A new 95 mile long cycle route marking the 350th anniversary of Lady Anne Clifford’s death has just been published. The Anne Clifford Trail begins in Skipton where she was born, passes through the Yorkshire Dales and the Eden Valley, to end in Penrith close to the castle where she died. The route and accompanying website have been devised by a retired clergyman and former BBC producer of Songs of Praise.
Norman Ivison, who now lives in the Ribble Valley, but grew up in Cumbria, hopes “the ride will give cyclists a wonderful chance to take time out, to enjoy the journey and to reflect on the life of a remarkable Christian woman, who fought against all the odds, for the inheritance she knew was hers”.
Anne Clifford was a 17th Century noblewoman known for her legal battles and her extensive restoration of family castles and churches in Yorkshire, Cumberland and Westmorland, and often travelled a similar route to her various homes.
The website, as well as describing the on-road route, also gives information about places of interest, cafes, restaurants and accommodation. Norman has high hopes for Anne Clifford’s Trail having first mapped it out two years ago. “It may well take time for the trail to become known, and even longer before it might be formally recognised as a national route, but I hope it will attract many keen cyclists to an amazingly beautiful area of northern England”.
You can find the site here: annecliffordtrail.org
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