After so many weeks of complaining about this season's weather, it actually looks like Summer might have an End of note, which is nice to consider as the morning shadows lengthen and the early chills set in, indeed rising with the lark to travel start to feel a trifle unnecessary when the days are taking to some time to warm through, but when a long trip is in the offing, it seems wise to still make best use of the day, and having finally made this year's triumphant arrival in Lancashire, it's already time to get out of it, via possibly the lowest impact trans-Pennine route in this quarter, with my light boots donned for a welcome change. So it's ride the rails out to Littleborough for an 8.30am alight, setting a northbound course that immediately has little for me to do with regards navigation, giving us a raw mileage sort of day after the more complicated moorland walks prior to it, departing the station yard to Railway Street and crossing over the modest River Roch as we go, turning onto the A58 Halifax Road by the imposing Wheatsheaf inn and passing the snow and ice alert signage for the high road passages, right by Holy Trinity parish church, just ahead of the turn onto the A6033 Todmorden Road, which has us done with corners for a while. It's upstream with the Roch that we are headed, along the same passage as the canal and the railway, though the depth of the valley is hidden by the low rises of terraces and industrial units stretched along the roadside, offering us little to indicate that the South Pennines and the Rossendale Moors loom large to either side of us, though the climb does start to feel more pronounced as we head on, as we pass into the urban hamlet of Gale, with its Fair View terrace perched over the roadside and the fields starting to angle steeply beyond. Once past the Grove dyeworks redevelopment, and in the vicinity of nearby Calderbrook, whose stray terraces and village school sit by the roadside, we've risen high enough to get a dramatic sort of location around, revealing the cloud brushed hills to the east and looking across the valley to the imposing and derelict Rock Nook cotton mill, sat above the railway as it starts its gouge through the hills, with the aqueduct containing the Roch running above the cutting while doubling as a canal flood run-off. The main point of engineering interest is found beyond, across from the Sladen Wood cotton mill, namely the L&YR's 1.6 mile long Summit Tunnel of 1841, presenting quite the dramatic image with its southern portal, still in regular use despite the petrol train fire that closed it for much of 1985 (giving it a record of the World's longest when constructed, and site of possibly the largest underground transport fire too), a length which we will be tracing as we head on, through the hamlet of Summit, the last such settlement in this corner Greater Manchester, which is looking pleasing and stoney at the roadside as we pass through.
Sunday, 13 September 2020
Littleborough to Halifax 12/09/20
18 miles, via Gale, Summit, Warland Gate, Bottoms, Walsden, Gauxholme, Salford,
Todmorden, Millwood, Lobb Mill, Spring Side, Eastwood, Sandbed, Charlestown, Calderside,
Mytholm, Hebden Bridge, Hawksclough, Mythholmroyd, Brearley, Luddenden Foot, Friendly,
Causeway Head, Cote Hill, Granny Hill, and King Cross.
Sunday, 6 September 2020
Lockwood to Littleborough 05/09/20
16.3 miles, via Yews Hill, Crosland Moor Bottom, Paddock (Foot, Brow & Clough), Royds Hall,
Cliff End, Longwood (& the Edge), Salendine Nook, Mount, Outlane, Gosport, Stainland Dean,
Firth House mills, Knowsley Hill, Ringstone Edge reservoir, Withens End, Booth Wood,
Pike Clough, Rishworth Moor (Pike End, Blackwood Edge, Dog Hill, Green Withens Edge,
Flint Hill Drain, Rishworth Drain, & Old Packhorse Road), Blackstone Edge Moor
(Aggin Stone, BSE Pasture & Roman Road), Lydgate, Gate House, and Durn.
