Austerlands

 Walk to the end of the 1758 Turnpike- Austerlands, on the Lancashire/Yorkshire border

Old Road (1758) New Road (1830)

Out with a West Yorkshire Street map locating Balk Street, Netherton (Wakefield), where the turnpike tollhouse was reconstructed stone by stone. Netherton's name prior to 1929 was Nether Shitlington, to differentiate it from Middle Shitlington (Middletown) and Over Shitlington (Overton).

 

Turnpiking

                                         

I've been out exploring Wakefield and Austerlands Turnpike and locating tollhouses...

 

Slack End

Round Heptonstall

 

Ganny Lock

Ganny Lock, Fall Ing, West Lane, Upper Exley and the Salter Hebble....to the end of the Calderdale Way. Highly recommended. Don't forget your brolly.

 

Downhill to Alegar Street

Calderdale Way- Crimsworth Dean, Shelf, Norwood Green and then downhill to Alegar Street in Brighouse!

 

Pecket Bar

Toll bar and Robin Hood pub sign at Pecket Well

 

Slack Top and the Bottomless Teapot

I love Calderdale placenames!

 

My Ears Popped!

Dobroyd, Mankinholes and Lumbutts

 

The Calderdale Way

A great few days walking, getting soaked and meeting folk again

 

Surf Goat

Surfing goats seen in California....and RSC plan virtual performances of Midsummer Night's Dream using avatars. Probably not fake news.

 

Snigging and Snedding

Never heard of the Lumber Jills, like the Land Girls, but with trees. Snigging (dragging logs) and snedding (pruning trees) were some of their jobs. (National Arboretum)

 

Shot at Dawn/ Lost at Sea

National Arboretum

 

You're so Vane

Fab peacock weather vane and predictable cock at another defunct farm in Streethay

 

Bygone Lichfield Pubs and Farms

Old signs- on Austin Cote Farm (now housing) and The Anchor Pub (Physiotherapists)

 

Blocked Sink- Strength & Courage

Vi Et Animo! Warning, do not poke down blocked sinks with a skewer! 

 

Poor Mary

Tale of woe on a Honley gravestone......

Hand on Heart

                                                                 Round Honley church yard

Mars Probes

NASA's Rover lands on Mars looking for signs of life...

 

Sluice Gate Crank

                                                                            Meanderings with Liz
 

Spike

                                                 Now on Volume 6 of the Corona Diaries...
 

Lockdown Diary Volume 6

Brockholes Missing Letters

A kingfisher flew under the packhorse bridge...can you work out the name on the padlocked door?

 

West Nab, Standedge and Pule Hill

Ground rock hard, ice and snow made for a couple of wonderful walks in the New Year

 

Hygge in South Crosland

New Year's Eve. Snow on the ground, blankets, hot water bottles, a glowing fire melting snow not providing much heat... the Hygge experience minus friends, a bar and a  Hygge Tent (absent from St George's Square , Huddersfield this year). It was a cold,clear, still night with many stars. We stayed out for nearly 4 hours. And yes, it was cold!

 

King Alfred's Cakes?

Christmas Fungus

 

Turkeytail Magdale & Healey House Honesty

As seen on Boxing Day walk

 

Christmas Card Podium

 The top 3 cards this year featured animals, with surprise sightings of a festive sloth, tiger and ostriches. In 2nd  place were Christmas words and in 3rd were cards featuring buildings in snowy scenes, including Huddersfield's neo-classical railway station. I was delighted to receive more wonderful homemade cards this year, with a surprising surge in nativity scenes, trees and cards with a transport theme.This year's losers were Father Christmas, robins and snowmen, all down on last year. The colour scheme was notably muted, with less red, green or shiny cards. There was even a card with a Covid theme.....in the shape of a train ticket, it was from a mask company we'd all given custom to..... 

News of the Stews 2020

For those who didn't get a snail mail version, here's our very highly edited year....