Oxenber and Wharfe Woods

The Beautiful Bluebells

I’ve always had a love for bluebells, they remind me of when I was little and my sister and I used to walk through the woods near our school, picking them as a gift for our Mum.

During May, the bluebells are in abundance in the Dales but within Oxenber and Wharfe Woods they are something else.

A friend had recommended this walk to me, so a few weeks ago, when the weather was glorious, we decided to give it a go.

We headed towards the charming village of Feizor, which was full of people with seemingly the same idea as us. After a few U-turns, we finally found a parking space and set off up the lane, enjoying the limestone scenery along the way.

At the top of the lane, we were met with the glorious view of Pen-y-Ghent in the distance. Once again I filled with pride at the fact that I’d made it to the top of one of the Yorkshire Three Peaks just a week before.

It was also here that we found an entrance into the woods. Once over the stile, we were greeted with a carpet of purple – I’ve honestly never seen so many bluebells in my life.

It was almost like entering a magical world, somewhere that you would find fairies and mythical creatures living. The smell too was amazing.

We walked further into the woods, admiring more and more beautiful wild flowers and breath-taking views, including that of Ingleborough looking majestic as always.

As time went on, I could feel my neck starting to burn in the sunshine (a regular occurance despite being covered in sun tan lotion), so we decided to head back the way we came and stop off at the delightful Elaine’s Tea Rooms for a refreshing glass of lemonade.