(3 minute read)

Herdy raced around the field in a flurry of excitement, stuffing far too many sandwiches into his suitcase.

"Fourteen... fifteen... sixteen!" he counted.

Sheppy peered inside.

"You do know we're only away for a few days?"

Herdy gasped. "A few days? We'd better pack more sandwiches!"

Herdy had never been on a summer holiday before and could hardly contain his excitement.

"I can't believe we're going on a real holiday!" he beamed. "We'll travel miles across the countryside, through valleys and over hills, to a land far, far away!"

Herdy looked longingly into the distance. "I wonder what Yorkshire will be like."

Sheppy grinned. "Well... it's just over the county border."

Herdy thought carefully. "So... we're not travelling to the other side of the world?"

"No. We're just... trotting next door?"

Herdy paused before throwing his hooves into the air.

"Well, it's still my very first summer holiday!"

"And every great adventure has to start somewhere," smiled Sheppy.

Together, they waved goodbye to The Lakes and trotted over the border into the Yorkshire Dales.

As the green hills stretched out before them, Herdy's eyes grew wide. "It's beautiful!"

"And look!" barked Sheppy. "Those sheep have curly horns!"

A flock of Swaledale sheep wandered over to greet them, their white wool glowing in the sunshine and their faces framed by magnificent spiralling horns.

"Ey Up, Welcome to Yorkshire!" one of them bleated.

"We're on holiday," said Herdy proudly.

"Smashing," replied another. "Well, you must try some of our local scran."

The Swaledales laid out a welcome picnic with creamy Wensleydale, crusty bread and enormous Yorkshire puddings.

Herdy stared at the pudding. "That's not a pudding!"

"It is," laughed Sheppy.

"But where's the jam?"

"It's not that sort of pudding."

Herdy took an enormous bite.

"Oh..." He paused. "I've been eating pudding wrong my whole life."

Everyone burst into laughter.

As Herdy and Sheppy thanked their hosts and packed away the picnic, one young Swaledale sheep stood staring nervously into the distance.

"Is everything alright?" asked Sheppy.

The little sheep shuffled his hooves.

"My flock is heading towards Malham Cove, but we have to cross the top of the great limestone cliff to get there."

"That sounds lovely," said Herdy.

"It would be..." sighed the sheep. "If I wasn't scared of heights."

Herdy looked towards the towering limestone cliffs of Malham Cove. The rocky pavement stretched across the top, high above the valley below.

"It is rather high," he admitted.

"I've tried three times already. Every time I get near the edge, my knees go wobbly."

"You don't have to cross it all at once," said Sheppy.

"And you certainly don't have to cross it alone," added Herdy.

The little sheep smiled.

"You'd really come with me?"

"Of course!" they both replied.

Together, the three friends carefully made their way across the limestone pavement at the top of Malham Cove.

Whenever the sheep worried, Sheppy reminded him to keep his eyes on the path ahead. Whenever his legs trembled, Herdy distracted him with silly jokes and stories about his overstuffed suitcase.

Soon they were halfway across.

"You've already come this far," encouraged Sheppy. "Just a few more steps."

With every step, the little sheep grew braver.

At last they reached the far side. The waiting flock cheered as their friend trotted over with the biggest smile on his face.

"I did it!"

"You certainly did," said Herdy proudly.

The little sheep beamed.

"I don't think I'll ever love heights, but now I know I can face them with a little help from my friends."

As the sun dipped behind the hills, Herdy and Sheppy decided to end their day at a cosy tearoom.

Steam curled from their mugs of Yorkshire Tea while enormous slices of cake arrived at the table.

Herdy's eyes lit up.

"Now that's my favourite kind of pudding!"

After a well-deserved sip of tea, Herdy smiled.

"What a wonderful holiday. We've met new friends, tried new food, explored amazing places..."

"...and helped everyone we could," added Sheppy.

Herdy smiled.

"It doesn't matter whether you're in The Lakes or the Yorkshire Dales."

"As long as you're with good friends," said Sheppy.

"And there's cake," added Herdy.

"Yes, plenty of cake," smiled Sheppy.