w41 .s$ or, wAtKrrllG s ç v) -.'- ' î, o IN 9o t ff LEEDS Utulsotu ocToBER,2015 No.409

TODAY'S lryALK

FROM Kippax Leisure Centre we walk up Station Road and join a footpath which fatls through fields to cross Kippax Beck. It then rises past Brigshaw School and falls to Allerton B¡nvater, crossing the former Garforth-Allerton Bywater railway now a bridleway called The Lines Way. Along the lane (from Castleford) we turn through a wetland area to meet the floodbank of the River Aire, our lowest point at 49 ft. a.s.l. Further upriver, we skirt Lowther Lake and the vast St Aidan's Nature Reserve, a former opencast coal mine, now reclaimed and leased to the R.S.P.B. There are long views towards the river, Oulton and Woodlesford. We see 'Oddball', a gigantic dragline excavator, remaining there as an industrial archaeological monument. Meeting Astley Lane, we cross to a field-path which enters Great Preston. We climb through the village (note short cut!), fater turning along Whitehouse Crescent (later Whitehouse Avenue) to take a track which cuts through woodland and continues between hedgerows as it falls to regain Astley Lane. We meet and follow the Leeds Country Way up and into Little Preston where we pass the Hall, once owned by the Lowther family who also lived at Swillington Hall. Hall Road rises to meet Goody Cross Lane. We cross to a footpath which passes through frelds and emerges by the A642 (Garforth-Wakefìeld road) and we soon enter a picnic area at its junction with Whitehouse Lane, our highest point at 246 ft,.

Enclosed footpaths lead to Brecks Lane and Brecks Farm from where a descending track passes Brecks Wood, re-crosses Kippax Beck and rises to meet The Lines Way again. We leave the L.C.W. as we turn towards Kippax, soon reaching Townclose Hills Nature Reserve where a slanting path rises to the hilltop (230 ft.) from where there are wide viewsl A descending path skirts woodland and finally crosses a freld, returning us to the Leisure Centre about 3.30pm. CONTENTS

PAGES2-5 : THE LAST WALK PAGE 6 : JOKING APART PAGE 7 z IVTAKE IT A DATE IVHAT'S YOUR VIE\ry? PAGE 8 : THE NEXT \ilALK 2

THE LAST WALK

TTIE LTGHT RAILWAY, SHELLEY, UPPER CUMBER\ryORTH, , THE DEARNE 1VAY AND CLAYTON WEST (5 % miles)

CLICKETY-CLACK, CLICKETY-CLACK CLICKETY-CLACK. The slow, steady rh¡hm of the little railway coaches provided an almost soporific accompaniment to the lovely sunlit scenery which was steadily passing the open windows. We were aboard the t 1.40am train on the , having just left Clayton West station and we would spend the next half-hour relaxing and enjoying the atmospheric journey along the3Vz miles to Shelley on this narrow-gauge line. The occasional nostalgic smell of steam and smoke wafted from the little locomotive, 'Owl', to complete the experience.

Clayton West railway station was located at the end of a branch line of the main - and the line also served the large Park Mill Colliery. The railway closed in 1983 and the track was removed in 1986. However, along came Brian and Doreen Taylor, who had already built a miniature railway in Halifax, and in l99l they opened a lS-inch narrow gauge section from Clayton West to Cuckoo's Nest. This was extended to in 1992 and to Shelley (ust short of the main line) in 1997. ln 200ó the railway was bought by Stately Albion, a company specialising in parks and leisure. In common with most locomotives, each of the engines on the Kirklees Light Railway is named. They are Badger, Fox, Jay, Hawk and Owl and each one is painted in a different livery. Ours was black and red.

Earlier, fourteen of us (including children Jessica and George) and two dogs had gathered in the station's large car park. After a misty start it had been rather overcast and cool but, as if on cue, the cloud gradually parted and the sun came out in all its warmth as we walked down to the station buildings. After purchasing our tickets in the shop and cafë area we filed onto the platform where our train was just arriving from Shelley. The locomotive was repositioned at the other end of the train and we climbed aboard the 'cosy' coaches.

At frrst, it was the views across the wide valley of Park Gate Dike which held our attention, the green and golden fields, and patches of woodland, rising to Emley village and the Emley Moor Mast, the latter strangely bisected by a layer of cloud remaining from the earlier valley mist. In a few minutes the cloud had risen to obscure the top of the mast, and later still the ¡nast became completely clear. The guard amusingly imparted interesting information over an audio system as we rode along. ÌWe passed through'Cuckoo's Nest' (a hatt) and Skelmanthorpe (another halt) and views also increased on the other side of the train towards Lower Cumberworth, especially as much of the track was elevated upon embankments. Some, however, was in a cutting, lush with ferns and other greenery and a later sect¡on was through a tunnel which was pitch-black. The guard joked that he would put the lights on if he coulcl find the switch. He did!

