A strange affliction can be seen throughout the good folks of Skipton both visitors and residents alike ,usually around lunch time with the victim rendered welded rigidly to the spot , head stretched out forward ,arse pushed back duck fashion  and concentration very much fixed on the job in hand .

Yes folks its the ‘ Stanforths Stoop’ , the much loved ,never mastered practice of eating a warm ‘ celebrated ‘pork pie from the Craven Town’s esteemed butchers without losing half ton of greasy melted pie jelly down your front , an art form in itself needing much determination to conquer and obviously one that needed my full attention on our latest wanderings.

Of course most honing their technique are not hampered by a small furry one gazing intently at said meat product ready to pounce if all does not go well … For a dog with attention span of a gnat I had to admit, begrudgingly CD was doing pretty well on the concentration front and this perhaps a small crumb of comfort  for those poor luckless dog trainers who had been unfortunate enough to find Bruce as their star’ pupil at numerous long abandoned training classes . ‘Have you tried him with food ? ‘ Their demented cries as he proceeded to  be totally non compliant . Perhaps we all got it wrong ,sod all those sausages and chicken chunks , one whiff of a Skipton ‘Growler’ and we’d have have a Crufts Obedience Champion on our hands … Maybe that was how Barbara Woodhouse managed . Nowt to do with a forceful ‘sit’ just an ample supply of pork n pastry  secreted under that oh so sensible woolly jumper n tweed skirt combo ?

Asa a pie sort of girl much as it pains me to say it but our visit to Stanforths was not the sole season for our trip to Skipton , voted the top place in Britain to live for the 15000 lucky souls who reside there  . Just inside the North Yorks Border its other claims to fame are its Building Society , its traditional street market up the  town centres cobbled setts and the 12th Century Castle that sits proudly on a small hill keeping a steady watch over the bustling High Street ,