The Unexpected Walk

8th August 2019.                 The Unexpected Walk 

Today saw a couple of the lads embark upon an hurriedly arranged adventure, just a few hours in the planning and off they went, to the so called  heart of Bronte Country up here in West Yorkshire.

Their means of transport was first by train and then take the B3 bus from Keighley bound for Hebden Bridge. They would pass through the village of Howarth then onto Oxenhope once here they would leave the bus just outside the Bay Horse Pub , then with  printed off instructions to hand the walking part of this particular adventure would unfold, what a delightful experience this turned out to be.

This particular adventure was Dave’s idea and John was only too willing to follow, a rather difficult section of walking was encountered over the first mile or so , it involved a uphill struggle until they reached a more level section that would take them over a long stretch of moorland heading for a distance vista, almost an hour and a half of walking and they were nearing their first objective , the Bronte Falls , this involved a rather steep decent into a picturesque valley with a small river running along its floor, an ideal picnic location, so we rested here for a while along with a few other adventurers.

With the time approaching 1:30 we decided to venture a little further on this Bronte journey, at this point we crossed the small river bridge  and climbed the pathway out of the valley only to find that the weather conditions had become rather warm now, the gentle breeze had disappeared and the temperature was rising, we could see our next objective far off in the distance it seemed to be miles
away although the signs put it at just over a mile to Top Withens

We carried on for a few more hundred yards or so then made a conscious decision to abandon this task , the hot afternoon sun coupled with the remaining distance and-the hundreds of midges and fly we about turned and headed back towards the river crossing. Just before the decent to the river bridge we noticed a signpost which informed us there were a couple of different pathways leading away
from this location. After seeking advice from some passing walker we decided to follow their instructions and head for the village of Stanbury. Once here we could catch a bus back towards Howarth or carry on with the journey back to Keighley.

The latter is what did, by the time we had reached Keighley it was almost 3:30 and a decision not to partake in a meal was agreed and that we would make our way home to our respective destinations.
This adventure will have to be continued at some later date ,along with a few more participants from our group , a less strenuous pathway will be considered.
The scenery and the views were magnificent.
Cheers Lads