September arrives with us still deep in our schedule of Spring walking plans, and with me wondering if this garbage Summer is actually going to offer us something that resembles The End of Summer as we shift over into markedly cooler days and lower angles of sunshine in the shifts of the season, not that it really matters as I have a slate of four walks to get into that had been intended as a prelude to a Summer of burning as many Trans-Pennine route as possible between West Yorkshire and Greater Manchester, a plan that we can only nibble at now before we start to run out of long enough days, a mere month in the future. So our routes Over The Top for this month start in the vicinity of greater Huddersfield, still travelling early as we alight at Lockwood at 8.15am, with the day promising to be chillier than it is bright, landing on the Holme valley side again, though just barely, as glimpsed as we pass under the railway for the downhill view before starting off northwards, up Winton Street to make our way over the top of the terrace-clad Yews Hill, along its eponymous top lane and down Moorbottom Road before splitting onto the footbridge path that leads back over the railway, revealing the north portal of the tunnel that penetrates it. We then move on into the Colne Valley through the tangle of terraces which lead us out to the bottom of Blackmoorfoot Road, a familiar corner of Crosland Moor Bottom, crossing the A62 junction by the Griffin Hotel and diving downhill via Birkhouse Road to meet the Narrow Canal, by the IronWorks flats, and the River Colne, both crossed in short order among the Paddock Foot industrial zone and under the shadow of the iron spans of Long Royd viaduct, and our long ascent away starts as we rise up Shires Hill road to meet Market Street, a major suburban lane of West Huddersfield. We seek the interesting green lanes and split levels of this town though, so we quickly slip away down Brow Road, which is Colne Valley leafiness incarnate beyond the Wren Street corner, with the few suburban arrivals getting that countryside feel in the heart of the town, concealing that fact that it was once wholly terraced on the length of its sweep around to the rise over the railway line to Manchester in its deep cutting, with us progressing on up Clough Lane to the Paddock Clough traffic island, home to both the Angel and Royal Oak inns. Get back onto a clear trajectory as we rise onto Longwood Road taking us on through the terraces and house of the Royds Hill estate, past the old Co-op store on the Quarmby Road corner and on up through the runs of terraces that sit above the valley side, before we drop some through the corner of Cliff End, which gives us some upstream views towards Scapegoat Hill, and is in usefully close proximity to the former Longwood & Milnsbridge station before we are angled along Vicarage Road, and into the dry valley of Ballroyd Clough.
Cliff End, Longwood (& the Edge), Salendine Nook, Mount, Outlane, Gosport, Stainland Dean,
Firth House mills, Knowsley Hill, Ringstone Edge reservoir, Withens End, Booth Wood,
Pike Clough, Rishworth Moor (Pike End, Blackwood Edge, Dog Hill, Green Withens Edge,
Flint Hill Drain, Rishworth Drain, & Old Packhorse Road), Blackstone Edge Moor
(Aggin Stone, BSE Pasture & Roman Road), Lydgate, Gate House, and Durn.
September arrives with us still deep in our schedule of Spring walking plans, and with me wondering if this garbage Summer is actually going to offer us something that resembles The End of Summer as we shift over into markedly cooler days and lower angles of sunshine in the shifts of the season, not that it really matters as I have a slate of four walks to get into that had been intended as a prelude to a Summer of burning as many Trans-Pennine route as possible between West Yorkshire and Greater Manchester, a plan that we can only nibble at now before we start to run out of long enough days, a mere month in the future. So our routes Over The Top for this month start in the vicinity of greater Huddersfield, still travelling early as we alight at Lockwood at 8.15am, with the day promising to be chillier than it is bright, landing on the Holme valley side again, though just barely, as glimpsed as we pass under the railway for the downhill view before starting off northwards, up Winton Street to make our way over the top of the terrace-clad Yews Hill, along its eponymous top lane and down Moorbottom Road before splitting onto the footbridge path that leads back over the railway, revealing the north portal of the tunnel that penetrates it. We then move on into the Colne Valley through the tangle of terraces which lead us out to the bottom of Blackmoorfoot Road, a familiar corner of Crosland Moor Bottom, crossing the A62 junction by the Griffin Hotel and diving downhill via Birkhouse Road to meet the Narrow Canal, by the IronWorks flats, and the River Colne, both crossed in short order among the Paddock Foot industrial zone and under the shadow of the iron spans of Long Royd viaduct, and our long ascent away starts as we rise up Shires Hill road to meet Market Street, a major suburban lane of West Huddersfield. We seek the interesting green lanes and split levels of this town though, so we quickly slip away down Brow Road, which is Colne Valley leafiness incarnate beyond the Wren Street corner, with the few suburban arrivals getting that countryside feel in the heart of the town, concealing that fact that it was once wholly terraced on the length of its sweep around to the rise over the railway line to Manchester in its deep cutting, with us progressing on up Clough Lane to the Paddock Clough traffic island, home to both the Angel and Royal Oak inns. Get back onto a clear trajectory as we rise onto Longwood Road taking us on through the terraces and house of the Royds Hill estate, past the old Co-op store on the Quarmby Road corner and on up through the runs of terraces that sit above the valley side, before we drop some through the corner of Cliff End, which gives us some upstream views towards Scapegoat Hill, and is in usefully close proximity to the former Longwood & Milnsbridge station before we are angled along Vicarage Road, and into the dry valley of Ballroyd Clough.
