Janet’s Foss and the Money Trees

Sometimes you see an intriguing sign and you just have to follow it... 

Curiosity got the better of me and so over towards Janets Foss I headed. The path lies on the edge of the village of Malham in Yorkshire. I'd stayed overnight at Beck Hall - a quaint and very old B&B standing alongside the babbling beck and so set off early before the crowds arrived. The substantial full English breakfast - minus the black pudding - had fuelled me ready for walking. 

This is a shallow crossing point for cattle. The presence of water hints at what lies further up stream. 

The neat path leads through kissing gates and  runs alongside farmland with grazing sheep. A couple of lambs with their mother eyed me suspiciously. The sheep here are bolder than the timid ones closer to my home town. Clearly they've ignored the sign on the gate though!

Farm outbuildings are perfect for capturing grunge and rough rustic textures.  A group of passers-by seemed bemused by me photographing a rusty old trough. They didn’t pause to look closer.

I spotted a family of camera-shy baby rabbits hopping in and out of the stone barn. 

The ground here was lower than my visit to the sole tree from my previous post. But even on the  lower levels you witness the harshness of the environment as weather-beaten trees bow and strain against the biting cold winds.

This trio of trees clinging to the edge of the ridge caught my eye. This was a stark contrast to what was to come further along the pathway.

A few strides further and I came across the National Trust sign for the Malham Tarn Estate and the scenery changed dramatically.  An enchanted wood beckoned.

The verdant woodland was striking. Green - so very green and fresh. The scent from the lush carpet of wild garlic wafted across the valley.

I caught a glint of metal on a fallen tree trunk. I took a closer look and saw that the bark was covered in coins which had been hammered into the tree trunk. Row upon row upon row of coins. I glanced further along the river bank and spotted more. These were tree versions of lucky wishing wells. You shove a coin in the tree and make a wish!

Even the solitary bees have their own bee book nests high up in the ash trees. They form part of a bee library.

In the distance I spotted a wall of water and quickened my step. Was Janet waiting for me with a cuppa? 

Ahh,  and so this is Janet's Foss - a small but perfectly formed waterfall.  Janet - or Jennet as she's sometimes known - Queen of the Fairies lived in a cave behind the water. So goes the local legend. 

A place to be still...

A place to sit on the rocks and clear the head of incessant chatter.

The running water soothes.

At locations like this I regret not carrying along my tripod. I find it difficult to get a comfortable balance of weight when out walking and I find that my sturdy Manfrotto tripod can be cumbersome. I can be clumsy and have been known to trip over them…

Ps The tripod issue has been playing on my mind of late. I returned home and bought a new travel tripod - the Manfrotto Befree! I've not yet managed to get out and about with it but I'll let you know how I get on with it!