Have you had your Five a Day?

Five photos taken on walks in the countryside around Hebden Bridge and the Upper Calder Valley, interspersed with views from Elmet Farmhouse in the village of Pecket Well. Yorkshire at its finest. Enjoy!

 

30 November 2016

View from Crimsworth Dean at 8.30 am 

 

Stoodley Pike in the distance, sunrise on the frosty hills 

 

Sheep with their winter woollies in Crimsworth Dean

 

Early morning sunshine on the frosty slopes of Crimsworth Dean

 

Sun rising over Crimsworth Dean

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

29 November 2016

 

Crimsworth Dean clad in its winter attire at 8.20 am

 

Now that’s what I call a hard frost!

 

Iced bracken in Crimsworth Dean

 

Ice-coated catoneaster at Wheat Ing in Crimsworth Dean

 

Even the Crimsworth cows have turned to ice!

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

28 November 2016

View from Elmet Farmhouse at 5.10pm

 

Another spectacular pinky-orange sunset

 

Heptonstall Church on the hilltop opposite Pecket Well

 

Perfect end to a beautiful day

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

 

27 November 2016

More highlights from yesterday morning’s River of Mist…

 

These photos were taken about an hour and a half after those illustrated yesterday’s entry

 

The mist is gradually thinning and dispersing…

 

Same view of Stoodley Pike and Heptonstall from Elmet Farmhouse at Pecket Well – but changing minute by minute as the River of Mist flows through the valleys

 

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

 

26 November 2016

View from Elmet Farmhouse at 8.50 am… 

 

A heavy frost and a sea of mist…

 

Heptonstall floating in mid air…

 

And Stoodley Pike hovering in the heavens

 

An astonishing sight to wake up to

 

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

25 November 2016

Another serene sunset at Elmet Farmhouse…

Heptonstall, Hardcastle Crags and Stoodley Pike at 2.50 pm…

 

…suffused by a pinky-orange radiance

 

Late afternoon sunshine casting long shadows…

 

… and bathing the hills

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

24 November 2016

View from Elmet Farmhouse at Pecket Well…

 

…on a serene November afternoon

 

Stoodley Pike perched on the rolling Pennine hills

 

Heptonstall church silhouetted on the horizon

 

Not a bad panorama for a winter’s day

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

23 November 2016

Kitling Bridge at the top of Kitling Clough below Pecket Well

 

The last glorious days of autumn in Kitling Clough, also known as Pecket Well Clough

 

Looking down the steep stone paved packhorse track to Kitling Bridge

 

Streams merging in Pecket Well Clough, running down to Hardcastle Crags, where they merge with Crimsworth Dean Beck

 

A carpet of newly fallen beech leaves beneath the vibrant autumn canopy in Pecket Well Clough

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

22 November 2016

 

The last leaves on the trees and the last snow on the ground in Crimsworth Dean

 

A rather amazing contrast of colours…

 

… as winter overtakes autumn

 

Shimmering pinky gold beech leaves in Crimsworth Dean

 

Hardcastle Crags and Shackleton Hill from Pecket Well War Memorial with snow and mist

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

21 November 2016

Highland cattle in Pecket Well

 

On the hunt for tussocks of grass sticking out of the snow

 

Pecket Well in the snow….

 

Looking towards Oxenhope Moor from Wadsworth Moor above Pecket Well

 

Sunset at Stoodley Pike

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

20 November 2016

View from Elmet Farmhouse at 4pm

 

Elmet Farmhouse bathed in pink late afternoon sunshine

 

A still afternoon and a beautiful sunset

Stoodley Pike and Heptonstall church silhouetted against the pink sky

 

Sun setting in the west across the snowy fields from Elmet Farmhouse

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

19 November 2016

Wintry view from Elmet Farmhouse at Pecket Well

 

The black obelisk of Stoodley Pike towering over the snowy landscape

 

The tower of Heptonstall Church also standing out against the snow 

 

A cold day with alternating snow and rain…

 

… mist rising up from the wooded valleys of Hardcastle Crags and Crimsworth Dean

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

18 November 2016

View of Heptonstall from Elmet Farmhouse – snow on the tops and a swathe of mist in the valley

 

Overnight snow, followed by another deluge in the morning 

 

These photos were taken at around 3.40pm during a blizzard, hence the dark sky

 

Elmet Farmhouse looking pretty as a picture in the snow

 

Snow-capped walls and snow-laden plants in the garden at Elmet Farmhouse

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

17 November 2016

View from Elmet Farmhouse at 9 am in the morning

 

Compare and contrast with the photos from late yesterday afternoon

 