All too soon we drew into Shelley station. The locomotive was uncoupled from the coaches, turned arot¡nd on a turntable and shunted to the other end of the train for its return to Cla¡on West after a ten-minute break. We alighted and sat for our lunch at picnic tables. By now 3 the day was warm and sunny with small, summery clouds drifting across the blue sky and it was extremely pleasant sitting there overlooking the rural scenery around us. Shelley village seemed distant from the station, perched above the intervening valley on the opposite slopes. The station's facilities included a children's play area, open and covered (marquee) seating areas, toilets and a café.

We had watched'our' train leave (with a whistle) at l2.20pm and another one arrived at l2.50pm just as we re-grouped to start the return walk to Cla¡on West. We set offdown the slanting station access track and joined the Shelley-Upper Cumberworth lane, turning immediately under two railway bridges, the first being the branch line and the second being the main line. A short way along the lane we entered a hayfìeld over perhaps the trickiest stile of the walk! The field-side path accompanied a low wall over which there were more valley views. An easier stile took us onto a 'private' driveway which passed a bungalow and private garden and issued onto a quiet access lane, part of the Kirklees Way which fell past other properties into a dell where it split two ways. We took neither but followed a marked footpath which left the lanes and meandered through a sun-dappled wood. We emerged into rising fields and followed their boundary walls uphill, aiming for the ridge ahead upon which stood silhouetted houses of Upper Cumberworth.

This was our longest sustained plod of the walk but upon reaching the line of houses we were well rewarded by an impressive retrospective view which included Shelley, Kirkburton, Farnley Tyas and even Castle Hill near Huddersfìeld. It was a wonderfully wide rural panorama of hill and dale, despite these villages and the Emley Moor Mast which stood prominently on the opposite ridge.

We had attained the highest part of our walk (at 833 ft.) and we walked between the houses, entering Upper Cumberworth village by the church and turning along the lane which passed the primary school and cottages. We came to a crossroads (the Aó35 Holmfrrth- road) and crossed to another minor lane. Soon, a track bore away to the left and we started descending, at frrst amongst cottages then between fields, into the small valley of Park Dike, a tributary (headwater) of the and here we met the Dearne Way - a trail which we would follow almost all the way back to Clayton West.

We left the walled track and aimed towards woodland across a meadow, entering the pleasant woodland (Stephen Wood) where we followed a weaving path amongst the trees a little way from the stream to our right. The path gently descended and later crossed the stream (by a small ford) in a clearing, then continued through more open woodland. Just before arriving at a small lake the path temporarily left the trees and followed the woodland boundary, entering the wood again to cross a rustic footbridge which spanned the infant River Dearne. Stone steps climbed the opposite banking to a field and we crossed its slope diagonally to enter the woods of New Park, a short ascent through the trees delivering us near to its upper boundary.

A level path took us along the top edge of this wood where we approached a small herd of cattle which blocked our exit at a gate. They moved aside obligingly as we approached but we had to pick our way through the only mud (?) of rhe day! we spilled out onro a descending laneby Wood Farnr and walked beneath a 'tunnel' of overhanging ancient trees, a shaded section giving us so¡ne respite from the increased \¡/armth of the su¡r. The distant 4

drone of traffic became louder and we joined the 4635 (Holmfìrth-Barnsley) at the bottom of the lane, near to its junction with the 4636 (Denby Dale - Cla¡on West road), The latter road was busier so we easily crossed to the level pavement and followed it above a former mill set in the valley. We were now on the edge of Denby Dale and became aware of the railway viaduct straddling the valley ahead, carrying the same Huddersfield-Penistone line which we passed under at Shelley station. Before reaching it however we took a narrow, single-file footpath which left the 4635 and dropped to the valley, a footpath bounded in places with blackberries which were too much of a temptation to many of the group!

Returning to the valley bottom and the small River Dearne, the path passed under the soaring stone abutments and arches of the huge viaduct - a magnificent structure and a real feat of engineering! We joined a quiet lane which passed through a residential part of Denby Dale village, a mixture of older, stone terraced houses and more modern property. For a time we kept parallel to the 4636 but later decided to cut through to the main road, our objective being to see the old pie dish (now a flower bed container) by the Pie Hall in the village centre.