Monday, 31 August 2020
Slaithwaite to Hebden Bridge 29/08/20
17.9 miles, via Crimble, Wellhouse, Bolster Moor, Clough Head, Quebec, Croft House Moor,
Camp Hill, Scammonden Dam, Meg Dike, Krumlin, Slack, Ripponden, Royd Lane,
Cross Wells, Blackshaw Clough, Lighthazles, Cross Dikes, Flints (moor & reservoir),
Slate Delfs, Sykes Gate, Turvin Clough, Cove Hill, Hove Yards Wood, Turley Holes Edge,
Withens Clough Reservoir, Higher Moor, Sunderland Pasture, Higham, Erringden Moor,
Cock Hill Moor, Wood Top, and Crow Nest Wood.
When I initially planned for a long August Bank Holiday weekend, between my usual breaks in July and September, it was in the hope that I might be able to travel away for my own solo holiday and burn a few trails that bit further from home than usual, but pandemic circumstances have transpired to render it as my first and only opportunity to get together with my family this summer, and thus the walking options have to be reduced to fit that in, as well as clearing away a lot of necessary housework that has lain fallow since my walking year resumed, on the early days. So as Mum is travelling up on the Saturday evening, it again pays to ride out early to do yet another trail from Colne to Calder, which should be the last of them, alighting in the sunshine at Slaithwaite station at 8.35am, and setting course for possibly the easiest of all the route out of the valley to the north, favouring the long and slow ascent that can be found by heading east, following Station Road as it passes below the high stone retaining walls that contain the remnants of the original station buildings and foot tunnel, heading down to pass below Crimble viaduct. This leads us to the Swan inn, and the heart of the sub-village of Crimble, where our lane ascends up the valley side on as shallow and angle as is plausible, with Radcliffe Road raising itself beyond the terraces, through the wooded bank and on upwards through the suburban outliers that have chosen their perch over the Colne valley very carefully, ahead of the hidden hamlet of hilltop and up to the emerging view downstream towards Titanic Mill at Linthwaite and back to Deer Hill and Pule Hill at the valley head. It might be the long way round, but its worth it to emphasise the scenic potential of the valley, one that's a bit too easy to disregard, and you do wonder if Westwood House and the nearby rural terraces arrived here to absorb the views deliberately, beyond which we locate the village of Wellhouse, where the village school possibly has one of the best views of any educational establishment, and the rural weavers cottages of the upper village pile up haphazardly, beyond which we start our rise out of the valley after a good mile in the 'wrong' direction by hitting Copley Bank Road. This rises us above the wooded side valley that cleaves this side of the Colne, beyond which Golcar can be seen, scattered down its own hillside, looking like a model village with its cottages and terraces best arranged to exploit the sunlight needed for domestic weaving, with our route finally tending northwest as we rise above to an expanding downstream view, while we are directed steeply uphill towards Heath House Mill and the Bank End terraces, later arrivals on the woollen industry scene in this valley.
Camp Hill, Scammonden Dam, Meg Dike, Krumlin, Slack, Ripponden, Royd Lane,
Cross Wells, Blackshaw Clough, Lighthazles, Cross Dikes, Flints (moor & reservoir),
Slate Delfs, Sykes Gate, Turvin Clough, Cove Hill, Hove Yards Wood, Turley Holes Edge,
Withens Clough Reservoir, Higher Moor, Sunderland Pasture, Higham, Erringden Moor,
Cock Hill Moor, Wood Top, and Crow Nest Wood.
