Metcalf's Wife's Cross

A modest stone cross stands alone on the moorland between Ripon and Pateley Bridge, marking the spot where a local woman was buried in the 18th century. It's one of those quiet wayside monuments that makes you pause and wonder about the stories behind it. The cross itself is simple but weathered - the kind of thing you'd walk past without noticing unless someone pointed it out, which is precisely why it's worth seeking out. Jack Metcalf, a notorious highwayman known as "the Blind Jack of Knaresborough", had his wife buried here rather than in consecrated ground, and the cross remains as a rather poignant memorial. The location is genuinely bleak and atmospheric, especially in poor weather when the moors press in around you. It's free to visit, naturally, and takes all of five minutes to see the cross itself. What you're really buying is a bit of local history and a reason to get out onto the moorland. Walkers tackling the routes between Ripon and the higher ground towards Pateley Bridge will find it an easy detour. If you're staying at Woodhouse Farm Holiday Park nearby, it makes a decent short ramble - the approach across open ground feels properly adventurous, though there's nothing dangerous about it. Not for everyone, admittedly. But if you like your attractions weathered and your history slightly grim, this delivers. Allow thirty minutes including the walk to and from the road.