Denby Dale ig of coursg renowned for its mammoth meat pies which have been baked at intervals since 1788 to celebrate important events. The following list appears on the information board in the village -

Pie I I 788 First pie celebrating the recovery from illness of George III Pie 2 l8r5 Wellington's victory at the Battle of Waterloo Pie 3 1846 Repealof the Corn Laws Pie 4 l 887 Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee - this pie was buried because the meat 'went off during a hot spellof weather Pie 5 1887 Reolacement of Pie 4 Pie 6 189ó 50ù anniversary of the Repealof the Corn Laws Pie 7 1928 Funds provided for Huddersfreld Royal Infirmary Pie 8 1964 Four royal births Pie 9 1988 Bicentenary (or should it be Picentenary?) of pie-making in Denby Dale Pie l0 2000 Celebration of a New Millennium This was the biggest to date, weighing in at l2 tonnes and measuring 40 ft. long by 8 ft. wide!

Passing the Pie Hall we saw the preserved pie dish (which one of the many dishes was it?) at the Hall's frontage, planted with lavender. This was a big dish but obviously not the big one!

Sauntering along the main road through the village we later passed the cricket ground and turned down Cookstool Road, passing also the bowling green where a competition was in full swing, watched by a large crowd of spectators. What a perfect afternoon for it! Diverting then from the lane we crossed the s¡nall River Dearne by another timber footbridge (by a ford) and proceeded along a sunken way which climbed between banking, trees and hedges to emerge on the continuation of the lane which we had earlier left before or¡r diversion into the village.

A farm access road soon led away from the lane and we arrived at Stubbin House where an enclosed path took us around the garden boundary and into a fìeld which sloped away to a 5 belt of trees. This high part of the fìeld was ideal for sitting for our afternoon break - it was still continuously sunny and warm and there was an excellent view across the valley towards the Emley Moor Mast.

However, it was not quite as perfect as it seemed! A group of about six horses had been standing (almost camouflaged) in the deep shade of a tree down one side of the field and, inquisitively, they slowly plodded over towards us. Most of us ducked under a 'dead' electric fence to the comparative 'comfort' of the adjacent flreld (which was equally good for sitting) but the horses stayed with us for the duration of our break! Fortunately they were all placid and were just curious.

The break over, we left the horses (they didn't follow us) and descended through the field. We passed through the narrow belt of trees and a kissing gate and followed a neatly mown path between higher grasses, part of a large paddock belonging to Lower Clough House which was partially screened by trees. We were, of course, still walking the Dearne Way but also parts of the Kirklees Way, the Denby Dale Round Walk and the Skelmanthorpe Circuit Trail.

We entered another field, taking a gradually-rising vehicle track which swung across it to a gate that opened onto an un-metalled lane by Clough House Lodge. There were further good views of the Emley Moor Mast.

It was in 1956 when a 135 metre high lattice mast was built to transmit ITV broadc¿rsts to the area. This metal mast was replaced in 1964 by a 385.5 metre guyed mast but in March 1969 the mast collapsed owing to ice-loading after three days of freezing fog. Amazingly, there were no casualties - only slight damage to a nearby chapel. The construction of a replacement concrete tower to replace the old structure soon began and so it remains to this day - a275 metre tower with a 55 metre steel lattice mast on top to carry the antennae. It now broadcasts both BBC and ITV programmes plus radio. Also known as 'The Shelley Christmas Tree', its offìcial name is the Arqiva Tower. It is Grade 2 listed and possibly remains the tallest freestanding structure in the U.K,?

The pleasant, tree-lined lane took us past a stone lodge, one of the lodges to Bagden Hall, the grounds of which we then entered. A wide mown path curved down through parkland dotted with mature trees and from a lower vantage point we could see the impressive stone-built Hall beyond a lake. The Hall was built in the 1860s by a wealthy Victorian mill owner and the house is now a country-house hotel catering for various functions including weddings. The extensive grounds include a golf course. We halted momentarily to admire the house before moving on through the parkland. We crossed a lane in a hollow then rose beside woodland and the path eventually emerged at a T-junction of lanes.

Crossing to Lower Comrnon Lane we passed a field where hay-making was in progress, accompanied by that sweet smell of newly-mown hay. It seems that so¡ne farmers have rnanaged three cuts this year! Surprisingly, although our route had gradually lost height since Upper Cumberworth (despite the occasional ascents), Lower Common Lane was still suffïciently elevated above the valley to provide even more long views towards the mast. 6

Eventually the lane started to descend, falling past bungalows and houses. We entered , almost in the valley bottom, where we joined Spring Grove, a level lane taking us through suburbia. lvVe were on the frnal part of our walk now, almost in Clayton West but there was a sting in the tail of the walk! Yes, the lane started climbing again - and it was a long hill aheadl The good news w¿rs, however, that we didn't climb for long. We soon turned down Victoria Street, an interesting street of stone terace houses, each house having a small front garden and a larger one on the opposite side of the street. Finally we met the 4636 (Wakefield-Denby Dale road) in the valley bottom and after a short walk along the pavement we turned along Park Mill Way passing light industrial premises before we entered the Clayton West station car park, the time exactly 4.l5pm.