When I initially planned for a long August Bank Holiday weekend, between my usual breaks in July and September, it was in the hope that I might be able to travel away for my own solo holiday and burn a few trails that bit further from home than usual, but pandemic circumstances have transpired to render it as my first and only opportunity to get together with my family this summer, and thus the walking options have to be reduced to fit that in, as well as clearing away a lot of necessary housework that has lain fallow since my walking year resumed, on the early days. So as Mum is travelling up on the Saturday evening, it again pays to ride out early to do yet another trail from Colne to Calder, which should be the last of them, alighting in the sunshine at Slaithwaite station at 8.35am, and setting course for possibly the easiest of all the route out of the valley to the north, favouring the long and slow ascent that can be found by heading east, following Station Road as it passes below the high stone retaining walls that contain the remnants of the original station buildings and foot tunnel, heading down to pass below Crimble viaduct. This leads us to the Swan inn, and the heart of the sub-village of Crimble, where our lane ascends up the valley side on as shallow and angle as is plausible, with Radcliffe Road raising itself beyond the terraces, through the wooded bank and on upwards through the suburban outliers that have chosen their perch over the Colne valley very carefully, ahead of the hidden hamlet of hilltop and up to the emerging view downstream towards Titanic Mill at Linthwaite and back to Deer Hill and Pule Hill at the valley head. It might be the long way round, but its worth it to emphasise the scenic potential of the valley, one that's a bit too easy to disregard, and you do wonder if Westwood House and the nearby rural terraces arrived here to absorb the views deliberately, beyond which we locate the village of Wellhouse, where the village school possibly has one of the best views of any educational establishment, and the rural weavers cottages of the upper village pile up haphazardly, beyond which we start our rise out of the valley after a good mile in the 'wrong' direction by hitting Copley Bank Road. This rises us above the wooded side valley that cleaves this side of the Colne, beyond which Golcar can be seen, scattered down its own hillside, looking like a model village with its cottages and terraces best arranged to exploit the sunlight needed for domestic weaving, with our route finally tending northwest as we rise above to an expanding downstream view, while we are directed steeply uphill towards Heath House Mill and the Bank End terraces, later arrivals on the woollen industry scene in this valley.
Sunday, 23 August 2020
Sowerby Bridge to Walsden 22/08/20
15.1 miles, via Scar Head, Wood Nock, Triangle, Mill Bank, Lumb, Cotton Stones,
Lighthazles, Blackshaw Clough, Syke Hill, Soyland Moor, Manshead End, Collin Hill,
Cold Laughton Drain, Byron Edge Drain, Whiteholme Reservoir, White Holme Drain,
Turley Holes & Higher House Moor, Withins Moor, Warland Drain, Langfield Common,
Gaddings Dam, Basin Stone, Rake End, Salter Rake Gate, and Birks Clough.
Our morning ride out for today's excursion, breaking the theme of the revive season by staying wholly in the Calder catchment, show us the we can have no clear expectations of what the weather is going to bring, as we board our early train from Morley in bright late Summer sunshine, which gets replaced by a fierce rainstorm as we pass through Brighouse, which has passed as we land in Sowerby Bridge, under skies so dark and overcast that all the street lights have come on, making 8.05am feel a lot earlier than it is in reality, and gets you wondering what the day might bring before any footfalls are made. We have the 69th and final unseen railway station in West Yorkshire as our destination, with a lot of Calderdale to cross to get there, so haste needs to be made, away from this one and it curious mix of vintages, hitting the rise of Norland Road as swiftly as possible and getting the pulse going as we head up the double-arrowed lane, before rising with the footpath alternative to Boggart Lane as it heads up to Sowerby Croft Lane, immediately regretting the choice as the steep setts and steps are as slick as after the recently passed downpour, but at least the views reward as we ascend to the high east side of the Ryburn valley. We'll hang on this edge as we go on for the initail stages, passing through the elevated hamlet of Scar Head before joining the high track of Long Lane, a road that really looks like it ought to go somewhere but is only used for remote farm access as it settles in among the angled fields, not too far away from the Rishworth branch line, which hides under the tree cover below as we pass the path tops that we had intended to use to access it, coming around to the high reveal of the valley ahead, looking up to the field we walked above a few weekends back, and down to Bank House farm, somehow crammed into the angled fields below. Rise as the lane chooses to crest high, before our gradual descent starts, beginning as we drop down to the junction at Lane Bottom, where all of the ongoing routes are not recommended to motorists, take the lower road, which takes us past the pair of Wood Nock farmsteads, again clinging to the valley side, looking like desirable country retreats these days, with the road ceasing to be driveable beyond, and pretty much unwalkable too as the steep run of uphill cobbles looks unappealing and slick, but an alternative is presented that features no ascent at all. So footpath it instead, guided through to the top edge of Dodge Royd wood, through which the railway cutting gouges, following the contour around as it passes through the open fields and meets the descending track from Oaken Royd farm, a wise corner to cut off as we are quickly led to the bridge over the throat of Triangle station, and a route is retraced as Stansfield Mill Lane drops us down past the cricket club and over the Ryburn, past the eponymous mill and up to meet the A58.
Lighthazles, Blackshaw Clough, Syke Hill, Soyland Moor, Manshead End, Collin Hill,
Cold Laughton Drain, Byron Edge Drain, Whiteholme Reservoir, White Holme Drain,
Turley Holes & Higher House Moor, Withins Moor, Warland Drain, Langfield Common,
Gaddings Dam, Basin Stone, Rake End, Salter Rake Gate, and Birks Clough.
