Wandering the countryside

Photo credit: Alysha Selves 

International students have a keen sense of adventure. No weekend is complete without some form of trip, regardless of whether your travels take you to mainland Europe or a small English town. Keeping it low key this weekend, a few of us hopped on a city bus and took it as far as it would go into the English countryside. We visited two towns, Skipton and Ilkley, nestled in between the dales. The English dales are essentially large valleys that cradle picturesque communities between lush hills. From the tops of these hills you can look out onto the vast expanses of the English Moors, and you're almost guaranteed to run into some sheep along the way.

Now,  I've always been of the opinion that hiking is just walking in the woods by another name, and is therefore much less than exciting. However, seeing the amazing views, dodging sheep poop, and doing "Sound of Music" reenactments was well worth the hike. 

Highlight of the trip: Hiking up the steepest, muddiest hill, slipping on the way, finally clambering up to the top, only to realize that there were stairs less than 100m away.