I went out on New Year’s morning to find a waterfall. I guess the main aim was to find somewhere new to walk and I stopped briefly about a mile short of Routin Brig because there was a sign that said there was a path to it. On closer examination, the notice said the path (which followed the river upstream) could become impassable after a lot of rain (tick) and had narrow segments that had a steep drop into the water. I’m not the best on my feet these days and didn’t really want to start 2026 with a trip to A&E, so I got back in the car and drove.

It was worth the drive, though it would have looked better under a blue sky.

The current bridge, which carries a road, is from the late 18th century, but there apparently has been a river crossing there since the 16th or earlier. The river is called the Cairn Water and it’s rumoured that witches used to meet here and the area is closely associated with the Covenanters (and their persecution). The only people I met there were taking a New Year’s dip though, which involved a degree of yelling, so I assume it was chilly!

Because I am on standby for work (quiet so far, fingers crossed) we couldn’t walk too far, but we wandered a bit in the woodland and Triar celebrated New Year by doing zoomies four times round a tree on his extending lead. I was expecting to have to disentangle him, but he resolved it by changing direction and zooming round the other way three times on his own. I had to persuade him round the fourth time, but he did pretty well for a dog at speed.

I stopped a couple of times on the way back, once to look at another sign, which indicated a path “Coffin Road to Shawhead”. I shall go back and explore that one another day. Coffin roads were, as the name indicates, footpaths that led from villages or towns to a church. These were the pathways by which the dead were carried to their burial place. The associated church in this case is the eye catching kirk at Kirkpatrick Irongray. Isn’t that a wonderful name?

Again, there is history here associated with the Covenanters. History is complicated m but in essence, these were Scots who resisted the establishment of the king as the head of the church as only Jesus could be that. As with being a witch, the punishment for preaching at “conventicles” – places outside the church in the open air or in barns and houses – was death. History is bloody, is it not, but those who stand by their principles against changes they see as wrong, despite appalling consequences, are a fascinating study.

Though I had hoped to spend New Year in Settle, it has been a good few days, filled with rest and good food, much of it provided by Donna. At short notice, I joined her family for the traditional Scottish New Year meal of steak pie, then for a “festive food from the freezer” meal last night and am going again for a birthday celebration with friends tomorrow. I know I am truly blessed to have such a generous neighbour.

Next week will be interesting. The decorator is due to start painting and varnishing on Monday. After that, I will need carpets and a few of the electricals need tidying up, but 2026 should hopefully be the year when I can start having overnight visitors again. I hope the end stages go smoothly.

In the meantime, I will leave you with another end of the year picture from Blackbird Lane. The sky was beautiful on Wednesday and I took some more photos after I had turned and begun to walk back. Thank you for reading and Happy New Year to you all.