Peaceful Golden Acre Park

 Check This Please?

Wednesday 27 July 2022

Leeds - Golden Acre Park   

Brian, John and I rendezvoused at Leeds Bus Station for the 11:00 bus  to Otley. Unfortunately the bus didn’t show and we had to wait for the 11:30 X84 to Ilkley. 

However, the bus was full to the rafters and noisy so we decided to modify our day out and alighted at Golden Acre for a lovely tranquil walk through this vast North Leeds Park. 

The weather was undecided with cloud and sunshine but we took advantage of both extremes as we meandered through the park on our way to the hide where Eddie loved to view all sorts of wildlife. Whilst we were in the Hide a couple told us of another hide a short distance away which we decided to check out and I’m glad we did for it has a huge expanse of water with lots of birds flying by and at rest. The first bird we saw was the eponymous Kingfisher and in the distance there was a Heron resting by the lake. There was also a twitcher in there with a camera set up who showed us close ups of the Kingfisher which were spectacular. We chatted for about ten minutes and worked our way back to the café stopping and resting by another lake to witness a variety of birds feeding on the lake. 

We then decided to visit the cafe for a coffee for me and chocolate lollies for John and Brian. Checking out our next adventure at the same time we decided on  Littleborough to Walsden for the 3rd August leaving Leeds @ 10:18 arriving at around 11:30. John would be going from Bradford and would arrive @ 12:00 or earlier if he could. 

Another great day out proving you sometimes don't need to travel far to achieve greatness and we certainly did that again today!

-- 

Colin Hendrick Ward

Another Great Gathering

 Wednesday 13th July 2022.                 Another Great Gathering 

Yet another Uncle Tom Cobleigh scenario for the lads today has they took the old grey mare so to speak, to Roundhay Park on the outskirts of Leeds. The idea behind this adventure was to meet up with an old workmate of the lads , Tim Kearney. He struggles with his mobility and finds it rather difficult to walk very far. So John being John has arranged for a number of the lads to rendezvous just at a few minutes after 11am outside the Mansion House in the grounds of Roundhay park, a relatively short distance from Tim’s home, his wife would dropping him off there. The rest of the lads would be taking the No 2 bus from the city centre all apart from Keith who was coming by car. Just before Brian, John , Colin ,Malcolm , Derek and Dave boarded the bus , eagled eye Brian spotted another old work colleague at the bus stop, the person in question was Doug Mackintosh , so a quick hello to this chap was in order and he was so pleased we had done so. Then Along came the old grey mare and we trotted off to Roundhay.

It was a pleasant sunny late morning as we arrived at the park entrance and it remained so throughout our stay. We managed to rearrange the seating requirements for all eight of us has we sat drinking and chatting out on the patio just in front of the Mansion House, what a pleasant and delightful experience for us all, plenty of banter about the old days spent at Thackray’s , seems strange that any work projects were fulfilled. With time drifting on it was now farewell to Tim and thank him for his company etc, Keith also had an appointment to take care of, the rest of us took a short walk in direction of the Bandstand before returning to the entrance gates and consuming an ice cream from a nearby vendor, then it was climb aboard a No 12 bus and journey back to the city and then take our respective journeys home.

Yet another great day out with the Lads 

Cheers Everyone.

Wednesday 6 July 2022

Visit to Abraham Heights  

John and I rendezvoused at Leeds Railway Station for the 10:11 Plymouth Train to Derby but splitting the Tickets Leeds to Sheffield and Sheffield to Matlock via Derby saving around £25 alighting in Matlock Bath adjacent to Abraham Heights at 12:06 ostensibly making the Cable Car’s £19.20 fee a free ride. There were no reductions for Seniors unless you showed them your train ticket  reducing the full price from £24.95 to £19.20. 

The cable cars were great getting on the slow moving car with ease taking us about seven minutes to get to the summit. 

We decided to do “The Great Masson Cavern Tour” at 13:00 giving us a few minutes before the tour started to descend the Heights for a quick look round. Climbing back up we sat for a few minutes waiting for The Great Masson Cavern Tour to start. 

The group was around twenty-five tourists and we descended into the Cavern very slowly as the tour leader had warned us about uneven floors, low roofs and slippery surfaces. With this in mind we approached the forty five minute tour with extreme caution.

The Cavern was mined for lead which was in great demand particularly after the great fire of London in 1666 where lead flashing was used extensively to rebuild London. The Cavern was mined for a couple of hundred years and many miners left their insignia around 1705 which is etched into the rocks. The lead was easily identified with shiny surfaces where the limestone and rock were not reflective. There were a number of working areas where the miners took many years to exhaust the lead mineral which was then weighed by the Taxman and the miners would be paid accordingly. The lead was then transferred by horse and cart to the Canal to be then further transferred by a fleet of barges to their final destination. 

By the 17th century lead was second in importance in the national economy only to wool. It was essential for the roofs of public buildings and the new houses being built in every part of the country by the nobility and gentry. All houses, including farmhouses and cottages by then, had glazed windows, with lead glazing bars. It was the only material for water storage and piping. Every army used it as ammunition. There was a thriving export trade as well as the home market. 

The tour was appreciated by everyone and a resounding clapping could be heard at the end for the Tour Guide. 

We then made our way down to the cable cars but not before partaking in a 99 for me and an ice cream for John although he asked for the same as me she omitted to put a flake in his!

We then had a chat with two stooges who were dressed in Victorian attire who we chatted to for a few minutes with plenty of banter included. 

We then boarded the Cable Car to take us back to the base station. 

A great time had by John and me as we made our way back to Matlock Bath Station for the 15:17 back to Derby where we caught the 16:11 back to Sheffield arriving back in Sheffield at 16:42 on Platform 5 we then rushed to Platform 3A to catch the 16:44 back to Leeds, just made it with seconds to spare. 

We had wanted to catch the direct train from Derby to Leeds (Edinburgh Train) but it would have meant hanging about in Derby for about an hour and this didn’t meet with John’s approval. 

Arriving back in Leeds at around 17:45 with John going for his train back to Bingley and me getting the 202 Arriva bus back to Beeston.

Another great day out proving once again you don’t need to travel far to enjoy yourselves!

-- 

Colin Hendrick Ward