Hay time in the Dales

Staff at the Dales Countryside Museum in Hawes are currently working on their summer family exhibition, “Flower Power: Hay Time in the Dales” which will run from Friday (July 25) to September 3.

The free exhibition will be part of the Yorkshire Dales Hay Time Festival and will feature banners made by Scouts, Cubs, Beavers, after-school groups and kids’ clubs from the Richmond area that depict flora and fauna, the build heritage hay meadow.

Museum Manager Fiona Rosher said: “The banners have been created by groups from inside and outside the Yorkshire Dales National Park along with our outreach officer, using all aspects of hay time as inspiration.

“There will also be hands-on exhibits, digi-stories and oral history from local people and activities to keep children of all ages busy.

“And if anyone has memories or photos of hay time and would be willing to share them, please get in touch with staff. We will make an arrangement to visit you to record your impressions of hay time, either in the past, or now.”

There will also be hands-on exhibits, digi-stories and oral history from local people and activities to keep children of all ages busy.

Fiona Rosher - Dales Countryside

Another attraction will be a series of stonecarving workshops for families on July 31 and Aug 1 between 10 and 4pm. Things associated with hay meadows, such as equipment and objects, wildlife, flora and fauna, barns and walls, will all be used as inspiration for the individual pieces that will create a "hay time" feature at the Museum entrance.

The Museum, which is owned by the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority (YDNPA), is open daily from 10am to 5pm every day.

More than 70 separate activities are being staged during the Festival by organisations from all over the Dales that have teamed up with the YDNPA and the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust (YDMT) to celebrate the wonderful diversity of plant and animal life to be found in the traditional hay meadows of the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

There’s something for everyone from Teddy Bear’s picnics to guided walks through some of the finest traditional hay meadows in the Dales.

The full list of Festival events can be found at www.yorkshiredales.org.uk/hay_time_festival