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A wonderful day out in prospect at Hardcastle Crags

Margaret — Fri, 18 May 2012 08:45:19 +0000

Our next PLACE fieldtrip will be to Hardcastle Crags and Gibson Mill, near Hebden Bridge, on Saturday 26th May.
The Hardcastle Crags estate is a National Trust property, which lies in the beautiful Hebden Dale wooded valley. There is an interesting mixture of deciduous and coniferous trees, mostly planted in the 1870s. The woods are rich in fungi, lichens and mosses, as well as birds and mammals, not to mention northern hairy wood ants! Bluebells carpet the woodland floor and should be at their best for our visit. The Trust has restored Gibson Mill, an early 19th century cotton mill, which is now run on the basis of self-sufficiency.

The visit will be in two parts: a riverside walk (one mile) from Midgehole car park to Gibson Mill, led by one of the National Trust staff, followed by a guided tour of Gibson Mill, led by Mike Troke (duty manager at the site). The tour of the mill will be easiest if we divide into two groups, with one group taking a walk through the woodland while the other is shown around the mill. After the tour, we can have lunch at the cafe on site (which apparently does very good soup and sandwiches) or eat our own sandwiches in the picnic area, and then we can spend as long as we like in the afternoon looking around the Hardcastle Crags area and enjoying more of the woodland walks. We may also like to take the opportunity to look around Hebden Bridge, which is a fascinating Pennine town.

If you are coming by train from York, we recommend that you catch the through train (the Blackpool train) which leaves York at 9.11am and arrives in Hebden Bridge at 10.37am. On arrival at Hebden Bridge station, go under the line to the other side of the station and catch the 10.45am local bus number 906, which takes you straight to the
Midgehole Road car park. (If you miss this bus, you can catch bus A, which takes you to within half a mile of the car park and runs every 30 minutes). For the return journey, buses leave the Midgehole Road car park at 2.00pm, 3.30pm and 5.00pm, or you can amble back along the riverbank into Hebden Bridge (about a mile and a half).

If you are coming by car, you can drive straight to the Midgehole Road car park (SD 988291), where you can park for a small fee or for free if you are a National Trust member (remember to bring your membership card with you). Hardcastle Crags is well-signed from the Burnley-Halifax road through Hebden Bridge (the A 646) but less well signed from the Keighley road (the A 6033; look out for a sharp fork back to your right on the hill down after Pecket Well, SD 993281).

We are charging £5.00 per head for this fieldtrip. Please let us know if you are coming by either phoning 01904 766291 or e-mailing: place@yorksj.ac.uk

How to become a Friend of PLACE

Margaret — Thu, 17 May 2012 09:56:31 +0000

We have several events planned for this summer, including visits to Hardcastle Crags, Lower Winskill Farm, Gayle Mill and Brompton by Sawdon. New members are always welcome, so why not join PLACE? Annual membership costs just £5.00 and is payable on 1st January each year. To download a membership form for 2012, please click on the . . . → Read More: How to become a Friend of PLACE

2012 AGM in Wath and visit to Thorp Perrow Arboretum

Margaret — Wed, 16 May 2012 16:59:13 +0000

The PLACE Annual General Meeting for 2012 was held in the Samwaies Hall in Wath, near Ripon, on Saturday 12th May and attended by 36 members and 2 guests. The minutes of the meeting will be published on the website in due course. The PLACE annual report for 2011 was accepted at the AGM. A copy may be downloaded via the link below:

PLACE Annual Report 2011

We also had a very interesting visit to St Mary’s Church in Wath, where Margaret Bastow told us about the history of the church and Peter Hills talked about the memorials and links to local aristocracy. A summary will appear in the next newsletter.

St Mary's Church, Wath

In the afternoon, the party visited Thorp Perrow Arboretum, near Bedale, where we were given a marvellous guided tour of the woodland garden.

PLACE members walking down the cherry avenue

PLACE Spring Conference

Margaret — Wed, 16 May 2012 10:00:25 +0000

Yorkshire’s Forests in the twenty-first century, Saturday 28th April 2012

This conference was attended by 35 people and held in the Forestry Commission’s visitor centre in the heart of Dalby Forest. In the morning, we heard talks by Crispin Thorn (Forestry – an evolving agenda), Will Richardson (Sustainable Forest Management in the Private Sector) and Brian Walker (Langdale Forest. In the afternoon, we enjoyed a walk, led by Brian Walker, focusing on wildlife conservation and archaeology. We hope to publish summaries of the conference papers later in the year. Thanks to the Forestry Commission for hosting this very successful event. Below are some images of the afternoon walk, which was much enjoyed by participants, despite cool, damp weather.

The PLACE group in Dalby village

The party hearing about the former rabbit warrening in the forest

An evening at the Merchant Adventurers’ Hall in York on 29 May

Margaret — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 11:17:59 +0000

As a follow on from our very successful short course, York: Medieval to Modern, led by Robert Wright, we are planning an evening visit to the Merchant Adventurers’ Hall in York. The visit will comprise a bespoke tour of the Hall, led by Lauren Marshall, and an informal opportunity to look around. We’ll provide a glass of wine/fruit juice and some nibbles. We are charging £5.00 per head for the visit, which will take place from 7.00 to 9.00pm on Tuesday 29th May. Anyone who has not already signed up but would like to join us is invited to contact the PLACE Office by e-mail. Please note that spaces may be limited. To secure your place, please e-mail: place@yorksj.ac.uk