Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

I`m a southerner and moved up north to Yorkshire about 22 years ago and brought up my family there. We love everything about where we were living (and will return to), just as long as I recognise that I will never be a Yorkshirewoman! Also, lots of my friends over the years are from "somewhere else" because we were all moving with work, thats just how it is!

Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

Thanks for the great responses...I certainly feel more and more drawn to the area. Can anyone recommend good areas or places to stay away from? We have children and like hiking, museums, shopping.

Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

We live (d) in Knaresborough which is in the "Golden triangle" of Leeds, Harrogate and York. Lovely place to bring up kids!

Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

And where I am now. I don't have kids, but it's also a lovely place to be middle-aged :lol:

Today we went to an antique shop about 10 miles away and the drive was just so beautiful. Rolling green hills, sheep and lambs everywhere, fluffy white clouds ... there is nowhere like the Yorkshire countryside on a sunny day. :)

Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

It's sound idyllic...any drawbacks to the area you might think of? It's good to get a full picture of an area. My hubby thinks it's too far from London...well that's all he's seen of the U.K.:sneaky:

Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

I have those sheep on my screensaver. The perfect picture they stare straight out of the screen at me. I really am very envious. You should try RoseBerry Topping another day a beautiful walk

Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

I sat and thought about this for a while but it's hard to find drawbacks to North Yorkshire (but of course that's just my perspective and I love it here). I don't care about London but will occasionally have to go for business - when I need to go, I can be there in 3 hours by train, so it's really not that far. We have York and Leeds for big shopping centres/shows etc, and then lots of market towns for smaller stuff.

I suppose traffic can be bad into the towns in rush hour? I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel I know but it's all I have so far. Oh and I don't like the broadest Leeds accents.

Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

From my cheeky French point of perspective, I have always viewed this North South dilemma as quite amusing:p

This reminds me a lot of a similar topic which is also true in Italy where there seems to be invisible fence between North and South.

What annoyes me is when one uses carricatures to describe one or the other and from my personal experience I have met wonderful individuals on both sides of the invisible fence.

Not to forget these delightful accents which are making me drool!

Karim:)

Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

I think a lot of this "northern profiling" goes back to the industrial era when many of the towns and cities were grim to say the least and portrayed as such. Of course, for those who had never been north of the Watford Gap, they hardly new about the better parts and seemed to be blinkered about the seedier parts of the south. I can even remember the Aire Valley (the industrial dale) being polluted due to the mills and factories but now they have cleaned up the canals, upgraded many of the properties and it has become a prime recreational and residential area.

Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

If you add Skipton or Ilkley to that, to make it a "Golden Quadrilateral", you will see even more places worth visiting.:)

Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

True! I think the Golden Triangle was estate agent speak. I certainly didnt invent it, and I love Skipton and Ilkley. They just need to invent an uber high speed rail link and we`ll all be happy. My husband works in London!

Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

Here is an article from The Guardian listing the 10 best pubs in North Yorkshire. I am sure this is just a start.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/201...orth-yorkshire

Apart from drinking our way throughout Yorkshire, I would be interested to hear what others consider the most scenic drives. For me it is the drive over the moors from Kettlewell to Middleham (via Horsehouse and Carlton) where Richard III lived in the castle there. This drive covers some of the highest ground in Yorkshire.

Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

Maybe years ago there was more of a divide between North and South but I don't think it exists so much now except as fodder for jokes and comedy sketches. I myself originate from the other side of the Pennines and that can be more of a barrier than the North/South one! I have lived in Yorkshire for many years and now feel more at home there than in Lancashire. I think to benefit the most from wonderful countryside plus great centres for shopping like York, Harrogate and Leeds you need to look north of Leeds (Golden Triangle/Quadrilateral as has been suggested.) However I think south of Leeds is a lot more built up and crowded. :)

Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

A heavily industrialised South Yorkshire was left in a depressed state due to the closure of many of the traditional industries there, especially coal mining and steel manufacturing which employed most of the working population. I am not sure that some of these areas have recovered even to this day. It is a sad fact and some of these areas still need all the investment they can get.

Re: Southerner move 'up north'?
 

Thanks all...looking for all points of view as my move gets closer. I find it interesting that my Dad raised in Yorkshire, but has worked in the south and London for 30 years can tell me that 'up north is too different'. Hmm, Dad always surprises me.