Steeton to Otley 03/06/17

14 miles, via Silsden, Holden Bank, Rivock moor, West Morton, East Morton,
 Graincliffe reservoir, Weecher reservoir, Reva reservoir, Menston, and Ellar Ghyll.

No Spring Bank Holiday wanderings were forthcoming as a three day weekend of rest after my holidays seemed like a much better option, and the weather was pretty awful on the day as well, and so after a short week back in work, the body isn't feeling hugely enthusiastic at getting an early start on so we don't get to the high trail down Airedale until after 10.05am, alighting at Steeton & Silsden station with my OL21 in hand, setting off on this side of the map for the first time since 2013. It's looking altogether sunnier than it did when I was out on the Millennium Way back then, and as usual, the path north has to take us along the A6034, over the A629 Aire Valley road, and over the Aire itself, where the bollards on Silsden Bridge are still painted in Tour de France colours, and the wander across the low fields up to the town is made more interesting by enjoying the panorama created by the valley. Looking to the north west we see where the river vanishes apparently among the high hills and to the northeast where we will be heading, looking to the high points of Rombalds Moor, with Nab End and Rivock Edge standing high above, bisected by the wooded clough of Holden Beck. Onwards to Silsden then, past the sports clubs, the industrial estate and the branch of Aldi to hit the rising lane as it enters among the old mills and stone cottages to pass over the Leeds & Liverpool canal, where the scenarios in both directions are still excellent, with the Main Street inviting a first visit beyond, but our path is to lead east today, so we swing right to Clog Bridge, over Silsden Beck (which passes under the canal) and onto Holden Road where the canalside mills are both industrial and residentially made over. A picture of Silsden's growth is then gained as we push on and up, passing long stone terraces, stone semis and all sorts of later suburbia scattered among as we ascend to the edge of the town, passing Springbank house and the cemetery, and even though the intention is to follow the road to the high edge above the valley, if a path is available to take us away from a lane that is really too narrow and twisty to accommodate both walkers and traffic, we'll take it. Two such come along in the early going, one away from the substation, and another through the fields towards Howden Park farm, where we mustn't get too tangled up among the herding sheep, and despite this feeling like an unfamiliar landscape, there are two former paths to cross as we go, so those 4 years between visits has clearly been long enough to make this all feel fresh again.

Silsden Bridge & Nab End

The Leeds & Liverpool Canal, Silsden.

Upper Airedale, & Silsden's Suburbia. Also: Sheep.

Road walking has to be the choice if we are to make it up Holden Bank, taking us on an ascent of 130m up from Holden Beck in two stretches, as harsh a long road pull as has been done in a while, and the views are grand up to Nab End on the first stretch, where I catch and overtake another pair of walkers, losing them completely after taking the turn to the second stretch, though they may well have taken a turn onto one of the many other paths that head north onto the moors. Pass on up through the shade of Spring Crag Wood to emerge on the high edge of the moor below The Crag and Pinfold Hill, to gain some real altitude to admire the views to the north of Airedale, rising on with the lane to see Pendle Hill rise beyond Earl Crag, Kirkby Fell off in the distance above Skipton Moor, and the huge bulk of Great Whernside appearing next to Nab End, altogether another great viewpoint that you'd have to travel purposefully to find. Continuing on, around the wind turbine and the few gritstone outcrops on this corner, we get another Airedale reveal, looking down over Keighley and its environs as moorland interest is drawn up to the mast on Rivock Edge, which no longer looks as wooded as it does on my ancient map, arriving on some more level going as we pass Holden Gate farm, which has an ancient look to it, judging by the crook barn by the roadside. Gentle rises on the lane give us a complete look down to the town below, which will be our constant and evolving companion as we press on down Airedale, with the hills to the north west retreating from view and our moorland interest coming from seeing Ovenden Moor and the other moors above the Worth Valley appearing in our eyelines. The road takes on a line that is almost completely straight, loitering at about 275m elevation and not looking at all like moorland along the edge of Rivock, so not really earning our trip a High Moors tag, and it's definitely appreciated that we are on a lane that's relatively low on traffic as we drift on above Keighley and take interest in the evolving shapes of Bingley and Bradford beyond the wooded slopes of the St Ives estate. Altogether there's not a lot to see on the straight ruin, with only Moorcock farm and the covered reservoir forming any points of interest before we run up on the only notable junction on this high road, as Ilkley Road rises up from Riddlesden and head on off to the ridge of Rombalds Moor, home to a static caravan site that seems oddly placed, and beyond the forward focus shifts to the next town in the valley, and no good views come in the direction of Morton Moor, possibly the most isolated section of the whole upland.

Holden Bank.

Rivock Moor & the Mast.



Airedale view, above Keighley.

Airedale view, to Bingley & Bradford.