Our morning ride out for today's excursion, breaking the theme of the revive season by staying wholly in the Calder catchment, show us the we can have no clear expectations of what the weather is going to bring, as we board our early train from Morley in bright late Summer sunshine, which gets replaced by a fierce rainstorm as we pass through Brighouse, which has passed as we land in Sowerby Bridge, under skies so dark and overcast that all the street lights have come on, making 8.05am feel a lot earlier than it is in reality, and gets you wondering what the day might bring before any footfalls are made. We have the 69th and final unseen railway station in West Yorkshire as our destination, with a lot of Calderdale to cross to get there, so haste needs to be made, away from this one and it curious mix of vintages, hitting the rise of Norland Road as swiftly as possible and getting the pulse going as we head up the double-arrowed lane, before rising with the footpath alternative to Boggart Lane as it heads up to Sowerby Croft Lane, immediately regretting the choice as the steep setts and steps are as slick as after the recently passed downpour, but at least the views reward as we ascend to the high east side of the Ryburn valley. We'll hang on this edge as we go on for the initail stages, passing through the elevated hamlet of Scar Head before joining the high track of Long Lane, a road that really looks like it ought to go somewhere but is only used for remote farm access as it settles in among the angled fields, not too far away from the Rishworth branch line, which hides under the tree cover below as we pass the path tops that we had intended to use to access it, coming around to the high reveal of the valley ahead, looking up to the field we walked above a few weekends back, and down to Bank House farm, somehow crammed into the angled fields below. Rise as the lane chooses to crest high, before our gradual descent starts, beginning as we drop down to the junction at Lane Bottom, where all of the ongoing routes are not recommended to motorists, take the lower road, which takes us past the pair of Wood Nock farmsteads, again clinging to the valley side, looking like desirable country retreats these days, with the road ceasing to be driveable beyond, and pretty much unwalkable too as the steep run of uphill cobbles looks unappealing and slick, but an alternative is presented that features no ascent at all. So footpath it instead, guided through to the top edge of Dodge Royd wood, through which the railway cutting gouges, following the contour around as it passes through the open fields and meets the descending track from Oaken Royd farm, a wise corner to cut off as we are quickly led to the bridge over the throat of Triangle station, and a route is retraced as Stansfield Mill Lane drops us down past the cricket club and over the Ryburn, past the eponymous mill and up to meet the A58.
Sunday, 16 August 2020
Mytholmroyd Bubble Walks 4 & 5 15/08/20 & 16/08/20
1.2 miles, from Cragg Road, via St Michael's, Mytholmroyd Bridge and Caldene Bridge,
It hadn't been my intention to drop out from my walking schedule this weekend, but when a call came inviting me out for another return to my Support Bubble in Calderdale, taking the opportunity seemed too good to miss, as the local lockdown restrictions don't apply to our particular type of socialising, and Barbecue is offered as a clincher by My Good Friends, and that seems like a most appealing prospect when the weather projection isn't great, far cooler and greyer than last weekend turned out, demonstrating further that this Summer has no idea at all what it's trying to do. Sadly, opportunities for major exercise aren't really forthcoming as my invitation only gets a late response due to me not seeing it until Friday evening, curtailing the chance of a two night stay, and also precluding an early start on Saturday as supplies need to be gotten in ahead of my visit, as they haven't been obtained preemptively, and so we don't land at Chez IH&AK until after Saturday lunchtime, meaning there isn't enough afternoon to head out for an uphill blast after brews and a conflab, meaning that none of us will have the chance to hit the 383m summit of Crow Hill for the first time. So we only stroll in the village instead, and I really mean stroll, as the walks we do would barely feel worthy of recording at all if it wasn't for all the potential miles lost during 2020, heading out from base on Cragg Road at 2.35pm, walking into the village , beyond the station and viaduct to see how more of the flood defence works have progressed, noting that while so much has been built anew along the sides of Cragg Brook over the last couple of years, some of the older walls retaining the gardens of Streamside Fold have started to suffer from cracking. A detour off New Road takes us through the churchyard of St Michael's, which gives us a dramatic foreground for the fine view up to the woodlands and rocks of Scout Scar above the valley, a grand backdrop to take in as we visit the public gardens around the bowling green, recently replanted after the civil engineering depot that had spent many months on the tennis courts site finally moved out, having completed most of the work deepening and widening the channel of the Calder, downstream from Mytholmroyd Bridge. The major local interest point remains the relocation of Caldene Bridge upstream, with the original span now completely removed as a pool is created upstream from the Calder-Cragg confluence, hopefully to allow water to back up safely in times of spate, and the increased width of the river is obvious as the south bank is completely rebuilt, with the piles now driven in and the construction of new retaining walls having started, allowing my friends to feel like this project is coming to a conclusion after nearly 4 years of work, as the village centre seeks its own new normal again.
