Blogs from West Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom, Europe

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 ... read more

I wasn't really planning on being here. A number of decades previously, I had set off on the adventure, otherwise known as a University education and a group of us had decided to meet up in Manctopia to reminisce about our youth for a couple of days. Alas, COVID 19 got in the way of the plan (and just about everything else). The North West is pretty much in local lockdown, so it seemed pointless to expose ourselves to infection rates way above the national average. The 10 pm pub curfew wasn't exactly going to get the party started either. The 2020 intake of students had already hit the headlines. In the national press, it was billed as an illegal gathering in the grounds of Owen's Park. A visit from the local Constabulary, fines and ... read more

It’s the Lesbian capital of the North”. It was one hell of an opening line at 9.00 am in the morning as we emerged from our pub lodgings. It was issued by a smartly dressed elderly gent wearing a regimental tie and highly polished shoes. We loitered to hear more. The chap gave us a potted life history encompassing life in the Canadian army and canal boats in Skipton. A condensed story that would put any elevator speech spouting business executive to shame. His taxi arrived to take him to a church service in Hebden Bridge. His parting shot was “I’m in the hands of the Lord until 12, then I get pissed”. This is typical Hebden Bridge. The Upper Calder Valley (Halifax, Hebden Bridge, Todmorden) gets a good deal of TV coverage in the U.K. ... read more

A couple of house keeping issues. We are in or near Stanbury and Ponden but they don’t rally register on many maps let alone travel websites. And I don’t have a proof reader and Julie has pointed out a few errors post publication. Sorry. Anything that does make sense just make up yourself. And great job Ella. Two people on the planet know that the ‘glorious twelfth’ is the official opening of the grouse season. Ella continues a rich tradition of taking out quiz questions and has continued where she left off. I think I dismissed her comment without sort of knowing so if it doesn’t post sorry. I’ve been chastened by Julie so I’ll never do it again. On that note. We walked past a hidden direction marker this morning and overshot the path a ... read more

When more and more moor is just right. Despite the fact we were wet and the unbelievable fact that our accommodation gave us a packed lunch without a box drink or any fruit we have had a delightful day. Julie’s mood has improved so much she is now only swearing mildly at me and only intermittently wondering why she came along to walk the Pennine Way. During quite a cloud burst another walker proclaimed that ‘the weather is always better in the pub’ - if only I can get that attitude into Julie! No really things are good here. More moor suits me although I think less moor would suit Julie better. But some of the scenery (and even the photos) more than compensate for the wet shoes, coat, pants and shirts we persevered with for ... read more