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Late Doors · Match Coralspondent Joined: 11 Oct 2008 Posts: 2433

Beautiful Huddersfield (yes Beautiful I can see you sniggering, yes you at the back, i know your name boy) has three main masts. Emley Moor at the South Transmitting TV. Holme Moss in the West producing just Radio and Pole Moor to the North just doing MW Radio. As well as being a natural spot for the nations Reservoirs on account of it pissing down almost 365 days of the year the surrounding hills make the town ideal for transmitters. All three are regular destinations for walks and bike rides and all three are surrounded with stunning landscapes and views. Been round all three this last week on my bike.

First up Pole Moor at the North side of the town high up on Moorside Edge above Golcar on the North side of Colne Valley. Set off from the canal at Slaithwaite (Pronounced Slhowit, don’t dare say it any other way if your ever there). Quite a notorious place really although the restoration of the canal and the TV Series where the Heart is filmed mainly on location there has gentrified it a tad recently (Not a lot though). There is a railway station so the previously awful Commercial pub has been recently changed into a quality ale pub to fit in with the rest of the Ale trail railway trip that we have to do a Reg Trip on sometime. (Dewsbury, Huddersfield, Slaithwaite, Marsden, Stalybridge and back again. How about it?)

The canal and River Colne Tinkle through the bottom end of the Village before the big climb up to the Masts. Going up I can’t help recalling all the times I’ve had in the village, the fishing, the site of legendary local character coming on to bat at the notorious Slaithwaite cricket club bollock naked save for one pad on his left leg. The annual Slaithwaite rant festivals in Spring. The Silent Women pub the subject of a TV Documentary some years back about a Rugby league final trip from there and of course the pubs.

Pass under the viaducts to Hill Top reservoir

Then it’s up and up till you get to the top

where the 360 degree views are just stunning.

The Pennines and Holme Moss transmitter (next up) 8 mile to the right.

Emley Moor mast 10 mile south.

Huddersfield then Leeds to the left with Halifax bringing up the rear as usual behind us. Talking to some of the locals as we were going up they’d only just recovered from 8 ft of snow recently but the aspect and views you get up there must make all that Harsh weather more than bearable

Holme Moss and Emley Moor to follow
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I guess all songs is folk songs. I never heard no horse sing 'em

bearing · Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 12:37 pm Post subject:

MMMMmmmmmmmmmmmm

Masts!

Our two local transmitters.

Wrekin

Sutton Coldfield

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"If you give Leeds the ball, they will make you dance." - Johan Cruyff.

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Late Doors · Match Coralspondent Joined: 11 Oct 2008 Posts: 2433

On to Holme Moss then. The climb effectively starts at Holmfirth. There are any numbers of ways to get to Holmfirth using various paths and minor roads but I took the quick main Sheffield road going through Honley. Made famous by the Summer Wine series that has somehow glorified this ordinary village into a national treasure Holmfirth is about 7 miles West of Huddersfield. Its ok. One or two fine pubs (the legendary Nook) a couple of fantastic Curry places, an ace Tapas place, the brilliant Picturedrome venue, Compos bleeding café of course are visited by 1000’s of tourists every year. I would put it as Huddersfields Sixth nicest village. The annual Folk festival usually on or around the same weekend as the FA Cup final is ace but the place is spoilt by some of the areas nastiest feckers going. The uneasy alliance between the frankly thick as fuck locals and the gentrified comer inners is often on a knife edge, literally at times.

What it does have however is some of the best surrounding countryside in Yorkshire and therefore the World collectively known as Summer Wine country.

Holme Moss is another 4 miles West set high on the Pennine/Peak District meeting point and marks the Yorkshire/Derbyshire Border. So straight through Holmfirth to Holme Bridge (a genuine nice little village) and a little steep climb for starters to the much smaller and bleaker village of Holme. Home of the ace pub The Fleece (of the Pie Night thread)

Then the serious climbing starts.

In the 90’s we used to get major road races coming up Holme Moss.

