The Yorkshire Dales National Park: How did you do?

If you don’t want to know the answers, look away now! You can have a go at the quiz yourself here. Otherwise, read on…

1. There are many different types of water feature in the Dales. Can you say what the following refer to? For example, Aire Head Spring – a spring is a point that water emerges naturally from underground. (1 point each)

A. Gill (as in Far Long Gill)
B. Dub (as in Froddle Dub)
C. Syke or Sike (as in Calton Moor Syke)
D. Tarn (as in Fountains Fell Tarn)
E. Gutter (as in Whey Gutter)

Answer:

A. A gill is a narrow stream, though it can also mean a steep sided valley or a pothole, as in Gaping Gill. From Old Norse, ‘gil’.
B. A dub is a pool of water or a puddle.
C. A syke or sike is a small stream, especially one that dries up in summer. From Old Norse ‘sik’.
D. A tarn is a small mountain lake or pool. From Middle English, ‘tarne’.
E. A gutter can be a stream or ditch, possibly man-made but not necessarily. In its verb form it means ‘to flow like a stream’.

2. Name the animal! Which is the female? (1 point each)

Answer:  Common toad (Bufo bufo)

The female is the larger animal, while the male is the smaller one, hitching a lift until she is ready to lay her eggs!

3. Can you say what the young of these animals are called and where they are born? For example, young rabbits are called ‘kits’ and live in a ‘burrow’. (1 point for each correct answer – 10 in total)

A. Badger
B. Fox
C. Red squirrel
D. Hare
E. Weasel

Answer:

A. Young badgers are called ‘cubs’ and they live in a ‘sett’
B. Young foxes are also called ‘cubs’. They live in a ‘den’
C. Young red squirrels are called ‘kittens’ and they live in a ‘drey’
D. Young hares are called ‘leverets’ and they live in a ‘form’
E. Young weasels are called ‘kits’ and live in a ‘den’ or ‘nest’

4. Who does this paw belong to? (1 point)

Answer: A mole (Talpa europaea)

Moles are rarely seen on the surface, but when you do see them they are usually smaller than you think at about 15cm long. However, you know they are there from the molehills that you can see! They can dig about 20m of tunnels in a day, which can aerate and drain the ground, and they can also eat the larvae of pests so they can actually be quite useful. Unfortunately, their molehills can cover extensive areas of grass and the freshly dug soil can contain bacteria which are harmful to livestock, so they are not generally considered the farmer’s friend.

5. If you were to walk in a direct line from Muker to Grassington, which dales would you walk through? (There are four – 1 point each)

Answer: Swaledale, Wensleydale, Bishopdale and Wharfedale

6. Which county does this flag represent? (1 point)

What do the colours and image represent?   (1 point each)

Answer:  It is the county flag of Westmorland (unfortunately, no longer a county in its own right).

The golden apple tree represents Appleby and the red and white bars represent the town of Kendal.

7. If you were to ‘tie your whangs’, what would you be fastening? (1 point)

A. Your trousers
B. Your hair
C. Your washing line
D. Your shoes

Answer: D. Your shoes. Whangs were boot or shoe laces made of leather.

Dales Countryside Museum shares the stories of the people and places of the Yorkshire Dales National Park. You can find out more on the Museum’s Facebook or Twitter pages.

8. Can you name this tall white flower, often found in road verges and wet fields? (1 point)

Answer: Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria)

Growing to 1.2m tall, this plant is usually found in damp areas of meadow or pasture. Its flowers have a sweet, slightly almondy smell – but, if the leaves are crushed, there is a distinct smell of disinfectant! These clean smells were probably what people favoured in it when it was used as a strewing herb on floors. According to Gerard’s Herbal of 1597, it was a favourite of Elizabeth I.

9. Place names can tell us a lot about the history of an area. Can you give the meanings of these words that crop up in place names and features? (1 point each)

A. ‘Ham’ as in Clapham
B. ‘Ton’, as in Grassington
C. ‘Wick’ as in Appletreewick
D. ‘By’ as in Nateby
E. ‘Thwaite’ as in Langthwaite

Answer:

A. Homestead or village. From Old English. ‘Clapham’ means ‘homestead by the noisy stream’.
B. Farm or village. From Old English. ‘Grassington’ means ‘grazing or pasture farm’.
C. Dairy farm. From Old English. ‘Appletreewick’ (pronounced Aptrick, by the way!) means ‘dairy farm by the apple tree’.
D. Farm or settlement. From Old Norse (brought over with the Vikings). ‘Nateby’ means ‘nettle farm’ or ‘Nati’s farm’.
E. Clearing. From Old Norse. ‘Langthwaite’ means ‘long clearing’ (but the ‘lang’ part is Old English!)

10. Can you say what the buildings marked ‘A’ were part of? What is the feature marked ‘B’? (1 point each)

Answer:

A. Grinton Smelting Mill
B. The flue running along the ground up the hill

Mining (and in particular lead mining) was a large industry in the Dales in the 18^th and 19^th centuries and would have meant that the landscape looked very different from how it does now. Much of the lead ore was processed close to where it was mined which meant that mines had many buildings associated with them. Good examples of these can be seen at Old Gang Mine above Low Row, Grinton Smelting Mill, and Yarnbury, above Grassington. The long flues on some smelting works allowed the smoke to cool so that any lead could condense on the sides of the flue and be recovered rather than it being ‘lost’ to the air. This also had the benefit of reducing pollution. Some of the smelt mill chimneys could be miles long!

So, are you pleasantly surprised at how well you did, or did you know you had it in the bag?

Well done, we hope you enjoyed the quiz and learning more about the Yorkshire Dales.

1-11 Nice try! There were some tricky questions in there!

12-22 Good job – well on your way to being a Yorkshire Dales expert.

23-33 Awesome! You really know your stuff.

34? Wow – we have an expert here – when can we sign you up!?

This is just to play for fun at home among friends and family so please don’t post your answers up so that everyone can have a go!