Enjoying retirement
In The Red Rose County
By enemy territory I do of course mean Yorkshire. It is a long time since I have been to Hebden Bridge, and I have read about its transformation into 'fourth funkiest town in the world', 'best small market town in the UK', and 'greatest town in Europe'. High praise indeed. It is also known as 'the lesbian capital of the UK', and for being very gay friendly. Interesting. We had a spectacular drive over the moors on a very minor road to get there... And as we arrived we could see its amazing location in a real bowl of hills. The centre was very pretty indeed, and cram bang full of independent shops including a nice bookshop for sale due to retirement........we had some fleeting thoughts but decided to ignore the opportunity. The river ran through the town, and felt a great part of it ......the modern town hall having an enviable location riverside. and there were quirky features everywhere... Where old mills remained they had been converted into some very swish apartments. Ancient features in this old mill town like the medieval packhorse bridge all added to its character. We really enjoyed our visit here, we didn't meet any lesbians or gays, and would love to return when some of the splendid pubs, cafes, restaurants and shops are open for business. And maybe we'll scout out some of the locations used for the super TV series 'Happy Valley' (whose dark doings don't reflect Hebden Bridge in 2020 I'm glad to say). After our wander around, we saw a very steep lane going up to Heptonstall, but in the end F. decided we should drive there.... And what a delightful place it proved to be, deserted to be sure, but full of atmosphere. Poet Laureate Ted Hughes was born in Mytholmroyd and lived in Heptonstall, and his wife Sylvia Plath is buried in the churchyard here. Many visitors flock to the town on a pilgrimage to visit the couple’s former house and Sylvia Plath’s grave, to commemorate the important work that the duo produced. Uniquely, Heptonstall has two churches within one graveyard. At the centre of the village are the ruins of the Church of St Thomas a' Becket built between 1256 and 1260. Later adaptations gave the Church two naves, two aisles and two chantry chapels as well as a tower. Following a great storm in 1847 however the west face of the tower fell away. Some measure of repair took place and the church remained in use up to 1854 when the present church, St Thomas the Apostle, was completed. Back home across the moors, having vowed to return as soon as we can....
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Keith & Frances SmithArchives
August 2023
Categories |