I saw a very young Lance Armstrong streaming up one year, Mario Cippolini lead a sole attack up it and a blistering burst up there by the fantastic Sean Kelly but all that seems to have ended now. It’s a major biking test for anyone and I try to get up at least a handful of times a year. Monday was the first time this year so It was a bit of a struggle but I got up without stopping so it was a good start to mine and my trusty Bob Jacksons’ cycling rehabilitation

The snow was still thick up the road but the feeling and views from the top dissipated any pain. Its one of my favorite places in the world.

Next stop Emley Moor which you can just see here from Holme Moss

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I guess all songs is folk songs. I never heard no horse sing 'em

bearing · Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 12:50 pm Post subject:

When I was working up in either Dewsbury or Huddersfield and it was a nice day my journey home rarely took me down the M1. I'd head from Huddersfield down through Holmfirth and head for Crowden, cross the reservoir and continue on to Glossop. Carry on down through Hayfield and Chapel-en-le-Frith to Buxton. Once at Buxton shoot onwards to Ashbourne past Darley Moor towards Uttoxeter then home.

Fantastic route home and odd to think that Huddersfield is only about 55 miles as the crow flies from Stafford...

*I'm closer than you think lads*
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"If you give Leeds the ball, they will make you dance." - Johan Cruyff.

http://rlawaerials.co.uk

Late Doors · Match Coralspondent Joined: 11 Oct 2008 Posts: 2433

We used to ride to Uttoxeter regularly away when a mate of ours lived there, Like wise Stone.

So Emley Moor

This time eastward across town, through Almondbury, my old stomping ground Moldgreen,. Kirkheaton, Lascelles Hall, Lepton and up to Emley. The Eastern part of Hudersfield aint nowhere near as pretty as the West and South but still has some nice little spots once you get past Moldgreen and into the Kirkheaton area and start to go south towards Emley Moor.

Past Lascelles Hall cricket club another legendary venue where I once saw Geoff Boycott sulk his way through a charity event. The towering Emley moor mast can be seen all over West Yorkshire and its never out of site as you make the climb towards it.

Up to Lepton another great cricket/football club and home of the famous Lepton girls and across to the ex pit village of Emley where even the ace local football team has fecked off leaving the place a rural genteel village of tranquility.

The Mast dominates everything around it. The White Horse pub at Lepton has gone leaving this one the last one standing

As you'd expect some belting views up there that i could fill the entire board with

Including the view over to Holme Moss here in the distance to complete the trilogy

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I guess all songs is folk songs. I never heard no horse sing 'em

Grind · Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 3:27 pm Post subject:

Ace!
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bearing · Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 4:01 pm Post subject:

Young Marxist at Tescos · Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 11:17 pm Post subject:

LD - Holme Moss is a tough climb alright, but you always feel like you'll get there. Once did a sportive up there into a raging southerly. Some right carnage. Lads with thousand quid bikes off and walking.

Late Doors · Match Coralspondent Joined: 11 Oct 2008 Posts: 2433

Eh up ymat, dont be a stranger on here we need more cyclists (theres a sneaky little anti brigade building up strapping their bull bars on as we speak

Yeah Col De Moss aint as bad as some would have it especially when you get fit, the last bit past the two trees is a breeze really it just looks dispiriting from a distance to the unaware eye. Ive still got Lance Armstrongs' Motorola water bottle he threw at us there

I do Wessenden Head out of Meltham (the Greenfield Road) on to Holme then the Moss when im feeling strong for a proper test. (maybe in a couple of weeks, im getting the old body gradually back in working order and dont want to rush things after four years struggle)
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I guess all songs is folk songs. I never heard no horse sing 'em

Carp · smidgin taller than Dock Joined: 17 Aug 2009 Posts: 2321

Nice pics LD....Can't beat a bit of natural beauty....

(Bloody cyclists - bet he rides side b' side up lanes)
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Young Marxist at Tescos · Posted: Sun Apr 04, 2010 10:54 am Post subject:

Yeah, LD, Everywhere needs more cyclists. Don't get on here very often...usually out cycling. Did HMoss mid-March; nice day when I set off; still snow-capped up there!