Another Lakeland Christmas

We continued our recent tradition and spent Christmas in Kendal. In line with the rest of the UK, we had our fair share of rain over the festive period, but Al and I still managed to do a bit of walking in and around Kendal

Along the banks of the Kent

Panoramic view over Kendal, on route to ...

... Scout Scar

Barrowfield trigpoint - Flush Bracket S5672 - ranked joint 826th  in the "Triggy charts"

A walk through Serpentine Woods

... and along the Kent, just south of Natland

... then a refreshing pint in the Brewery

We also visited Keswick, where I took the opportunity to visit the world famous Pencil Museum

The first graphite ever discovered was in the Seathwaite Valley in Borrowdale near Keswick. It was found around 1500 by shepherds after a violent storm. They went out in the morning after the storm to check that their sheep were ok and found that a number of trees had been blown down. The subsoil had been torn away exposing some black material which they initially thought was coal - but it would not burn and the shepherds were at a loss as to what it was. They soon found out that the graphite was an excellent way to mark sheep.

The value of the material was quickly discovered and the Government took over the mines. Graphite - locally called "wad" - was transported to London and used as moulds for the manufacture of cannon balls

The first pencils were made in Keswick around 1558 - and soon a cottage industry grew up making artists' pencils.The basic principles of pencil making have remained the same over the centuries, although production methods have obviously changed considerably. Essentially, a colour or graphite strip is sandwiched between two pieces of wood then cut and finished into the shape required. This is now almost a fully automatic process whereas at one time every single stage was carried out by hand

In 1980 the then Managing Director realised that people were fascinated by the history of pencils and how they were made and the idea for the Museum was born. It was constructed in the former factory canteen building and advertisements were placed in newspapers seeking artefacts and memorabilia. The famous Pencil Museum van, a 1954 Morris J Type, was found hidden under rubbish in the warehouse, brought out and restored, it now has pride of place at the front of the Museum. In May 1981 the museum opened its doors.

More details of this fascinating museum, including this wonderful model of Tower Bridge made from pencils, can be found at Pencil Museum.

A Happy New Year to all

The Autumnal hues around Glen Howe Park

For me, Autumn is a wonderful time of the year. The wide variety of colours on display always amazes me.

Today I visited Glen Howe Park, which is just west of Wharncliffe Side, north west of Sheffield City Centre between Oughtibridge and Stocksbridge. The Park is some 19 acres in area and occupies the steep-sided valley of the Tinker Brook.

The Park was gifted to the people of Wharncliffe Side in 1917 by local paper manufacturer, Joseph Dixon and his friend, local stonemason, John Mills. Sheffield Council took over ownership in 1974.

The trail I followed was one of the Steel Valley Heritage Trails and part of the "Stone to Steel" project. Stone to Steel celebrates 10,000 years of human history in the Upper Don Valley. More details of the project can be found at Stone to Steel project

This Pack Horse Bridge is one of the best and oldest examples of its type. It dates from 1734 and was originally found in Ewden Valley.

When work began on the reservoirs at Ewden Valley, Joseph Dixon paid for the bridge to be moved (stone by stone) to its current location in Glen Howe Park.

Some more views from within the Park

Splendid views across the valley

Bud Lane

This Nature Reserve is one of the last surviving ancient hay meadows in the area.

Summer is the best season to see the rare flowers that were once so familiar in the countryside

Sheffield Corporation started the Ewden Valley reservoir scheme in 1913 and built the Morehall and Broomhead Reservoirs to provide water to Sheffield's industry and population

My route took me along the side of the reservoir before heading through woods and across fields ...

... with yet more views of the autumnal hues ...

... to the village of Brightholmlee. It is one o`Ghg u4-Ittlements in the area and is mentioned in the Domesday Book

Here is an example of for one of several guide stones - these were built before roads to help travellers navigate in isolated areas.

Then back to Glen Howe - an excellent 3 mile walk

A walk along the Huddersfield Canals

Armed with my copy of Ray Quinlan's "Canal Walks North" book see Amazon link  I set off on another day trip around the South Pennines using my recently acquired Senior Railcard.

My route today was from Mirfield Station, along the towpath of the Sir John Ramsden's Canal - also known as the Huddersfield Broad Canal - to Huddersfield. Then along the Huddersfield Narrow Canal to Marsden Station - some 14 miles in total.

Initially my route took me along the Calder and Hebble Navigation

... past the Ledgard Bridge boatyard where, in years gone by, wooden hulled Yorkshire keels were built.

