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! (Lesley Jackson)
30 April 2016

View from Elmet Farmhouse

Stoodley Pike and Heptonstall on the horizon

Daffodils and hellebores in the garden at Elmet Farmhouse

Primroses flourishing in the cottage garden at Elmet Farmhouse

© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
29 April 2016

Moody sky over Luddenden Dean

Early morning sun through the trees in Luddenden Dean

Leaves coming out on the trees in the woods of Luddenden Dean

Fern-clad wall in Luddenden Dean

Fledgling chaffinch in the garden
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
26 April 2016

Jacob sheep in Luddenden Dean

Pigmy goats in Luddenden Dean

Catherine House Farm in Luddenden Dean

Luddenden Brook running through Luddenden Dean

The beautiful unspoilt valley of Luddenden Dean
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
27 April 2016

Castellated lodge gatehouse for the demolished mansion of Castle Carr in Luddenden Dean

The two gatehouses are connected by an impressive arched gateway

Luddenden Dean – with heather moorland above lush green meadows

Early morning sunshine on the fells above Luddenden Dean

Cottages in Luddenden Dean
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
26 April 2016

More lovely lambs!



© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
25 April 2016

Five views of Luddenden Dean




© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
24 April 2016

Roe deer in meadow above Hardcastle Crags

Roe deer are regularly spotted in wooded valleys such as Hardcastle Crags, usually in twos or threes

They come up from the woods to graze on the hilltop meadows

Catkins at Hardcastle Crags, with Gibson Mill in the background

Bluebells massing in Hardcastle Crags
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
23 April 2016

Swaledale sheep and lamb at Pecket Well

New-born Swaledale lamb at Pecket Well

Pecket Well War Memorial – also known as ‘mini Stoodley’

The wooded valley of Hardcastle Crags below Pecket Well

The hilltop village of Pecket Well, with Hardcastle Crags in the valley below and Heptonstall and Stoodley Pike on the horizon
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
22 April 2016

Stoodley Pike from Wadsworth Moor

Heather in hibernation on Wadsworth Moor

Meadow pipit in the heather on Wadsworth Moor

Goose on the lookout in the heather on Wadsworth Moor

Shaft to underground water tunnel – a landmark on the heather moorland above Pecket Well
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
21 April 2016

View from Elmet Farmhouse at Pecket Well, with Heptonstall and Stoodley Pike on the horizon

A host of daffodils flowering in the cottage garden at Elmet Farmhouse

View from the cottage garden at Elmet Farmhouse

Looking down on the cottage garden at Elmet Farmhouse, with daffodils, primroses, hellebores and pulmonaria all in bloom

Snakes head fritillary in the garden
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
20 April 2016

Northern Wheatear in Crimsworth Dean

View over the bracken along Crimsworth Dean

View towards Stoodley Pike along Crimsworth Dean

Ewes and lambs at Grain Farm in Crimsworth Dean

A copse of Scots Pines in Crimsworth Dean
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
19 April 2016

Bucoli scene in Crimsworth Dean

Mother and child reunion in Crimsworth Dean

Early morning sunshine highlighting the folds of Crimsworth Dean

Homages to William Blake: sheep and new-born lambs sheltering under a tree in Crimsworth Dean

Gentle slopes give way to steep valley sides at the head of Crimsworth Dean
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
18 April 2016



Tucking in for milkshake at the Crimsworth canteen


Cute Crimsworth lamb, caught in mid bleat
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
17 April 2016


Looking a bit sheepish


The Crimsworth Three – plotting mischief

Jay in the garden at Elmet Farmhouse
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
16 April 2016

Another new arrival in the Crimsworth maternity ward

Stepping out!


It’s all happening in Crimsworth…

© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
15 April 2016


Timid twins in the Crimsworth creche


Come in number 25! Mother and child in Crimsworth Dean

A poppit of a pipit perching on a post in Crimsworth Dean
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
14 April 2016

Solitary mill chimney stranded in the woods at Colden Clough…

…Evocative relics of the once substantial Lumb Mills at Lumb Bank, near Heptonstall, dating from the early 19th century

Colden Water – the river tapped to power a string of textile mills during the 18th and 19th centuries

Jack Bridge crossing Colden Water in Colden Clough

The first bluebells coming into flower in Colden Clough, near Heptonstall
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
13 April 2016

River of mist blockading the end of Crimsworth Dean

Caught napping… Sleepy lambs having a lie-in in Crimsworth Dean

Number 11 nuzzling up to mum – a bit heavy on the graffiti!

