummackdale.
The Five Stones of Duddo. 
 First, I must apologise for the lack of updates from myself here. June and July have proven to be tumultuous months that required a lot of my time and energy.
A trip to Northumberland is incomplete without visiting Bamburgh . 
 It’s easy to see why Bamburgh’s popularity has exploded in the last decade. It’s historical and beautiful. There’s not many places in the UK where a huge castle stands tall and proud over a vast beautiful beach.
There are a lot of ruined abbeys in the Scottish Borders. 
 I’ve been to Melrose Abbey before but this time, during our stay in Northumberland for Lisabet’s birthday , we nipped over the border again to St. Boswells, in the Scottish Borders .
This was probably the find of the week. 
 There’s plenty of the Northumberland coast we’ve explored before in various conditions, but one area we hadn’t been to was a relatively overlooked section of the coast near Howick.
We’ve just come back from a beautiful week in Northumberland. 
 My wonderful Lisabet turned 50 and what better way to celebrate than by holidaying around the gorgeous coast and countryside of Northumberland ?
I’ve been meaning to visit here for years. 
 Right on the eastern fringes of the Yorkshire Dales , just peeking over into the Nidderdale National Landscape , you can find the ruins of Jervaulx Abbey.
Happy birthday to me. 
 On Friday 25th I celebrated 42 years on this planet, subsequently becoming the answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything. 
 How to celebrate reaching an age I’d never thought I’d make? Well, off to Scotland of course!
The last lot of photos from our week around the East Neuk of Fife. 
 And for this hike we decided on the easternmost point of East Neuk, Fife Ness. One the main reasons to explore this area was to check out Constantine’s Cave. It’s a natural sea cave found in the north face of a rocky cliff face at Fife Ness. The cave was first excavated in the early 1900s and found to contain…
It wasn’t entirely perfect weather during our week off. 
 On the rainier, blustery days we crossed East Neuk north over the Firth of Tay to Scotland’s 4th biggest city, Dundee.
There’s a lot of history in Fife. 
 Aside from the glorious coastline available along the Fife Coastal Path , there’s an awful lot of history in the area too. In particular Fife is home to the town of St Andrews, home to the third oldest university in the English-speaking world (founded in 1413 CE) and also the “home of golf”.
From Anstruther, this time we went southwest. 
 After a brilliant day taking the Fife Coastal Path northeast to Crail , this time we ventured the opposite direction southwest to Pittenweem then St. Monans.
I’ve just come back from a glorious week around the East Neuk of Fife. 
 East Neuk is a little peninsula on the east coast of Scotland, north of the Firth or Forth and south of the Firth of Tay. There’s lots of arable farming here and the coastline is dotted with beautiful old fishing villages.
Time for something a little different. 
 For those relatively new to this blog, before moving to Cumbria I lived in Preston for many happy years. It offers excellent transport links, easy access to local countryside, a vibrant city centre, a world-class university and more.
January has been freezing and storm-ridden. 
 It’s a month not many are fans of, as it seems to drag on endlessly. But, hark!, February has arrived, and a bright Saturday revealed itself to us. Where to go?
Finally, some proper snow. 
 After taking on an icy hike around the Tilberthwaite/Little Langdale area , temperatures in England continued to plummet and snow arrived. As usual, it didn’t take long for stories to arrive, such as people hiking snowy fells up to their waist and getting lost, and people ignoring road closure signs and getting stuck driving on mountain passes .
A belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all. 
 I haven’t made a post on here since the 8th November, 2024 . I can only apologise. Not long after we returned from Scotland , the weather in the Northwest of England became abysmal. Near-constant murk and drizzle, punctuated by the occasional storm, have left little opportunity for a nice outing, never mind having decent light to…
Getting to know the local area better. 
 On this particular day we had prepared a contrasting variety of places to visit: Castle ruins, the inside of a mountain, and the village we were staying in.
The last of this year’s autumn in the Dales. 
 Time for a little break from my recent Scottish photography escapades. 
 Although the Met Office were reporting a high pressure system moving over the British Isles, what that resulted in was windless, murky, and overcast conditions. As a result, I knew the light would be super soft, and there wouldn’t be any views from fell tops.
Turns out there’s a link between Cumbria and this part of the Highlands. 
 A good walk from our stay in Taynuilt, one can find the grounds and buildings of the Bonawe Iron Furnace. It was built in 1753 with goal of producing “pig iron”, that is, crude iron, often used to help make steel. The company that built the iron furnace here on the southern shore of Loch Etive were…
Time for some new places to explore. 
 It’s easy to get overwhelmed with options for hiking and exploration when you’re in the Highlands, especially if you’re near Glencoe . But we did resolve to try and check out some new, to us, places.
The pull of Glencoe is impossible to resist. 
 Even though we were staying much further southwest of Glencoe, the allure of its epic mountains is too much. 
 But this time, we wanted to try things a little different. Most folk head to Glencoe from the south, and pass through the vast boggy expanse of Rannoch Moor. There is, however, much to commend of Rannoch Moor; in particular two loch…
We’re back from a week in the best place on earth: the Scottish Highlands . 
 It is all too easy, once in the Highlands, to begin your break by heading straight into the mountains. However, on this occasion, we started our break by checking out a historical and architectural curiosity: St. Conan’s Kirk.
Time to explore what we missed out on last time. 
 Just under a year ago we visited historical Bishop Auckland and had a lovely time checking out the amazing Faith Museum and Auckland Tower.