Along Battyeford Cut

... to the Huddersfield Canals - see more details by clicking this link Huddersfield Canal Society . The Society has undertaken a lot of work on the Canals in recent years - including fully re-opening the Canals to navigation in 2001. During the period of time when the canal was closed, several lengths were culverted and infilled, and in some cases built over - when Ray Quinlan published his book in 1993, his walk here describes the infilled and built over parts which have since been restored to their former glory.

The Huddersfield Broad Canal (also called by its original name, the Sir John Ramsden Canal) is a wide-locked navigable canal. It is 3¾ miles (6 km) long and has 9 wide locks. 

It follows the valley of the River Colne and connects the Calder and Hebble Navigation at Cooper Bridge junction with the Huddersfield Narrow Canal at (or near) Aspley Basin in the centre of Huddersfield.

Railway viaduct built in 1910 to carry the Midland Railway extension to Huddersfield - the track was removed in 1937

The original purpose of the canal was to connect Huddersfield to the other Yorkshire waterways: ie to the Aire and Calder Navigation via the Calder and Hebble Navigation. It was built by the Ramsden family of Huddersfield, and completed in 1780. The canal passed into railway ownership in 1845 when it was bought by the Huddersfield and Manchester Railway and Canal Company. 

Another old railway viaduct - this one was once part of the Huddersfield to Kirkburton line

Grade II listed building - this used to be a mill but its loading doors have been converted into windows

Locomotive Bridge - just before Aspley Basin - is a lifting bridge

By operating the wheels and chains, the bridge deck rises parallel with the canal.

The bridge is also called Turnbridge because there was a swing bridge originally on this site.

Aspley Basin was originally the terminus of the Sir John Ramsden Canal and had wharves, cranes, mills and warehouses - most have now been demolished

The route takes me briefly away from the canal - I have to cross the Wakefield Road before going down some steps near Huddersfield University to rejoin it

A former transhipment warehouse built in 1778 for Sir John Ramsden and used to store wool.

The Huddersfield Narrow Canal which runs for just under 20 miles from Lock 1E at the rear of the University of Huddersfield campus, near Aspley Basin to the junction with the Ashton Canal at Whitelands Basin in Ashton-under-Lyne. It crosses the Pennines by means of 74 locks and the Standedge Tunnel.

The canal was first proposed in 1793 at a meeting in the George Hotel, Huddersfield. Its engineer was Benjamin Outram. His plan was to start from the Huddersfield Broad Canal and follow the River Colne with a climb of 438 feet (134 m) to its summit, where it would pass through a tunnel at Standedge before descending through Saddleworth and the Tame valley to the Ashton Canal near Ashton-under-Lyne. 

Construction began in 1794 with the marking out of the route. The practice was to set up a line of pegs or stakes about 150 feet (46 m) apart so that their tops would indicate the intended water level. It would then be possible to construct the appropriate embankments and cuttings.

Progress was slow and erratic. It was also unfortunate that Outram was seriously ill for long periods between 1795 to 1797. In 1799, severe floods damaged earthworks along the canal and of the various reservoirs. In particular, overflow of the Tunnelend reservoir devastated the village of Marsden. Two aqueducts were also destroyed.

Although the canal uses 74 locks to climb and descend the Pennines, there would have had to be many more without the digging of a very long tunnel through the Tame/Colne watershed. The canal tunnel is 17,090 feet (5,210 m) long making it the longest canal tunnel in the United Kingdom.

Railway viaduct of the Huddersfield to Penistone line

In 1810, the Diggle Moss reservoir gave way and Marsden was again flooded, along with much of the Colne Valley. Houses and factories were wrecked and five people lost their lives. The force of the water was such that a fifteen ton rock was carried 2 miles (3.2 km) down the valley.

The canal finally opened in 1811 and operated for approximately 140 years.  Its width (limited to boats less than 7 ft wide), number of locks, and long tunnel made it much less profitable than its main rival, the Rochdale Canal, which had a similar number of locks, but was twice as wide, with no long tunnel. The Standedge tunnel proved to be a real bottleneck, having been constructed without an integral towpath.

Another Grade II listed building

Brewing first started in a garage behind a Punch Taverns pub, The Fieldhead at Quarmby, Huddersfield where brewery proprietor Russ Beverley was the lessee. When the Pub Company found out, Russ was given an ultimatum whereby if he didn't stop brewing his lease would not be renewed. So when the lease came to its end, Russ took the heroic course and moved his brewing operation to the redundant boiler house of a textile mill adjacent to the Huddersfield Narrow Canal at Slaithwaite.

Marsden Station for a train to Huddersfield then back home to Sheffield

Another great South Pennine Day Ranger day out