Editor’s Pick of the Week: Petrol rip-off, fish and chips in Harrogate and lizards in Kex Gill

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With Tesco opening in Harrogate on Tuesday, the question on many people’s lips is: how much will it charge for fuel?

The Stray Ferret investigated local fuel prices after numerous grumblings, including from Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Tom Gordon, that the district was being ripped off at the pumps. Our findings made for interesting reading.

For those who prefer cycling to driving, there was bad news when a council report appeared to deliver a fatal blow to hopes of extending the Nidderdale Greenway from Ripley to Wath.

The report, in typically understated council-speak, said the extension was “not a priority” and previous cost estimates had been “overly optimistic”.

It said £8 million was a more realistic figure than the £4.45 million previously quoted by the Walk Wheel Cycle Trust, which is the awful new name for the charity Sustrans. The cost of buying land also had to be factored in and there was no funding available, it added. Don’t expect to be cycling off-road between Bilton and the other side of Pateley Bridge anytime soon.

The extension could still be cheaper than the £14.6 million Harrogate Station Gateway — which started off as an active travel scheme and has appeared to metamorphosise into a sustainable transport scheme focused more on issues such as better traffic lights. Another courtroom battle looms.

The gateway, like the A59 road realignment at Kex Gill, has been bedevilled by rising costs. This week Skipton and Ripon MP Sir Julian Smith got embroiled in a row when he claimed the uplift was partly due to having to pay for rocks for lizards to bathe on.

Our office on James Street in Harrogate started resonating to the sound of a train bell yesterday (December 5), which could only mean one thing: the Candy Cane Express is back for the Harrogate Christmas Fayre.

Harrogate’s wooden hut festive offering is shorter this year and the big wheel hasn’t returned. Knaresborough’s two-day Christmas market this weekend is a more traditional affair that culminates with a spectacular Nidd viaduct firework display.

There’s been a bewildering number of changes on the local fish and chip shop scene lately. This week the Stray Ferret was invited to the opening of the Fisherman’s Wife, which is run by the original Graveleys owner Graham Reed-Stevenson on the same site. Let’s hope it lasts longer than some of the other recent ventures in the Cheltenham Parade unit.

Finally, Allerton Castle’s saviour Dr Gerald Rolph died this week. When Dr Rolph acquired the castle in 1983 it was in a terrible state. Now, thanks to his support, it’s a fabulously restored wedding venue as well as private home. This historic corner of England will forever be in debt to this remarkable American.