Back in March we had a trip to Druid's Temple on the Swinton Estate close to Masham. It seems a long time ago now but this post has been sitting in my drafts waiting to be published so today's the day.
Although it looks something akin to Stonehenge, Druid's Temple is actually a folly built somewhere between the late 1700s and the early 1800s by estate workers.
The work was commissioned by William Danby, the owner of the Swinton Estate. It's believed the design was researched meticulously as several elements bear a symbolic resemblance to authentic Druid's temples.
Danby paid local workers a shilling a day for their work at a time when unemployment was high in order to provide income to people in the area.
Druid's Temple is in the middle of a pine forest with walking trails and further stone arrangements scattered throughout.
After the tragedy at Sycamore Gap, Yorkshire artist, Lucy Pittaway, created her Sycamore Gap artwork. For every print purchased she pledged to plant a tree, and she chose Druid's Plantation as the location for her Sycamore Woodland. You can read more about this if you click on the photo above.
This is one of the Nature Gateway arches marking one of the entrance points of the Sycamore Gap Trail. The logs will provide an ecosystem as they begin to decompose, the frames are a permanent structure but the logs will be replenished as needed.
The views overlooking Leighton Reservoir, which lies in the valley below, are stunning.
We didn't stay very long on this occasion but we intend to return and explore further.
