Walking the dog

I popped over to Hebden Bridge with birthday presents for my eldest granddaughter. When I arrived the girls were out swimming with their dad, so my daughter and I had a rare chance for uninterrupted conversation together, which was a joy. As it was a beautiful sunny morning and surprisingly warm, we set off for a longish walk with their cockapoo, Cookie. There are numerous tracks in the area, many of them the original cart-ways and packhorse trails to the water and steam powered textile mills that once provided work in these valleys. Left to myself, I'd get pretty lost! A few years of regular dog walks means the family are very conversant with the myriad paths. 

We followed a track upstream along Colden Water, skirting the bottom edge of Eaves Wood below Heptonstall, and then climbing up the hillside until we came out above the trees and gained wonderful views. In the shot below, you can see Heptonstall church on the hill, top left. (We were on the opposite side of the Calder valley from the walk I reported a few weeks ago HERE.) The V-shaped valley beyond is where the town of Hebden Bridge is tucked away. There are a few isolated houses dotted about, enjoying magnificent views but often rather hair-raising vehicular access! 

The farthest point we walked to was an ancient clapper bridge over Colden Water known as Jack Bridge, which also gives it name to a tiny hamlet. Here we crossed Colden Water and returned on another ancient track on the other side of the stream. There's a wealth of history in the area and many of the tiny hamlets grew up around textile mills in the mid 19th century, nestled in the narrow valleys and cloughs. The larger settlements tend to cluster on the highest ground, out of reach of flooding in these steep-sided valleys, whose streams can fill with storm surges alarmingly quickly. 

A few more rainy days have replenished our streams to some extent, though the reservoirs are still low. There is beginning to be some colour in the trees but much of the gold comes from the dying bracken. The trees have yet to catch up.