THOSE wishing for the chance to learn a traditional countryside skill or craft such as scything, dry stone walling, enamel jewellery making and pottery, can do so in a weekend long festival taking place next month.

Meadow Connections festival is back for its second year offering a packed schedule of talks, workshops and demonstrations which celebrate upland hay meadows in the Yorkshire Dales.

The weekend event is co-ordinated by the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust and takes place at Lower Winskill Farm, overlooking Ribblesdale, near Langcliffe.

It is taking place from July 14 to 15 and the skills and crafts sessions will be accompanied by a traditional ceilidh and feast night for all the family.

Ruth Pullan, Meadow Connections organiser, said: “We hope to help people engage with the ancient hay meadows of the Yorkshire Dales; a precious habitat that is becoming increasingly rare.

“The festival was such a success last year that we wanted to run it again with the same mix of informative workshops and talks, all in the beautiful surroundings of Lower Winskill Farm.

“With camping, delicious local food and a range of activities on offer, we’re looking forward welcoming people of all ages once again to come and make fond memories for the future.”

Meadow Connections is one of 110 events that make up the 2018 Flowers of the Dales Festival, coordinated by the YDMT charity.

Supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery, the Festival celebrates the region’s special wildflowers and natural environment.

It helps bring wildflower and nature events to venues across the Yorkshire Dales from March to October.

This year the festival is celebrating its 10th anniversary.

In recognition of the landmark organisers have created a brand new programme of events with guided walks, identification courses, art exhibitions, pond dipping, bug hunts, bat walks and much more.

YDMT’s Flowers of the Dales Project Officer, Leah Galloway, added: “Ruth and the Meadow Connections team are passionate about the landscape, wildflowers and traditional crafts that help make the Yorkshire Dales special.

“The Meadow Connections festival is a great event that gives people the chance to learn something new in a beautiful relaxed environment, surrounded by spectacular scenery. This is exactly what the annual Flowers of the Dales Festival is all about.”

Meadow Connections kicks off on the Saturday with workshops including: flora and fauna identification with the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust; enamelled jewellery making with local craftswoman Emily Knight; weaving with local textile artist Richard Moriarty; introduction to scything with Chris Riley; dry Stone walling with Dave Purvis from the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority.

Also on the schedule is drawing with nationally renowned Settle-based artist Margaret Uttley; coil pot making and pit firing with Ken Jaquiery and herbal walks and talks with Helen Rideout and Heather Ware.

New for this year there will be short talks about small scale dairying and artisan cheese-making given by Simon Fairlie of Monkton Wyld Court, a sustainability centre and off-grid farm in Dorset, and Andy Swinscoe from the Courtyard Dairy near Settle.

Saturday will be rounded off with a traditional ceilidh of music, story and dance featuring special guest musicians from Yorkshire-based folk band The Moonbeams Collective, and a feast of delicious local ingredients.

Sunday, July 15, is open farm day with informal talks about life at Lower Winskilll Farm from owner Tom Lord.

There will be a chance for visitors to get involved with helping to turn, stack and bring in the hay, weather permitting.

The weekend will be rounded off with the 2018 Northern Scythe Championships, which will see competitors from across the region and the UK demonstrating their skills as they compete for the title.

Meadow Connections tickets are limited and must be purchased in advance. For further details please visit www.meadowconnections.co.uk or email meadowconnections@gmail.com or call Ruth Pullan on 07951 399176.

The full Flowers of the Dales Festival programme can be downloaded at www.ydmt.org/festival-2018. Or to receive a printed copy please send an A5 stamped and self-addressed envelope to: Flowers of the Dales, Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust, Main Street, Clapham, Via Lancaster LA2 8DP.