~Haworth~
30th January 2010
A walk from Oakworth to Haworth and back. A little look at something special in West Yorkshire.
Haworth Station
Scroll down for photos and a description of the walk....
Oakworth Railway Station
Karen and I decided to take a trip to Haworth and I thought it would be best to park at Oakworth and walk to and from Haworth. Shortly after arriving this diesel railcar turned up. No one got on and nobody got off. It's a cool day and I've only forgotten one thing, my coat.
Vale Mill, Oakworth
Built around 1785, this was a spinning mill. Spinning mills are tall; weaving sheds are low. John Greenwood & Sons were not content to allow the river or the road to be a barrier. I suppose I can't say if the roadway pre-dates the mill, as the railway (spot the signal) certainly post-dates the mill. The road through/under the mill may have been a later development to serve as access to the railway station. Line opened in 1867.
Horses
We took a high level route to the top of "old" Haworth. Finding streets without modern stuff like cars and wheelie bins is not easy.
Mytholmes Lane, Haworth
"New" Haworth
Working it out for myself, I reckon most of the houses on the east side of the valley are newer than those we are about to visit. The railway would have brought prosperity and opportunity up the Worth Valley.
Tourist Info.
Closed!
Gutted, this has always been my favourite shop in Haworth. I wanted to buy a stick of Spanish and dip into a tube of Kaylie, or maybe a quarter of Sarsaparilla Drops, possibly some Cherry Lips or maybe White Mice. What was your favourite? I've learnt that this shop may only now be open at peak times.
Haworth Main Street
It's a pity that the yellow lines need to be there. Come in the middle of summer and you can barely move on this street. Anglo Bubbly!
Bridgehouse Mill, Haworth
The Shed, Haworth
A DMU, over there on the left and is that a Class 8 shunter on the right? Coltsfoot Rock?
Haworth Railway Station
We bought Platform Tickets and had a wander onto the platform.
The Platform
The 14:06 to Keighley is due and Karen has spotted me fidgetting and messing with my camera.
Class 4MT 80002
Built in 1952 at Derby, this Standard Class locomotive had a 17 year life with BR and has been in preservation far longer than that. Always well turned out, there is no turntable at Oxenhope, so one way it has to be facing the wrong way.
Vale Mill, Oakworth
We walked back to Haworth on the lower route on the east side, walking down Ebor Lane. The sun has come out and here's another look at Vale Mill. I'm beginning to think that the bit over the river and road are later additions. They make Epitropic fibres here. I think work was in progress inside, that's a good sign. Note the water tank on the roof. Supply would either be by gravity from a reservoir high up on the moors, or they may have had a steam-powered pump to force water up to the tank.
Well we are nearly back at the car. At home and preparing this report, I remebered that I had an old slide photo of me stood on Oakworth Railway Station c.1971. The same train! That's me with my hands in my pockets.
Waggon & Maschinenbau M79964
KWVR have two of these and both are in the photo above, I'm as sure as I can be that this was the one (front) in operation today, even though the colours look a little different.
There's a lot more to Haworth and the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway than I've shown here. I've not even mentioned the Brontës.....
Walkers: Karen & Me
Time taken: We had two hours out of the car and walked two miles, at the most
Richard's Refreshment Review: Tea and sandwiches in one of the many, many cafes and tearooms in Haworth. Food and drink were fine in the one shown below. We will try a different one next time.
All photos copyright Richard Ratcliffe 2011 ©
Take me back to the start ....