Many people may have been intrigued to spot a tractor and caravan in Settle’s Swimming Pool car park in Settle earlier this week. The vehicles are the temporary home of Peter Matheson, who is taking part in an epic “tractor bumble” to raise funds for the Tom Bowdidge Foundation and UNICEF. He had already driven from John O’Groats to Lands End before catching a ferry at Dover and heading through Scandinavia to Nordkapp to witness the Aurora Borealis. His journey then took him to Finland and is now heading back to John O’Groats - via Giggleswick. Peter has personally funded the purchase of the tractor, a vintage Massey Ferguson, called Annie, and a 28ft caravan, Michelle (pictured left). He imagined that the trip would take three or four months - but he has now been on the road for five months. He has covered 8,000 miles, in a tractor that has a maximum speed of 15mph. He has driven through snow and freezing temperatures (down to minus 20C), along ice roads and this week, had to contend with Craven’s rain. The epic journey has its foundations back in the 1980s, when Peter was in Young Farmers in Colchester. Two of his YFC friends married and had two children, Emma and Tom. Sadly, in October 2013, Tom died from cancer, aged just 19. “I have a son who is blessed with good health, I can’t imagine what my friends have and are still going through,” said Peter, who decided to raise money for research into teenage cancer, through the Tom Bowdidge Foundation, and also UNICEF. Joining Peter on his journey has been his faithful Labrador, Amber. Peter says the journey has been amazing and far beyond anything he could have imagined. To donate, visit tractorbumble.com.

For anyone who has a Christmas tree lurking around, waiting to be disposed of, Craven District Council is offering a free collection service. Subscribers to the green waste collection service are asked to chop their trees up into small bits and leave them on their brown bins for collection from Monday for those in week one of the scheme, and from January 26 for those in week two. There will also be an extra one-off winter collection. Those outside of the scheme will have to contact the council - either online at cravendc.gov.uk or by telephoning 01756 700600 - before January 25 to arrange collection.

It might still be the middle of winter, but for In Bloom groups it’s a time when final preparations are being made for the new gardening season. And, as soon as winter turns to spring (and hopefully that won’t be too long), they will be out there, brightening up their communities in readiness for this year’s Yorkshire in Bloom competition. Entries close at the end of January and the competition is open to villages, town and cities as well as groups, businesses, churches, historic houses - in fact any business or charity that has enhanced its premises through gardening. More details can be found at yorkshireinbloom.co.uk A Skipton church hopes it has found the perfect recipe for entertaining youngsters. Trinity Methodist Church, on Westmoreland Street, is launching Get Cooking! - a cookery group for children aged from 11. They will be able to rustle up their favourite dishes, learn some new skills and think about healthy eating. Sessions will be held on the next four Tuesdays - January 20 and 27 and February 3 and 10 - from 4.30pm to 6.30pm. The cost is £2 for a session and to book or for more information, contact Joel on 07710 176855 or leave a message on 01756 796584.

Cancer has been very much in the news this week, with a row over funding. So it is perhaps timely that Macmillan Cancer Support should issue a plea for volunteers in North Yorkshire to spread cancer awareness messages and join Macmillan’s Mobile Information and Support Service. Sebastian Johansson, Macmillan volunteering co-ordinator, tells me: “We want to help more people across North Yorkshire access cancer information and support, which is key in encouraging early diagnosis and prevention. We hope these volunteers will be able to reach people by running information stands in their local area in order to signpost to support and raise awareness of issues surrounding cancer.” For this project, Macmillan needs volunteers who are confident in speaking to members of the public and ideally have knowledge of or a willingness to learn about issues surrounding cancer. All volunteers will be trained and will be asked to be available for one or two days a month.For more information, contact Sebastian on 01274 987482 or email sjohansson@macmillan.org.uk.

In 1976 Jackie Winter and her husband, Allan, spent two weeks cycling round Yorkshire on their tandem. And Jackie, who has lived in Dorset all her life, has recorded some on their exploits in a new book, Life In Tandem: Tales of Cycling Travels (pictured here). She recalls: “We camped at Appletreewick and were amazed to find a pub there which was entirely non-smoking. Unheard of in the seventies. So in we went, keen to spend an evening breathing unpolluted air. But we didn’t stay long! The atmosphere was sombre and the barman looked miserable. So we scuttled out and made for the other pub round the corner, deciding we’d rather eat our supper in a bit of cheerful fug.” This incident and many others are described in the book, which also includes another cycling holiday in Yorkshire, 32 years later, when the couple revisited many of their favourite places, including, of course, Appletreewick. The book is available from Amazon in Kindle and paperback.

National disability charity Scope is hoping to banish the January blues by looking forward to the summer holidays. Its website recommends a couple of home and away options for accessible holidays - with the home suggestion being our very own Beamsley Project. In her blog, guest reviewer Emily Yates, an accessibility consultant and travel writer, says she spent her 21st birthday weekend at the project. And she concludes: “Whether you consider yourself to have a disability or not, book a stay at the Beamsley Project. I guarantee that with such a stunning location, more equipment than you could need, and a great welcome from a lovely couple, you will not be disappointed.” For more information about the project, visit beamsleyproject.org.uk/