Leeds station

I'm afraid I've not been doing anything very interesting since New Year. It's been so cold and icy that I've tended to avoid going out (even though we've had very little actual snow here, to speak of). Our hospitals are under such pressure; the last thing I want is to slip on the ice and end up in A&E facing a long wait for treatment, so I've been staying safe and cosy at home. 

I did venture across to Leeds on the train one day, to meet a friend. I was mildly amused to spot a man in the station concourse standing talking, quite loudly, to a mobile phone on a tripod, obviously filming himself. It looked quite a serious endeavour, as he even had a script of some sort in his hand. (Of course, deaf old me couldn't hear what he was saying.) I did wonder whether it was one of the local TV channels, as he looked vaguely familiar, though I'd have thought they could afford an actual camera operator and not rely on a mobile phone.  Modern life's zeitgeist is that everyone younger than me (and there are a lot of them!) seems to be permanently either 'talking to themselves' or cut off from the world with massive headphones. I find it really weird. 

Meanwhile, outside the station, work goes on to 'improve' the environment. They are enlarging the pedestrian forecourt; moving the bus shelters and spacing them out so there’s more room to wait for a bus and creating an additional pedestrian crossing to make it easier to get to and from the station. They say: 'We want to make a significant difference to the look and feel of this important ‘gateway’ to Leeds and the wider city region. We want visitors to get a great first impression of our city as they come out of the station.' It seems to be taking forever though, and is currently quite disruptive to pedestrians and traffic. 

Saltaire station

Now I'm retired I don't use Saltaire railway station nearly as much as I used to, but I'm still glad it is there. It's extremely convenient, situated right in the centre of the village - about five minutes from where I used to live and about twelve minutes walk from where I am now (though longer going back as it's all uphill!) I was waiting for a train to Leeds and idly noticing that the station is really quite attractive, nestled at the foot of the village's housing stock and opposite the bulk of Salts Mill. 

The railway itself was there before Salts Mill was opened in 1853, being no doubt one of the factors contributing to Sir Titus Salt's decision to site his huge new mill here. A station was added and opened in 1856 by the Midland Railway. It was closed in the infamous Beeching cuts in 1965 and the original buildings were demolished but the link was then reopened in 1984. It has served commuters to Leeds and Bradford and travellers up the Aire valley to Skipton ('the gateway to the Dales') ever since. It takes less than twenty minutes to arrive in the heart of Leeds city centre, another big plus for this area for me and many others. I enjoy the fact that, looking west, there are no buildings really visible. It gives me a sense that the countryside beyond is calling and I like that. 

World Heritage Site

Idly standing on Saltaire station platform waiting for a train one day, I was enjoying the sunshine glinting off the gold detailing on the church tower. Now the leaves are off the trees, you get different views of familiar sights. This was a quick phone shot, to incorporate the station name sign as well as the church in the background, one of our World Heritage Site's treasures. The buildings in the middle ground are now part of Shipley College and were formerly Salts Mill's dining hall. 

Salts Mill and the surrounding village were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001. The designation states: 'Saltaire is an exceptionally complete and well preserved industrial village of the second half of the 19th century, located on the river Aire. Its textile mills, public buildings, and workers' housing are built in a harmonious style of high architectural quality and the urban plan survives intact, giving a vivid impression of Victorian philanthropic paternalism, which had a profound influence on developments in industrial social welfare and urban planning in the United Kingdom and beyond.'

Settle station

The railway station in Settle, like most of the stations on the Settle-Carlisle line, retains a lot of its heritage charm. Opened in 1876, as part of the Midland Railway Company, it is still painted in their colours of red (properly called Crimson Lake) and cream. Almost closed in the 1980s, pressure groups ensured its survival and the line has gone from strength to strength, helped by the superb scenery that it passes through, although I believe there are only 8 or 9 services a day through Settle. 

The station occupies an elevated position, giving lovely views across to Giggleswick school's unusual copper-domed chapel  (above) and with a view of Pen-Y-Ghent along the platform (below). 

I was amused to read the signs on the platforms - 'Settle down' on the Carlisle side and 'Settle up' on the Leeds side, though I was puzzled... I always think of anywhere south (Leeds, London) as 'down' and anywhere north (Carlisle, Glasgow) as 'up' so to me these signs were illogical. My knowledgeable friend pointed out that in railway terms, London is the centre, so you always go 'up' to London.

A few vintage suitcases reinforced the heritage feel of the station:

and, in the station yard, what was once a huge water tower with a cast iron tank for replenishing the supplies of steam trains, has been converted into a residential property. I'd love to see inside! The owners are, apparently, fellow Bloggers so there is an entire blog dedicated to it - see HERE - with some photos.