Greenery endures as the road starts to gradually decline, with cows at the roadside and a clear profile of Bingley and the still unfamiliar north western quarter of Bradford emerging down the valley, and soon we run into a hamlet of cottages and farmsteads which the signage indicates as being West Morton, a small hamlet at altitude above the valley, with its own cricket field which must surely be on of the real outliers in the local leagues, another that bids for the best situated in the county, I'm sure. The declining lane beyond sends us on among the fields towards East Morton, and the high road that we'll be following comes into focus as the views into the Aire valley start to retreat from view, and it would be very possible to continue without dropping almost 100m down from the high lanes by crossing the fields that surround the major landscape feature carved by Morton Beck, but nor visiting the village when at such close proximity would be rather foolish. Street Lane thus drives us down into East Morton, and the corner known as Butts, and even an old milling village at a remove and an elevation above Bingley seems to not be safe from the spread of suburbia, and it's a place that immediately makes me wonder about the attractions of countryside dwelling, as I'd never look past the terraces on the Carr Lane corner if I were to be drawn to these parts. A pause is needed to take lunch, back among the relative din of civilisation, on a bench near to the small church of St Luke, before heading on to find the main meat of the village along Main Road to the east, passing the Congregational chapel, the Memorial Hall and the not mis-spelled Busfeild Arms before rising among some smarter terraces and enclaves of cottages before we pass the old Co-op and drop down into the cleft of Morton Beck, where the mills that created the village can be found. The Silk Mill and its associated buildings are still in situ in this wooded glade by the beckside, soon left behind as Otley Road starts to rise away from the village, climbing steeply up the last terrace in the vicinity, and giving us a last view to Morton Moor and to the Aire as it slips off to the south east and we take a turn away from it on a continuing rise to the east. Not a fun road to walk is Otley Road, not at all, as the lack of verge and continuing steepness has you feeling exceptionally wary all the way up to the Heights Lane corner, which is unfortunate as there are good views to be had back up the valley towards Keighley to be had if it's safe to pause to look back, and there are also Red Kites to be seen in the skies, now spread far from their reintroduction point in Harewood Park, and trying to photograph them whilst staying out of the traffic is not easy either.

West Morton, cricket field & hamlet.

East Morton, Carr Lane corner.

Silk Mill, East Morton.

Looking back to Rivock Edge & Morton Moor.

On past the Shooting Lodge as the road settles around the 270m elevation again, feeling a bit more secure as it passes through a parade of trees and on to the edge of Bingley Moor, but level going means the traffic gets that bit quicker and more insane, you start to realise why all the walking literature tries to keep you off this particular road, and after getting sight of the moorland centre, all the way to Whetstone Gate, we get a section that rollercoasters so sharply that I become convinced that this is where my walking career is going to end. Somehow come through unscathed, not getting mown down by the rat-running and boy-racing traffic, emerging behind Graincliffe reservoir, the first of the trio on this side that catches water running off the moor to feed the Airedale towns, with the lump of Baildon Moor rising beyond it, and walking by the edge of its northern shore certainly makes it feel large as we move on to meet its house and dam edge, located by the only notable weathered gritstone formations on the southern edge of Rombalds Moor. This means we will soon be crossing a familiar path, as the road takes us behind Dick Hudson's, the pub on the moor edge that I still haven't had reason to visit, and meeting the Dales Way link path on its way up from Shipley Glen and onwards over the moor, previously walked a day shy of 5(!) years ago, not that much has changed up here, aside from my ability to identify landscape features as the views across the Aire to the south are still abundant. Buildings around Mount Hill farm are suggestive of a hamlet that never quite happened, as well as having a chapel or school by the roadside, and the elevation gained at this corner gives us our first view down the Aire towards Leeds, peeking above the eastern shoulder of Baildon Hill, a view to focus on as we rise around above Weecher Reservoir, settling onto another level-ish section on the Bingley Moor edge, passing below Eldwick Villa and its farms. The views across the reservoir are pretty special, over its semi circular dam, complete with valve tower, with the silvery surface providing a foreground to another look down the Aire, with Hawksworth cliff and Baildon Moor framing a view that has been observed from many angles and still keeps on being appealing, looking all the way down to Leeds and to Ferrybridge power station, many miles downstream. Soon meet the reservoir house and the pair of ruins at the roadside that are immediately recalled from when the Millenium Way brought me up here, which has the routes off the moorland looking familiar as we rise on towards Leedale farm, where we can finally find that most desirable of things, a roadside footway to protect us from the traffic.

Graincliffe Reservoir.

Baildon Moor & Hill.

Weecher Reservoir.

The way to Bingley Moor, one of many!

It doesn't last long, but it comes as a relief as the road shifts out of Bradford district and into Leeds district as we cross the Bingley - Hawksworth border, dropping to below 250m as the accompanying enclosures take on a greener hue, moving on to the Goose Lane junction to finally get a verge that's wide enough to retreat onto as Bingley Road gains a new identity and rises above Reva Reservoir, the last of the trio up here, and looking like more of a boating lake at altitude on first impressions, which does make the existence of Baildon's sailing club make that bit more sense. The perimeter length of its dam embankment seems to be longer than the remainder of its shoreline, and it provides another good foreground feature as we look back to the receding Baildon Hill, as we rise on the permissive path that Yorkshire Water has so kindly laid out to keep us away from the traffic at long last. The long grass and gorse are as thick on this side of the lane as they are on Hawksworth Moor, it seems, and we have some access land to come on our way to Wharfedale, so we can stay off road for a while longer as a very feint path is followed up to the lump above the reservoir, to get our last panorama across it to the hill and upper Airedale, soon cresting to get the reveal of the next river valley up, to The Chevin, Almscliffe Crags and the hills above the Washburn, with our goal finally visible at the valley floor. It's a while to get there though, as attention wanders to the other side of Hawksworth cliff and the view down to High Royds hospital, pacing through the rough grass for as long as we can, before reaching the field edge and have to exit by scrambling over a wall and ditch to get back to the roadside without scaring the local cows, then heading down to meet my previous West Yorkshire path, having had a much better reveal on this day. Hillings Lane thus leads to the continuation of Bingley Road, also seen before on my High Moor days in 2013, on past the cattery on the stretch with the horrible blind corners and drops, not taking the Derry Hill route into Menston, and taking the road on past the back of the hospital site, soon remembered as the stretch that has no retreat space between the stone walls on either side. Roll into Menston unscathed, somehow, and this is one of those villages that seems to be all suburbia to me, as its old centre still seems to elude my observation, as we pace on past blackened terraces to meet the corner of Menston Rec, where late lunch is eaten, before pacing the edge of Main Street, which must be the old street despite looking very Victorian, and completely miss Menstone Hall, still extant on the edge of the parkland, and completely surrounded by assisted living apartments.

Reva Reservoir.

Wharfedale revealed from Hawksworth Moor.

The nightmare that is Bingley Road.

Main Street, Menston.

On through the semis on Low Hall Road and Leathley Road to drop out on the A65 Bradford Road at the end of Station Road, the most familiar corner of Menston, pushing on to pass over the railway and move along the edge of the cricket field, to the junction by The Fox, and take the A6038 turn to find the leafy space of Ellar Ghyll, where the beck burbles along below the cover of trees and it all feels like a bit of an idyll, aside from having a recycling plant and a car scrapyard occupying the former mill sites at the valley floor. An interest point is met as we find the remains of the Bradford Road bridge of the MR-NER joint line, the late and much lamented railway that cut Otley off from the modern world, a pair of abutments that hide well under the tree cover, showing up the fact that early and late season are the best times to do railway walking, and so that is filed for later reference, as we move on into this most lovable of Wharfedale towns, passing among the council houses that are doing their best to illustrate that there's a general election due soon. Roll on to the A660 roundabout and then continue to town on the A659 path, all looking familiar despite arriving on my walking slate for the first time today as this is the way we drove back from Nidderdale just a week ago, passing Grovehill Park and parades of terraces that look like they could appeal to me very much, and I do feel that Otley is somewhere I could imagine living, in a country town with a very urbane population, though the lack of a railway really does count against it. Even more impressive terraces are found on the Ilkley Road corner, all very peaceful since the town got bypassed, rolling on past The Fleece and behind the branch of Waitrose to note the terrace on Guycroft that is wholly clad in sky blue ceramic tiles, and continuing on past the Cross Pipes to the corner where Victoriana piles up against terraces of shops that look extremely 17th century. Last pub to note is the Black Horse on the Kirkgate corner, where I had my graduation celebration in 1996, and then we are surrounded by the familiar sights of the town, such as the old Grammar School and the clock tower in the Market Place, where market day seems to have ended judging by the stalls being busy packing away, with final steps going down through the Orchard gate centre to conclude at the bus station after 4.05pm. I'm very happy to have gotten down a 14 mile trail in 6 hours, as Summer now awaits and I can pull out the list of walks for the high season, looking north to the lands between the Wharfe and Nidd, with the intention of exploring all of them over the next three months, knowing that I have planned myself some very long days on the trail along the way.

The Fox, Bradford Road.

Bradford Road bridge on the MR - NER joint line, Ellar Ghyll.

Grovehill Park, Otley.

 

Beech Hill terrace, Otley, both rural and urbane.

5,000 Miles Cumulative Total: 2805.5 miles
2017 Total: 240.5 miles
Up Country Total: 2561.2 miles
Solo Total: 2549.2 miles


Next Up: A very long day awaits, as does a Circular Trail and an unseen highpoint.
                EDIT: Nah, Too much rain for that, instead, a Sunday limber up on the High Moors.