Another of my walks accompanied by one of my crystalline glazed pieces, this one took place on an astoundingly hot day in July 2022.
Short of time, with an appointment to keep, I chose a direct 11 mile route to the town of Hebden Bridge: up to the summit of Black Hameldon then down through Noah Dale to join Colden Water on its journey downwards to meet the Calder.
The climb towards the hill top was over barren moorland, today devoid of the usual sounds of grouse and curlew: the heat was oppressive, seemingly the birds found it so too.
Crossing the recently constructed stock fence near the summit, the character changed: the hill is Black Hameldon no longer. Free from the ravages of sheep grazing, the deep gullies of black eroding peat have been replaced by a springy covering of young heather interspersed with billberry and the occasional pioneering sallow sapling.
The glittering rocks near the summit, fine weathered examples of the Lower Kinderscout Grit, seemed to intensify the heat of the midday sun. A patch of different green proved, to my delight, to be a tiny oak sapling. Several years earlier, I had scattered a rucksack full of acorns near the spot. Here surely was the result: a single hardy specimen that had survived the ravages of sheep, gamekeepers and harsh weather. The ground under the sapling was dry. The tree’s needs were greater than mine, I sacrificed my remaining water to help it.
Moving on downwards into Noah Dale the intense heat receded somewhat and in the ruins of one of the many farmhouses, I set up for the first photographs of the piece I had brought.
Even on a hot summer day, this is a desolate spot. The decadence represented by my crystalline piece was in harsh contrast to the desolate lives I imagined the former inhabitants to have had.
Though the inhabitants were long gone, the spring that fed the old building was still active and I was able to refill my bottles with deliciously cool water.
The gardens at Land Farm, a little farther on are usually a good spot for seeing a variety of birds. Again, the heat seemed to be a factor and though I waited for a short time, no opportunities presented themselves. I should be content with the picture of a robin from my previous visit a month earlier.
The woods of the Colden valley presented the final opportunity for photography. Gone were the spring bluebells but the dappled light under the trees offered several opportunities.
And finally, my destination. ‘Drink’, currently, in my opinion, the best bar in Hebden Bridge. A well earned glass of Vocation lager: ice cold. Worth walking for.