Busy doing my thing...

My thing, as everyone knows, is wandering around with a camera, snapping anything that takes my eye. Other people have different 'things'.

How about: paddle-boarding along the canal with the kid (and yes, he did have a lifejacket on, under his hoodie).

Or going over the white lines again before the weekend football starts. I wonder what his music of choice to accompany the activity is?  'A Whiter Shade of Pale', maybe?

For many people, it is messing about in a boat, in this case accompanied by a faithful pooch. Nice hat, mister.  (But you should open both lock gates, tch tch!)

So, what's your thing?

All aboard

Here's another photo taken when I was experimenting with my new camera on its first outing. It has a happy knack of making colours look really zingy, and this old boat made a good subject. The artwork, of colourful waves and sea creatures, was done by pupils at Saltaire Primary School and the boat has been planted up as a flower trough by the Hirstwood Regeneration Group. It sits beside the canal at Hirst Lock.

In reserve

I've mentioned before (see HERE) the small nature reserve that has been started near Hirst Lock, on a boggy field that was once part of a farm, beside the canal on the edge of Saltaire. It's the brainchild of the Hirst Wood Regeneration Group, who had already transformed a scrubby patch by the lock into an attractive garden. Some three years in the planning, the reserve officially opened in September 2015. Despite some problems with vandalism, it is beginning to establish itself and is a pleasant place for a stroll.

On the first (and only, so far!) warm, sunny day we've really had, a few days into April, I had a little walk in that direction. Everything is really behind this year. Daffodils were only just beginning to flower (although the smaller narcissus were a little more advanced) and there was at that stage hardly any blossom or signs of trees in bud. Nature's energy is literally held 'in reserve' but the warmer weather soon encourages growth to speed up.

The reserve is used for educational purposes by the local primary school. They have made a nice little mosaic picture, which clearly shows the mature tree near the reserve's entrance.

Cyril's spot

This spot, between Saltaire village and the lock at Hirst Wood, is a favourite stretch of the canal for me and features in many of my regular short walks. The canal bank here is often favoured by fishermen. I can only assume that Cyril Senior, immortalised in a small memorial plaque on the canal's edge, was a fisherman who loved to sit here in the quiet and try his luck with a fishing rod. Who can blame him?
Cyril is an uncommon name nowadays but it was my paternal grandfather's name too. I have a bit of a soft heart for Cyril as well as this stretch of canal.

Ratchet

Ironwork on the lock gate

Après le deluge 2

I'm not sure that I have ever shown this view of these houses on Hirst Mill Crescent before. It's an interesting old row of very disparate cottages and larger houses, with an old mill converted into flats right at the bottom of the lane. The hamlet is tucked in between Hirst lock on the canal, with access over the swing bridge, and on the other side of the mill the River Aire goes hurtling past over the weir. (See here for a view from the other side). Some of the houses date back to the 1860s, when there was a farm on the opposite bank of the canal and a lock-keepers cottage on this side. There has been a mill at the end of the lane since 1740, at first a corn mill, later converted to paper making. The mill and hamlet were bought by Sir Titus Salt in 1872 and let to tenants. It was used by a firm who washed industrial cloths (their sign is still visible on the brickwork), then a mattress maker and finally a textile combing firm. It closed in 1968 and was made into flats in 1970.

With so much water surrounding them, it is hardly surprising that some of these properties were flooded in the deluge on Boxing Day. Skips full of soggy furniture and ruined possessions are an all-too-common sight round here at the moment. Heartbreaking.

Familiar haunts

With fresh, spring green everywhere and lots of sunshine, a walk along my favourite route is like meeting an old friend again. Less than ten minutes walk from Saltaire village brings me to Hirst Lock, though along this stretch you have to watch out for cyclists, dogs and pushchairs. It's not only me that finds this a pleasant route.

From small beginnings...

It doesn't look much, does it? But this is the beginnings of a rather lovely venture up by Hirst Lock, about half a mile out of Saltaire.

Hirst Wood Regeneration Group is a community group, founded in 2000 and based in the small, nearby estate of Hirst Wood. They have over the years had a major impact in the community, founding among other things a community orchard, getting a new children's playground built and planting a community garden around Hirst Lock (seen in the background of my photo) on the Leeds-Liverpool Canal.