Because the sun is shining from the opposite direction…

 

It illuminates the landscape in a completely different way

 

 

Heptonstall and Stoodley Pike in a soft pinky-orange glow

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

 

16 November 2016

View from Elmet Farmhouse at 15.50 pm

 

Heptonstall illuminated by shafts of late afternoon sunshine

 

The light changes every minute…

 

Shafts of sun radiating through the clouds on Heptonstall

 

You need to have your camera at the ready when you come to stay at Elmet Farmhouse to catch these spectacular effects

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

15 November 2016

Heron in Hardcastle Crags…

 

… doing a spot of breakfast fishing

 

This weir is one of  the herons’ favourite spots in Hardcastle Crags

 

I see herons here regularly on my early morning walks

 

Dippers are also resident by Hebden Water in Hardcastle Crags – like a robin but with a white breast

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

14 November 2016

Crimsworth Dean

 

Picturesque railings near the main dam in Crimsworth Dean

 

Dam through beech leaves

 

Crimsworth Dean Beck from hillside above

 

Traffic light colours – red, yellow and green – in Crimsworth Dean

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

13 November 2016

Mill dam in Crimsworth Dean…

 

… with dazzling autumn foliage

 

Even the beech leaves on the surface of the dam retain their vibrant colours

 

Crimsworth Dean Beck running through the woods near Midgehole

 

Weir on Crimsworth Dean Beck with full load following the melting of the recent snow

 

 

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

 

12 November 2016

A few spots of rain won’t dampen our spirits

The woods in Crimsworth…

 

…are still alive with colour

And Crimsworth Dean Beck has lost none of its vivacity

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

 

11 November 2016

The next day we step back from winter to autumn again

 

Even after the ice and snow, many of the leaves are still on the trees 

 

And the autumnal hues in Crimsworth Dean are undiminished

 

Mill dam strewn with beech leaves in Crimsworth Dean

 

A carpet of beech leaves underfoot but plenty still on the branches above

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

 

 

10 November 2016

Suddenly, out of the blue, the first snow of the winter arrives…

 

… powdering the slopes of Stoodley Pike…

 

…and dusting the hills near Pecket Well

 

Here today, gone tomorrow

But we were all caught somewhat unawares

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

9 November 2016

Merger of Graining Water and Alcomden Water to form Hebden Water at Blake Dean

 

A picturesque spot in a rugged landscape

 

Part of the National Trust estate of Hardcastle Crags

 

Bracken at Blake Dean

 

Where the bracken meets the woods near Blake Dean

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

8 November 2016

Gibson Mill, Hardcastle Crags

 

Gibson Mill…

 

… from across the dam and the river

 

Footpath at Hardcastle Crags covered with beech leaves

 

Hebden Water near Gibson Mill at Hardcastle Crags

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

7 November 2016

Rowan berries…

…near Blake Dean

 

… at Hardcastle Crags

 

Hebden Water, just below the confluence of Graining Water and Alcomden Water at Blake Dean

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

6 November 2016

Bracken ablaze at Blake Dean in Hardcastle Crags

 

Autumn glory at Blake Dean

 

Graining Water at Blake Dean

 

Beech tree at Hardcastle Crags

 

 

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

5 November 2016

 

Fabulous fungal flowers on a fallen tree trunk on Hebden Water in Hardcastle Crags

 

Bonfire night in Hardcastle Crags…

 

Who needs fireworks with a display like this?

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

4 November 2016

Hardcastle Crags ablaze!

 

The woods at Hardcastle Crags are beautiful all year round but particularly exciting in the autumn

 

Oak leaves on the turn

 

Beech trees spilling over Hebden Water

 

Fern-decked cliffs by the river in Hardcastle Crags

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

3 November 2016

Autumn glory in Hardcastle Crags

 

Hold on to these vibrant colours…

 

…They’ll keep you warm during the winter months

 

Hebden Water upstream of Gibson Mill in Hardcastle Crags

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

2 November 2016

Hebden Water in the National Trust estate of Hardcastle Crags

 

The autumn colours in Hardcastle Crags have been intoxicating this year

 

I just can’t get enough!

 

A small weir on Hebden Water upstream from Gibson Mill

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson

 

1 November 2016

It’s fungi season down in Hardcastle Crags

 

Mycologists of the world unite!

 

Is it a space age dwelling? Not it’s just fungi sprouting mulitple canopies on a tree in Hardcastle Crags

 

Ascent to Clough Hole from Gibson Mill in Hardcastle Crags

 

 

Last gasp of the bracken on the oopen slopes near Gibson Mill

 

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson