A Pinch Of Salt

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A small dog looked nervously over the bow of the boat. She was not quite tall enough to see over the side. The gentle vibration of the diesel engine purring beneath the deck was not in her usual routine. There was some way to go for the whole family to feel relaxed on the waterways.

We were on the Leeds to Liverpool Canal. An industrial super highway of it's time, the canal stretches 127 miles between the two two cities in northern England. A sort of M62 motorway of the day, built to transport the goods and raw materials between the mill towns and the sea. A total of 91 locks smooth the journey on what is the longest single canal in England. The decision to proceed with the navigation came in 1766 over a few pints in the Sun Inn, Bradford and it was finally completed in 1816, just in time for the world to be turning their attention to the possibilities created by the railways.

We had based ourselves near Saltaire. A few short miles away from Bradford, but a million miles away. Bradford had been the birthplace of the original canal construction, but was ironically not on the surveyed route. The contingency was to build a 3.5 mile link canal to meet with the new Leeds - Liverpool Canal at Shipley. The export of finished wool products found an unusual objection in 1866, when the Canal was closed as a "health hazard". A source of clean water it seems was a problem. The squalid conditions of Victorian Bradford were also a concern to a certain Titus Salt, but he had been ahead of the game. He decided to consolidate his mill production in one place, but was not keen to add further industrial production inside Bradford. In 1850, he bought land on the edge of the Leeds - Liverpool Canal and set about building what would become the world's largest factory. Of course, the factory needed workers. Salt, in a move probably motivated by sound economics, set about creating his model village - Saltaire.

We had started the day in Batley, where Salt started his early education. The Other Half had been keen to visit the northern outpost of the Heals furniture empire. The Redbrick Mills complex is a world away from central London, but the prices remain the same. This area made the national headlines in recent years, when the local MP was unfortunately murdered. We headed up the hill .... and a steep hill it is .... to a place where Vera is very familiar. Mount Pleasant. This Mount Pleasant is not the home of football however .... we are in Rugby League country. Mount Pleasant - the Foxs Biscuits Stadium version - is the home of the Batley Bulldogs rugby league team. Batley were once in the top dog bracket of Rugby League, but the advent of a so called Super League has seen them largely in the second tier group of clubs. I noted with interest that the first game under the new Rugby League code was played here on 29 August 1895. Batley beat Hull 7-3 for the record.

Saltaire remains a neat, compact grid of terraced properties with all the local amenities scattered amongst the streets. Nice as it remains today, it must have been absolutely fantastic in the Victorian times. Clean air, decent housing, schools and recreational facilities all within walking distance of a steady source of employment. The environment no doubt also assisted Salt in keeping a well motivated workforce for his industrial powerhouse - an environment in which he ensured there were no licensed sales of alcohol to lead his workforce astray. A local restaurant and bar is now ironically called Don't Tell Titus and a few doors up is the local off licence. I wandered up to look at the old school house and the very impressive Victoria Hall opposite. It was once the Saltaire Institute - home of the library and other such educational pursuits for the advancement of the employees and residents.

Salt's Mill, as it became known, survived as a textile mill until 1986. The model village itself was owned by the factory until the mid 1930s. Today, the village is full of largely privately owned houses and has a more upmarket feel than many of the other neighbourhoods nearby. The Mill itself is now converted for leisure and retail. Local artist, David Hockney, has a permanent exhibition of his works on the lower floor. On the upper floor there's a upmarket design and furniture store, a very pleasant bookshop and a boisterous diner amongst other businesses. Alas, no dogs in allowed in the Mill and Vera was left to wander with me whilst the Other Half perused inside.

After a brief family separation, the unit was back together in Roberts Park. A footbridge crosses the railway line and Leeds - Liverpool Canal adjacent to the Mill and another takes you across the River Aire. The Roberts Park is your typical Victorian open space. A bandstand sits atop of a cafe and overlooks the the cricket square leading down to the river. A match was about to start on the only cricket ground situated within a World Heritage site. Yes, the whole village is now recognised as such by UNESCO. The spectators unusually included an alpaca statue - Titus was a forerunner in using the Alpaca wool in his spinning process!

We checked into the hotel in Shipley and took a walk along the canal in the direction of Leeds. I had a plan. It wasn't a long walk. Ten minutes perhaps and we were in the Brewery Tap of the Saltaire Brewery. I say were "in" the Brewery Tap, but were sat outside actually. Despite a bit of research earlier in the week that suggested "often more dogs than people were found at the establishment", it turned out that Vera was welcome inside. I have long been a fan of the Saltaire Blonde, so that somewhat took the edge off the experience. Fortunately, the Other Half found the stout known as Cafe Culture much to her liking and she was happy to stay for further refreshment. On our previous excursions in these parts, we normally retire for a curry .... when in Rome and all that. However, once again this isn't straightforward with a four legged friend in tow. The Shipley choice of food offering with a canine companion turned out to be very limited .... especially on a Sunday evening. We returned along the canal to the Boathouse pub just below the Salt's Mill and overlooking the river. Vera was welcome anywhere there wasn't a carpet ... which transpired to be almost all of the pub. We dined overlooking the river and the end of cricket match. Saltaire Blonde was on draught at the bar too. Job sorted.

The hotel were accommodating for Vera in the morning. The breakfast was in an open plan area and again, as long as she didn't cross the divide, she was fine to be in the general area. She sat quietly and monitored the arrival of a few other four legged friends into the vicinity ..... keeping a crafty eye on whether she could con a bit of sausage out of mum. The big eyes didn't work. We headed further along the Canal to Bingley. Bingley was once synonymous with the Bradford & Bingley Building Society, as the headquarters building was based there. Along with many Building Societies, the BBBS went down the route of a pot of gold in December 2000. A century of the business being controlled and operated in the interests of the members was sold down the river for a nominal number of share in the new company. The future looked rosy with a new headquarters building being constructed in 2004. However, the gold at the end of rainbow was lost with the credit crunch and the business was acquired by Abbey National in 2008, itself now owned by the Santander group. It effectively spelled the end for the large head office in a provincial small town. Sainsburys bought it to create a big supermarket store, but sold it on after a number of delays. The land now plays host to a Lidl supermarket, employing a fraction of the Building Society. I doubt that the area and surrounding businesses have recovered.

We walked along the Canal, passing the huge Bowling Green Mills. The Victorian mill was built in 1871 and was once home to 25,000 worsted spindles. The huge water tower still dominates the local area, so it must have been quite a sight in the 1870s. It is now the UK base of the French clothing and footwear giant, Damart. It sits by the so called Three Rise Locks - a steep incline in a short stretch - covered bt the 3 lock system. It is nothing compared to the system a bit further west. Five Rise Locks is a truly impressive sight. The steepest system in the UK, it rises on a gradient of 1 : 5. The canal system allows boats to be raised over 18 metres to the upper level in a distance of less than 100 metres, I asked a boat owner how long it took to get up, but as with most on the modern day canal system, time is of no consequence. However when the canal "worked", time was money. The first boats through in 1774 took less than 30 minutes. 30,000 came out to watch the grand opening. There was a few less today and I doubt the 30 minute barrier was beaten. It was still a good way to spend a Monday morning.

The evening was equally enjoyable. The Fox is a micropub back in Shipley .... not to be confused with a similar establishment in Wolverhampton ... is a delight. Good real ale in great condition and unlike the Saltaire Brewery, Vera joined the other regulars. If only they served food outside the weekend, the experience would have been complete.

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