Alone Beneath The Sky: Leeds to Harewood 07/05/16

9.8 miles, via Sheepscar, Chapeltown, Chapel Allerton, Moortown, Slaid Hill & Wike.

Social walking plans for the weekend ultimately came to naught, largely because there was a lot more enthusiasm among my colleagues for a pub trip rather than the walk to get there, and also because I've been toiling with a heavy chest for the whole week, and was really in no state to do an 8 mile trip across Rombalds Moor and then be actively sociable afterwards. The arrival of Spring, on this first weekend in May promises temperatures up to 19 degrees C, so staying in bed to rest isn't really an option, so a walk is plucked from the reserve list and a late-ish start is made to make the break from Leeds once again, and even though my track has me heading north, a departure via the new South Entrance seems in order to get me a few fresh roads, emerging into the warmth at Granary Wharf at 10.05am. Back over the Aire on the footbridge to Little Neville Street and onwards to Sovereign Street, where the redevelopment of office buildings has restarted after years of stagnation, albeit on a much more modest scale than was proposed a decade ago, thence to Swingate and across Briggate to Call Lane, deep in the heart of Bar Territory to make my way up to New Market Street to take the Vicar Lane axis out of town. Kirkgate Market is looking as good as it ever does in the sunshine, but it's not in the best of health due to the redevelopment going on to create the Victoria Gate centre to its north, a scheme that I worry might overbalance the city centre and give us more shopping centres than we honestly need, though I don't object to the architecture of it like many do. The whole of Vicar Lane is a bit of a mess with the road up and the Victoria Arcade clad in scaffolding, and I'll still lament the loss of the noted venue the Duchess of York, replaced by a branch of Hugo Boss, and the vanished symmetry of Eastgate is also to be regretted. Happy though the old Bus station has finally found a use, though, but I'm on the wrong side of the street to get pics of the Grand Arcade before the city centre ends abruptly at the Inner Ring, carving its way through North Street and leaving a couple of proud buildings detached from the city, such as the Public Dispensary (a hospital of the pre-NHS days) and the Smithfield Ironworks, odd then, considering the company, that the Leeds College of Building should occupy one of the least inspired buildings in the city.

Onwards past the apartment block which I seriously considered before plumping for Morley back in 2007, and then the main roads start to pile up as the A61 and A58 get tangled up at the Sheepscar interchange, where only the Eagle Tavern and the prominent former bank on the traffic island are left to provide a reminder of a district now lost, and the way to Chapeltown Road is certainly a trek, as if the road planners actually hated pedestrians. Once on the way north again, Chapeltown shows up a good face in the sunshine, and past the Northern School of Contemporary Dance, housed in the old synagogue, we get a feel for the late Victorian - Edwardian district that bloomed in the early 20th century and then suffered somewhat as the middle classes fled to the suburbs, without an obvious constituency to replace them. So the bold terrace and surprisingly leafy lanes were left for a large immigrant population to move in, and a strong sense of community pride seems in force, judging by the plethora of cultural and religious institutions, and on a day like this, its poor reputation seems unjustified. Move on to the transition into Chapel Allerton, beyond the Sikh Temple and St Martin's church, gaining a suburban feel around Chapel Allerton and gaining sight to the proud and sadly still disused Gledhow Grove at the Harehills Lane corner, and Harrogate Road leads us up towards this Victorian suburb that has endured as its own peculiar enclave. Not familiar with the place except by travelling on the bus, but the impression I've always had is that everyone who lives here does all their socialising here, and judging by the eateries and bars on the main drag, it does seem to have it's own sort of vaguely eccentric middle-class air. Lots of attractive terraces too, but much to much traffic, all ending rather abruptly at the top of Gledow Valley, as the building style transitions to 1930s and the road continues to snake its way uphill into Moortown, it's always uphill with North Leeds isn't it? Onwards past Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic church and school, a number of attractive shopping parades, and St Gemma's Hospice, as well as the preserved Turnpike milestone, and once across Street Lane, it's soon time to bid farewell to the old A61 and turn off to Shadwell Lane, to meet an old country lane that seems to have Arts & Crafts houses and retirement flats in almost equal quantity on the rising stretch out to the Ring Road, hello again A6120!

Onward through suburban Moortown, past the geometrically fascinating UHC Synagogue and the Thackrah Court retirement village that has absorbed the buildings of the former Leeds Industrial School, and the many 70s and 80s houses that have grown along the way don't seem to face the road, giving the lane a very peaceful feeling, one aided by the many tree-lined footpaths away from the roadside too. There's still a few hints of the old upscale estates that used to reside out here, the Shadwell Grange site being easily the largest and most impressive of them, but Shadwell will wait for another day as we turn north to the shopping parade at Slaid Hill, feeling suddenly very normal with its One Stop and its pub, and that's the end of the city in this direction, as Wike Ridge Road heads its pathless way north. So wits are kept strong on the way out to Wike, noting golf courses seemingly on all sides, but there's a rural aspect to be seen on Wike Ridge itself as the rapeseed yellows up the horizon, and the farms provide the odd surprise too, like the stocks and the warnings of wounding risk at Shaw Hill. Sunken lanes aren't so welcome out here, but the rolling lane is preferable to continued ascent, and the Wike Golf Course promises night golf, as if that were a thing, and Wike itself soon arrives to convince me that there aren't any real villages on the north Leeds plateau, as like Eccup and Weardley, it seems to be more like a scattered collection of farmstead. It's enough of a place to have a bench to sit on for my lunch, and soon the village, as such, is behind us and Wike Lane leads us to the path of the Leeds Country Way, and there's agriculture aplenty going on out here, as are the crowds gathering to enjoy the Harewood Estate. Always nice to see Harewood House on the horizon, but the disappearance of Lofthouse Lodge is alarming, but the late stretch of the day is onward on the permissive path through Wall Side plantation, for some fun mixed woodland that gives you a peaceful alternative to the A61, as well as a carpet of bluebells to enjoy when the season for them ought to have passed by now. Other distractions include Red Kite spotting, always a tough task when up close as they are not a sociable bird, and the path pushes us out by a small ruin that surely should have some sort of use in John Carr's model village of Harewood. One day I will give this settlement the attention it deserves, as it's an 18th century gem, but that won't be today, as I'm done with walking for now, despite not having breeched 10 miles, I'll roll up to the Harewood Arms bus stop for a 1.50pm finish, without the energy for beer or a visit to my local friends, this Spring day probably deserved better, but I'll have to say 'Next Time'.

5,000 Miles Cumulative Total: 2166.9 miles
2016 Total: 152.5 miles
Up Country Total: 1970.2 miles
Solo Total: 1936.8 miles