Calverley walk 3

Nearing the end of the towpath stretch of the walk at Apperley Bridge, Woodhouse Grove School can be seen across the fields. Originally founded in 1812 for the education of the sons of Methodist ministers, it is now a fee-paying co-educational boarding and day school.

The walk route doubles back at this point up the interestingly named Parkin Lane and crosses a bridge over the canal. There are a few old properties and a lot of very new townhouses being built in this area. It is a popular residential area, located very conveniently for commuting to both Bradford and Leeds, especially since a new rail station has just opened nearby.

The photo below shows some very desirable Victorian houses, on a quiet lane leading to Calverley Wood. One of them - a five bedroom semi-detached dating back to 1860 - is currently for sale (see here) at around £850,000.

The route then enters Calverley Wood, which surrounds some old stone quarries that perhaps supplied the sandstone for some of Bradford's buildings.  Apparently there was once a WWII Prisoner of War camp here and then later, a fireworks factory which in 1957 suffered an explosion that killed three workers and injured others. Nowadays it is a peaceful wood, with a well-marked path that was at one time a packhorse route, so I didn't get lost this time. 

At the southern exit of the wood there is a lodge house, which suggests there must at one time have been a larger house in the area. It seems there were grandiose plans in Victorian times to build a small estate of fine houses, but it never came to fruition.