It had been a good afternoon's walk in the lovely, autumnal sunshine and the views had been particularly good. The station was still open (the last train would arrive from Shelley about 4.50pm) but more appropriately (for us) the café remained open, serving tea and cakes. What better way to round offa good walk?!

P.S. There is a possible return wdk from Shelley stat¡on which is about 5 miles long stays more or less in the valley (and by the railway) and crosses the track at times. Maybe one for the future. Watch this space!

JOKING APART

. Herb gardenerc who work extr¡ hours get thyme and a half.

. I saw a beaver movie. It was the best dam movie ltve ever seen!

. A n¡bber band pistol was confiscated from the algebra claca because it was I weapon of meths disruption.

. My battery hnd an alkaline problem - so it went to AA meetings.

(thanks to Maurice for sending these in - originally from 'The Times') 7

MAKE IT A DATE

HAVE you got your 2016 diary or calendar to hand? If so, these are the provisional dates for our walks next year which I hope will be convenient for you. As usual, I hope to be able to put the list of actual walks (their location) in the Christmas Newsheet. If you have any favourite walks, perhaps walks that we have done a few years ago that you would like repeated, please let me know in good time!

So, here are the dates:-

Sunday 24rt'January Sunday 2ls February Sunday 20rh March Sunday l7ú April Sunday l5th May Monday evening 23'd May Sunday l2üJune Monday evening 27ù June Sunday l0tn July Monday evening, 25ú July No Walk in August Sunday l8ü September Sunday lóü October Sunday 20s November Tuesday 27tl'December

WHAT'S YOUR VIEW?

LATE last year the 'Dalesman' magazine posed a rather tricky question to its readers. The question they asked was "Of allthe wealth of fìne vistas in Yorkshire, what do you consider to be The Best View?" In a special edition of the magazine this September, the best 50 views were listed from around 1,100 votes cast, some being favourites of Yorkshire celebrities. The list counted down to the view considered best of all.

Now, I won't spill the beans just yet as to which views were included in the list (or the 'top' view), although you may already know from the article, but I was inspired to ask you the same question in the Newsheet - with perhaps a slight twist.

What would YOUR best view in Yorkshire be and, additionally, what view would you consider to be the best, as seen on one of our walks? It might be the same answer for both. The time of year or day or the weather conditions might, of course, influence your decision.

At the moment, I find it diflicult to choose just one because of Yorkshire's huge variety of scenery both in town and countryside. Send your votes to me (see back of Newsheet) or hand to me on the next few walks. I'll try to list the result in a fi¡ture Newsheet and around the same time I'll list those which were printed in the Dalesman.

Would our views agree with theirs? Steve IF you remember Doug Scott (a former regular walker of our group) you will find the above picture interesting. The picture appeared in the Yorkshire Evening Post on Wednesday, 30th September.

Adene Phillips is touring the U.K. as a McCarthy and Stone ambassador

TEE NEXT WALK

OUR next walk (a repeat of January 2004) is located on the slopes of Airedale and there is much historical interest and plenty of surprising and picturesque views so we hope for a clear day.

From Low Bradley, a centre for weaving in the l8ù-l9th centuries, we fïrst walk the towpath of the Leeds-Liverpool Canal to Farnhill and Kildwick. Kildwick is known for its'Long Kirk' of St. Andrew, monastic grange, old schoolhouse and ancient Halldated 1673.

An ascent of Farnhill Moor brings us to the Jubilee Tower (a fine viewpoint) built in 1887 to mark Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee and restored upon the Silver Jubilee of King Ceorge V in 1935 and again in 2000. Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee in2Ol2 is also recorded there. 9

Crossing the high meadows of Kildwick Moor we later gradually descend green lanes back to Low Bradley, the car park and picnic tables overlooking the canal.

See the attached poster for more details.

DATE : SUNDAY,22ñ NOVEMBER, 2015

TIME : Please meet 10.30 for l0.45am (we return ¡bout 3.30pm)

PLACE : Please park and meet in the free car park to the right, just over the c¡nal bridge, approaching Low Bradley from the A629. Travelling vi¡ the Airedale bypass (4629) from Keighley, approximately 2 miles beyond the Kildwiclr/Crosshills roundabout, úurn right to Low Bradley. Allow about 45 minutes from Leeds centre. No toilets at start or on route. I¡w Bradley can also be approached from Skipton or Silsden via \tharfedale.

ITEMS FOR THE NO\IEMBER NEWSHEET - by l0û November please

THIS NEWSHEET WILL BE AVAILABLE ON THE {.JNISON WEBSITE

Tel. Nos. 0ll3 2675487 (home) Stephen Johnson 0779&12156 (mobile) 22Wynford Rise E-mail: [email protected] LEEDS LSI6 6TD(

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