Landing
So we did it. We moved. It’s been a week since we made our final trip from Skye to Yorkshire, and it’s been exhausting.
We did two round trips with the trusty rented Luton van - expensive to fuel but its size saved us an extra return trip - then we had our few last nights in Portree (and a final walk to the beach) before making the one-way 450 mile journey in our cars (still piled high with belongings). I travelled with Joe, and Jay took the cat. And Joe’s seven pet fish, all of whom have miraculously survived.
The cat had one of those comedy harnesses so he could stretch his legs and do what he needed to do en route, but he refused to be separated from Jay so he held it all in until we reached our new home (an impressive ten hours). He fell asleep just as we reached Todmorden, some seven miles from our new home.
In the space of a week we travelled almost 1400 miles, taking roughly 50 hours in total.
The journeys in between, transporting all our furniture and belongings, were spectacular. The route between Skye and Glasgow is breathtaking - especially in the snow - as you pass through the mountains. We saw plenty of deer and geese and a few starling murmurations too…
The final, one-way drive from the island was bittersweet. It was just coming light, with pastel skies and still water reflecting pink clouds as we rounded the coast and crossed the Skye Bridge to the mainland. So many familiar sights and landmarks: the feral goats at Kintail, the three grey ponies grazing near Balmacara, the colourful waterside houses at Dornie. All these details which usually tell us we’re almost home after a trip to Inverness or Fort William, now being left behind. It brought to mind the Robert Louis Stevenson poem about the railway carriage: ‘Each a glimpse and gone for ever.’
We will be back one day, but we won’t live there any more. Skye is no longer our home.
Joe was typically unsentimental about the whole thing. He’ll miss a few of his friends and schoolmates, and the sea, but he’s happy to be closer to family. And to explore new places.
We ate a lot of processed food and sweets on the seemingly endless journeys. I fuelled myself with coffee. Jay and I were sore and stiff and I can’t describe how soul destroying it is to drive for almost ten hours to arrive at the new place in deep snow with the daylight fast disappearing and the heavens suddenly opening. You open up the back of the van and it’s loaded to the roof with heavy furniture and so many boxes, all needing to be lifted and heaved into the garage (where big puddles of water are rapidly forming).
We managed to drag our mattress through one of them - a high point in the whole proceedings - and one or two things we just gave up on (the fridge and the sofa). Getting them into the house would require lifting them out through the garage back door, through the garden, up some steps onto a terrace and into the house via the sliding doors.
This is the reality of moving house during lockdown. Nobody’s allowed to help.
Yes, we could have employed the services of a removal company, but that would have cost a few more thousand pounds and the fact is that we’re starting again. We need to find employment. So the proceeds from our house sale on Skye need to be sat on for now.
I can’t even describe the way the house (and garage) looked once we’d unloaded everything. Chaos. We couldn’t find anything. The washing machine in Portree had broken down a few weeks previously, so there were endless bags of washing added to the mix. The house doesn’t have any cupboards other than in the kitchen. All of our belongings were piled up on every available bit of floorspace.
But.
That first trip to Yorkshire, when we left the motorway and the towns, and approached Todmorden - it felt like coming home. It was coming home. My heart was literally singing as we passed through snowy valleys, past woods and streams and farms and rows of cottages. Remnants of our industrial heritage: chimneys and mill buildings - alongside manse houses and terraces, rivers and canals. The familiarity of this Pennine landscape felt like a huge relief and, tired as I was, I was also incredibly happy.
Our rental house is unlike any house we’ve lived in before: a bungalow which I’m guessing was built in the late 1970s/early 1980s. It’s expensive in terms of rent, but it occupies a corner plot so has a good-sized garden and there are three double bedrooms. Neutral decor (white walls, wood effect floors). Double garage. Big living room, separate dining room, small but functional kitchen with an of-its-time serving hatch which for some reason makes me think of Margot Leadbetter. Family bathroom and extra WC.
Big windows let in huge amounts of light - the rear of the house faces south - so my plants are happy. I’m not into vertical blinds blinds as they remind me of offices, and there’s a brick construction, topped with marble, running around the living room walls which serves as mantel, low shelf, and TV stand. We had something similar when I was little. Again, very of its time.
There’s an attic with a window and one of those sliding ladders - lots of boxes have now been stashed up there.
We like the house. We could never afford to buy it. So we’re enjoying it while we’re here.
It’s been really cold this past week and Joe and I have been out exploring, mainly walking along the canal. On Saturday Jay joined us and we walked into Hebden Bridge. We passed the colourful boats and headed into the town, where there was a bit of a food market going on. We treated ourselves to lunch and had a walk around.
Sadly a few of my favourite shops have closed down: a bookshop, the greengrocer on the corner. But others have sprung up, and I’m looking forward to everything reopening. Jay’s into his craft beers and really likes those from Vocation Brewery, so that’s worked out well.
We’ve been to Halifax too, to buy food. We opted for Sainsburys.
Having a choice of supermarkets felt a bit overwhelming - on Skye you have Co op and that’s it. Small, expensive, badly stocked (I can say that now we’ve moved!)… we used the Tesco delivery service too but since Covid, securing a slot was difficult.
Being in this big supermarket was such a shock to the system. I was literally walking around with my mouth hanging open (fortunately it was covered with a mask so nobody noticed). It’s amazing how three years in the Hebrides have deprogrammed us. So much choice! Exciting ingredients! Lots of gluten and dairy free options! Oh, and they have Habitat homewares. And Korres skincare products.
I may have splurged a bit.
There’s so much more to write about.
If people are interested, I can do a few posts with before and after pictures of the rooms in the house. I’m planning to repaint some of our pieces of furniture and already have them pictured in my head.
Lastly, thank you for your comments and for reading. Several people have been in touch to say they’ll continue to visit even though my content will change. The Skye photos will be replaced with Yorkshire ones. I’m excited for this new chapter though, and the timing’s worked out too - spring is slowly approaching and I’m looking forward to getting out there and exploring.
PS We managed to get the sofa and the fridge into the house after several days of psyching ourselves up. It was exhausting but completely worth it.
PPS We also got a new washing machine delivered, and are now enjoying clean clothes, towels and bedding once more.