It’s quite a gambol, this lambing lark

The sun-kissed slopes of Crimsworth…. again
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
12 April 2016

Lumb Falls in Crimsworth Dean – soon the spring foliage will obscure the view


Bracken and woodland on the steep slopes of Crimsworth Dean

Crimsworth Dean Beck as it flows through the woods lower down the valley

Watercourses channelling water from Crimsworth Dean Beck to the former dyeworks at Midgehole, near Hardcastle Crags
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
11 April 2016



And this is where the photos were taken from – Elmet Farmhouse on the right

The daffs are now in full bloom in the garden at Elmet Farmhouse and the hellebores are still going strong

Crimsworth Dean – a tranquil unspoilt valley a short walk from Elmet Farmhouse with more lovely vistas
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
10 April 2016


The unexpected snow on the hills late last night gives a new twist to the River of Mist


River of Mist 20 minutes earlier at 8.05am

© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
9 April 2016

Crimsworth Dean – a chorus of curlews ricocheting around the valley, a flash of yellow as a green woodpecker takes flight

Crème de Crimsworth – soft early morning sunshine spilling across the fields

Meadow pipit in Crimsworth Dean – flitting from one fence post to the next

Pied wagtail dipping and diving through Crimsworth Dean

Sheep on a moss-covered boulder near Lumb Falls in Crimsworth Dean
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
8 April 2016

The sun-kissed slopes of Crimsworth Dean at 8am

Bouncy lambs on the nursery slopes at Grain Farm in Crimsworth Dean

Mother and toddler looking a bit quizzical


Sun on ‘the tops’ – Old Town skyline from Crimsworth Dean
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
7 April 2016

‘Hello mum!’ New arrival in the Crimsworth creche

Into position – tucking in for breakfast at the Crimsworth Deanery

Like mother, like daughter (or is it a son?) – Contented duo at Grain Farm in Crimsworth Dean

Crimsworth curlew – finally photographed two months after the first curlews returned

© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
6 April 2016

Is it the Lake District fells? No, it’s the precipitous slopes of Crimsworth Dean


How green is our valley? Well, the answer is ‘very’!… View along Crimsworth Dean, with Stoodley Pike in the distance

Looking up to the former Methodist Chapel in Crimsworth Dean

Blue sky, cotton wool clouds and purplish woods in Crimsworth Dean
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
5 April 2016



… meandering through Crimsworth Dean towards Lumb Falls

Looking back along Crimsworth Dean towards Grain Water Bridge

Looking south from mid way along Crimsworth Dean
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
4 April 2016


Two new-born lambs nestling against their mother up on ‘the tops’

The maternity ward up on Walshaw Moor above Hardcastle Crags – with soothing musical accompaniment of curlews

Another one on the way perhaps? Or maybe she just wants a good old scratch

Luminous green meadow up on ‘the tops’ above Hardcastle Crags, looking towards Slack Heptonstall with Stoodley Pike on the far hilltop
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
3 April 2016

Lambs on the high meadows near Walshaw above Hardcastle Crags

Not a bad place to enter the world…

Tucking in for afternoon tea

A picture of innocence – see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil

The Walshaw creche – triplets number 1 and triplets number 2
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
2 April 2016

Well it had to happen eventually… The first of lambs of the year at Grain Farm in Crimsworth Dean

They’re still a bit unsteady on their feet, and note the pipe cleaner legs

This little chap is still a bit wrinkly, presumably a recent arrival, possibly even today

Whereas this dynamic duo are well into their stride

And then there were three… Lots more on the way no doubt (watch this space)
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson
1 April 2016

Baaaa Humbug!


Bleached grass and colour-coordinated Swaledale sheep looking imperious on Wadsworth Moor


A harmonious palette – bracken, bilberries and silver birch on the upper slopes of Luddenden Dean
© All photos copyright Lesley Jackson