& 1.8 miles, from Cragg Road, via Hawksclough Bridge, the Rochdale Canal,
Mytholmroyd bridge and Cragg Brook.
It hadn't been my intention to drop out from my walking schedule this weekend, but when a call came inviting me out for another return to my Support Bubble in Calderdale, taking the opportunity seemed too good to miss, as the local lockdown restrictions don't apply to our particular type of socialising, and Barbecue is offered as a clincher by My Good Friends, and that seems like a most appealing prospect when the weather projection isn't great, far cooler and greyer than last weekend turned out, demonstrating further that this Summer has no idea at all what it's trying to do. Sadly, opportunities for major exercise aren't really forthcoming as my invitation only gets a late response due to me not seeing it until Friday evening, curtailing the chance of a two night stay, and also precluding an early start on Saturday as supplies need to be gotten in ahead of my visit, as they haven't been obtained preemptively, and so we don't land at Chez IH&AK until after Saturday lunchtime, meaning there isn't enough afternoon to head out for an uphill blast after brews and a conflab, meaning that none of us will have the chance to hit the 383m summit of Crow Hill for the first time. So we only stroll in the village instead, and I really mean stroll, as the walks we do would barely feel worthy of recording at all if it wasn't for all the potential miles lost during 2020, heading out from base on Cragg Road at 2.35pm, walking into the village , beyond the station and viaduct to see how more of the flood defence works have progressed, noting that while so much has been built anew along the sides of Cragg Brook over the last couple of years, some of the older walls retaining the gardens of Streamside Fold have started to suffer from cracking. A detour off New Road takes us through the churchyard of St Michael's, which gives us a dramatic foreground for the fine view up to the woodlands and rocks of Scout Scar above the valley, a grand backdrop to take in as we visit the public gardens around the bowling green, recently replanted after the civil engineering depot that had spent many months on the tennis courts site finally moved out, having completed most of the work deepening and widening the channel of the Calder, downstream from Mytholmroyd Bridge. The major local interest point remains the relocation of Caldene Bridge upstream, with the original span now completely removed as a pool is created upstream from the Calder-Cragg confluence, hopefully to allow water to back up safely in times of spate, and the increased width of the river is obvious as the south bank is completely rebuilt, with the piles now driven in and the construction of new retaining walls having started, allowing my friends to feel like this project is coming to a conclusion after nearly 4 years of work, as the village centre seeks its own new normal again.
Sunday, 9 August 2020
Berry Brow to Sowerby Bridge 08/08/20
15.5 miles, via Armitage Bridge, Armitage Fold, Big Valley, Nether Moor, Crosland Moor Stone
Circle, Crosland Hill, Milnsbridge, Scarbottom, Golcar, Scapegoat Hill, Longwood Common,
Round Ings, Slack, Outlane, Sowood, Sowood Green, Stainland, Dog Lane Mills, Bottomley,
Barkisland, Greetland Wall Nook, Norland, Norland Town, Spark House and Scar Head.
We've had a few days of high temperatures since my walking year formally revived this Summer, but this turns out to be the first to land on a Saturday, which allows us to head out with the anticipated worriies of how to keep cool and watered, rather than dry and warm as it has mostly turned out so far, and thus the sunshine blazes down as we take an early morning rid on three trains to get to our start line in the Holme valley, a bit remote from the usual lines of Colne and Calder, but making a whole lot more sense when it is recalled that this year was intended to have trails blazed westwards towards the Tame valley before the pandemic came a-calling. So to Berry Brow we head, where 2019's season ended, another world ago, alighting just ahead of 8.20 and rising to the suburban front of the district on the high east side of the valley, pacing along Birch Road before we set our course away down Station Lane, past the old station site and The Railway inn before descending down to the A616 Woodhead Road, which we join and then cross to head down among the tree cover around Carriage Drive to soon meet the valley bottom, crossing the River Holme via Armitage Bridge. The local landscape of Armitage Bridge house's parkland, the mass of Brooke's Mills office park and the parish church of St Peter's have all been noted on our last August passage down here, but the terraced blocks of Armitage Fold were not, built to serve the mill complex and located a ways down Armitage Road at the valley floor, now forming a pleasing little suburban enclave below the woods that crowd the west side of the Holme valley, through which we ascend again on the way up to meet Meltham Road, to enhance the feelings of 2019's travel experience. Progress with the shade coating the B6108 for a stretch, because I still haven't been able to suss if the route from Butternab Road to Delves farm is publicly accessible or not, and erring on the side of caution has us getting a s close to Nether ton as we can before returning down Nether Moor Road to make our passage across the Big Valley, through the tree cover of Dean Clough and under the former Meltham branch line before rising up towards the farmsteads, where the lane is gated off and the view to their personal overbridge is best viewed, ahead of the next climb. The steep cobbled lane leads us uphill, alongside the edge of Dean Clough woods and away from the farmsteads that have clustered here, giving us a really good turn of early exercising, barely half an hour into the trip, as we come up to the open fields of Nether Moor, which we eventually strike across with the lane, just downwind of the Crosland Moor airfield, with enough altitude having been gained to have us higher than our start point and rewarded with a view across the Holme Valley to Castle Hill and far beyond.
Circle, Crosland Hill, Milnsbridge, Scarbottom, Golcar, Scapegoat Hill, Longwood Common,
Round Ings, Slack, Outlane, Sowood, Sowood Green, Stainland, Dog Lane Mills, Bottomley,
Barkisland, Greetland Wall Nook, Norland, Norland Town, Spark House and Scar Head.
We've had a few days of high temperatures since my walking year formally revived this Summer, but this turns out to be the first to land on a Saturday, which allows us to head out with the anticipated worriies of how to keep cool and watered, rather than dry and warm as it has mostly turned out so far, and thus the sunshine blazes down as we take an early morning rid on three trains to get to our start line in the Holme valley, a bit remote from the usual lines of Colne and Calder, but making a whole lot more sense when it is recalled that this year was intended to have trails blazed westwards towards the Tame valley before the pandemic came a-calling. So to Berry Brow we head, where 2019's season ended, another world ago, alighting just ahead of 8.20 and rising to the suburban front of the district on the high east side of the valley, pacing along Birch Road before we set our course away down Station Lane, past the old station site and The Railway inn before descending down to the A616 Woodhead Road, which we join and then cross to head down among the tree cover around Carriage Drive to soon meet the valley bottom, crossing the River Holme via Armitage Bridge. The local landscape of Armitage Bridge house's parkland, the mass of Brooke's Mills office park and the parish church of St Peter's have all been noted on our last August passage down here, but the terraced blocks of Armitage Fold were not, built to serve the mill complex and located a ways down Armitage Road at the valley floor, now forming a pleasing little suburban enclave below the woods that crowd the west side of the Holme valley, through which we ascend again on the way up to meet Meltham Road, to enhance the feelings of 2019's travel experience. Progress with the shade coating the B6108 for a stretch, because I still haven't been able to suss if the route from Butternab Road to Delves farm is publicly accessible or not, and erring on the side of caution has us getting a s close to Nether ton as we can before returning down Nether Moor Road to make our passage across the Big Valley, through the tree cover of Dean Clough and under the former Meltham branch line before rising up towards the farmsteads, where the lane is gated off and the view to their personal overbridge is best viewed, ahead of the next climb. The steep cobbled lane leads us uphill, alongside the edge of Dean Clough woods and away from the farmsteads that have clustered here, giving us a really good turn of early exercising, barely half an hour into the trip, as we come up to the open fields of Nether Moor, which we eventually strike across with the lane, just downwind of the Crosland Moor airfield, with enough altitude having been gained to have us higher than our start point and rewarded with a view across the Holme Valley to Castle Hill and far beyond.
Monday, 3 August 2020
Huddersfield to Todmorden 01/08/20
19.8 miles, via Fartown, Norman Park, Cowcliffe Side, Reap Hirst, Burn, Stone, Ainley Top, Blackley, Hullen Edge, West Vale, Greetland, Greetland Moor, Norland, Longley, Triangle,
Field House, Hubberton Green, Long Edge Moor, Cragg Bottom, Lumb Stone, Knowl Hill,
Blaith Royd, Sunderland Pasture, Stoodley Pike, Harvelin Park, Mankinholes, Lumbutts,
Causeway Wood, Oldroyd, Kilnhurst, and Stansfield Bridge.
The end of July may have seen Kirklees and Calderdale districts put back into a local lockdown after spikes in Covid infections, but the restrictions seem to apply to private gatherings only, still allowing for free movement and travel, which means I won't be deterred from heading out onto a frankly bonkers distance to be attempting, and the fact that my headline says what it does immediately tells you that walking fortitude came my way despite the distance and the terrain, so let's get right into it here, as this is gonna be a long one. So to Huddersfield in the sunshine we ride, as early as is possible to depart the station at a whisker ahead of 8.10am, aiming ourselves onto the trajectory that opened this 2020 walking season as we head from the square past the George hotel, onto John William Street and past the old Empire cinema before passing under the end of the railway viaduct and on to meet the crossing of the inner ring road, picking the Unna Way side and finding that I've chosen the spot that doesn't have a crossing. Around the commercial estate on the old Newtown goods site we pass, to tangle up with the A641 again, because Bradford Road offers us the way through to the bottom of Halifax Old Road, which splits off to the northwest by the Slubbers Arms, a pub name that I'd hope was unique, as it then leads us on among the residences and terraces of Fartown, taking us over the old MR lines and greenway, and on past the Grimescar club and the mosque in an old chapel before we are soon upon Birkby Hall Road, the route of urban circular route from last year. The housing quality to the east of the lane improves as we rise on, above the edge of Norman Park, which is quiet at this hour and has a war memorial separate from the main one in the town, beyond which we start to find ourselves among the elevating wrinkles that rise over suburban Huddersfield, with the terraces of Cowcliffe side piling up above the road, with the cleft of the Grimescar beck valley cleaving its way through the spread below us, where suburban arrivals cling to the steep side of the lane to ensure feature views from their rears. The single depth of terraces fills the roadside right up to the woods above the town, and the suspicion that the old road has been much more under-used than usual with surpassed route is revealed as we come upon the bottom of Grimescar woods, with the road closed off for ongoing and extensive repairs beyond, and while my instinct says to carry on, the sound of tree surgery uphill suggest that such a move wouldn't be wise and our route will need a revision, heading down the drop of Slant Gate to reacquaint ourselves with the Kirklees Way.
Field House, Hubberton Green, Long Edge Moor, Cragg Bottom, Lumb Stone, Knowl Hill,
Blaith Royd, Sunderland Pasture, Stoodley Pike, Harvelin Park, Mankinholes, Lumbutts,
Causeway Wood, Oldroyd, Kilnhurst, and Stansfield Bridge.
The end of July may have seen Kirklees and Calderdale districts put back into a local lockdown after spikes in Covid infections, but the restrictions seem to apply to private gatherings only, still allowing for free movement and travel, which means I won't be deterred from heading out onto a frankly bonkers distance to be attempting, and the fact that my headline says what it does immediately tells you that walking fortitude came my way despite the distance and the terrain, so let's get right into it here, as this is gonna be a long one. So to Huddersfield in the sunshine we ride, as early as is possible to depart the station at a whisker ahead of 8.10am, aiming ourselves onto the trajectory that opened this 2020 walking season as we head from the square past the George hotel, onto John William Street and past the old Empire cinema before passing under the end of the railway viaduct and on to meet the crossing of the inner ring road, picking the Unna Way side and finding that I've chosen the spot that doesn't have a crossing. Around the commercial estate on the old Newtown goods site we pass, to tangle up with the A641 again, because Bradford Road offers us the way through to the bottom of Halifax Old Road, which splits off to the northwest by the Slubbers Arms, a pub name that I'd hope was unique, as it then leads us on among the residences and terraces of Fartown, taking us over the old MR lines and greenway, and on past the Grimescar club and the mosque in an old chapel before we are soon upon Birkby Hall Road, the route of urban circular route from last year. The housing quality to the east of the lane improves as we rise on, above the edge of Norman Park, which is quiet at this hour and has a war memorial separate from the main one in the town, beyond which we start to find ourselves among the elevating wrinkles that rise over suburban Huddersfield, with the terraces of Cowcliffe side piling up above the road, with the cleft of the Grimescar beck valley cleaving its way through the spread below us, where suburban arrivals cling to the steep side of the lane to ensure feature views from their rears. The single depth of terraces fills the roadside right up to the woods above the town, and the suspicion that the old road has been much more under-used than usual with surpassed route is revealed as we come upon the bottom of Grimescar woods, with the road closed off for ongoing and extensive repairs beyond, and while my instinct says to carry on, the sound of tree surgery uphill suggest that such a move wouldn't be wise and our route will need a revision, heading down the drop of Slant Gate to reacquaint ourselves with the Kirklees Way.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)