They've now been successful in getting approval and some initial funding to develop a small nature reserve adjacent to the canal and community garden, on a boggy field which has until now been unused and rather scruffy. They have already made huge progress in clearing the site (all done by volunteers) and have built walls and a seating area. It looks as though one part will become a dipping pond; such fun for kids to see what squiggly little creatures they can dredge up in nets.

In their own words: 'Our plan is to turn an untidy piece of bogland into a nature reserve that will be a haven for wildlife, a delight for visitors and an outdoor classroom for youngsters. It's an ambitious project but we believe that with our enthusiasm and hard work it will be a success.'

It's wonderful that people have the vision and drive for such things. It will be great when it's finished and, being so close to the canal and the ancient woodland of Hirst Wood itself, I'm sure it will attract lots of birds and other wildlife.

Green, blue and gold

Nature's colours are so gorgeous  - and double the value when there are reflections. Every tree seems to be marching to a different tune this autumn. Some are already bare and some are still resolutely green, with all shades in between. I always like this particular stretch of the Leeds-Liverpool Canal, with Hirst Lock in the background, but that prettily shaped tree doesn't always stand out so much. In her autumn dress, she suddenly reveals her good looks.

I haven't entered 'Weekend Reflections' hosted by James, for ages - but this is a good image to include, I think.  See here for more lovely photos from other contributors.

Join the queue

Britons have a reputation for waiting patiently (and sometimes not so patiently) in queues. But it's not often that you see a queue for the lock at Hirst Wood. There is just room for two narrowboats side-by-side, though it is a tight fit and requires some careful manoeuvring. The first of the two boats was registered in Deal in Kent, so they had travelled a long way.

Another Sunday stroll

Another Sunday stroll along the canal bank. The stretch from Saltaire to Hirst Lock is always popular with dog walkers, cyclists and families with baby buggies, because it is flat and smooth. The approach to the lock was made more attractive by this painted narrowboat moored there.

Hirst Locks garden

The little garden that was planted by the Hirst Wood Regeneration Group a few years ago has matured nicely and has really improved the area beside Hirst Lock on the Leeds-Liverpool Canal.  It's a pleasant 15 minute or so stroll from the centre of Saltaire along the towpath to the lock and the swing bridge - and there is often something to see there. Even if there are no boats, there are usually some ducks.  That makes it a popular destination for families, particularly at weekends, as it is not too far for little ones to walk. You often see kids on cycles too, as the towpath is good and flat.  I'm always glad when local folk take the trouble to make something nice to be enjoyed by others; the garden is attractive and quite well-maintained.

There used to be a small garden centre in that area too, but it is now derelict and becoming quite an eyesore.  Hopefully one day someone will come up with another imaginative use for that patch of land.

Down the plughole

There was a massive plug at the bottom of one of the locks! (About a foot/30cm long!) In normal operation, the water in the locks pours in and out through sluices, but the main sluices are up in the lock wall. I suppose they need a plughole too, to get the last of the water out when they want to completely drain the structure.

Dowley Gap Locks

The Dowley Gap Locks are a two-rise staircase lock, raising the level of the canal by 9m (20ft).  Built around 1773, they are Grade II listed, of historic and architectural interest particularly as they are linked to the Three and Five Rise Locks in nearby Bingley.  It is strangely moving and awe-inspiring to be able to climb right down into the locks, looking at the sluices and the massive lock gates, which are being replaced as part of the ongoing maintenance programme for the canal.

Britain's historic 2000 mile network of waterways is now managed by the Canal & River Trust, a charity which took over their care and preservation from British Waterways in 2012. I'm not exactly sure why that change was considered necessary but I think it was in order to move away from a purely 'business model' towards something broader that encompasses the history, educational, wildlife and amenity value of this precious resource and makes use of volunteers' skills and enthusiasm as well as that of its paid staff.  It's worth looking at the Trust's website, which is well-presented and very interesting. Since I spend much of my leisure time walking up and down the local stretches of river and canal, I have just joined the Trust as a 'friend'.  Hopefully in the future it will become as valuable and revered an institution as The National Trust, which so ably manages and preserves Britain's heritage of wild landscapes and historic buildings.