A ROYAL visitor has toured the region to view local businesses and historical sites.
The Duke of Gloucester visited the area around Hawes, North Yorkshire, including Gayle Mill, which featured on BBC TV’s Restoration show.
He also visited Wensleydale Creamery, Outhwaite Ropemakers and the Dales Countryside Museum.
David Hartley, managing director of the creamery, said: “This was our first royal tour. He was a pleasure to show round and he was interested in the agricultural side and the cheese-making process.”
Gayle Mill was restored over four years by the North of England Civic Trust, with funds from English Heritage and the Lottery. The mill is powered by water and can be toured by the public.
The duke was accompanied by Tony Routh, the last apprentice at the mill in the Sixties, and now a director of the Gayle Mill Trust.
Mill manager Paul Bisson said: “The duke was delightful and he was very interested in everything.”
Peter and Ruth Annison took over Outhwaite Ropemakers in 1975 and still use traditional methods of ropemaking for items such as bag handles and magicians’ ropes.
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