Spring sunshine sets seal
on Silsden's scenic splendour
Above: a circular walk along the canal and back through lanes illustrates why Silsden takes some beating as a place to live. Here, modern homes overlook moorings for the nearby busy canal boating centre.
Above: this imaginative development is in striking but not unpleasant contrast to the sturdy Victorian terraces which housed textile-mill workers.
Above: colourful gardens are a feature of the canal-side fringes of Waterside.
Above: this willow weeps with a reflective sweep.
Above: the Howden Park settlement has ancient roots.
Above: pylons 'march' across old field systems between Holden Bridge and Alder Carr Wood. Howden and Holden have caused what one historian describes as a "serious confusion of nomenclature". Holden is a Norse word meaning "hollow in the valley".
Above: looking back beyond Holden Bridge towards Silsden.
Above: mother goose takes a bow in presenting her eight greylag goslings.
Above: a landmark house near the towpath at Lower Holden.
Above: view towards Silsden from the towpath below Alder Carr Wood.
Above: a distinctive bend in the canal at Lodge Hill, which was called "blood dell" by older Silsdeners who played here as children. The path to Lower Holden leaves the towpath opposite the dell.
Above: the track from Howden House in the opposite direction to Lower Holden, which was part of the much larger pre-Norman manor of Holden. The area has a fascinating history.
Above: Holden Beck nears the River Aire. The beck in Lady Anne Clifford's time powered a corn mill at Howden Park.
Above: panoramic view of the Aire Valley from Hainsworth Road.
Above: where sheep may safely graze and rest in the shade. The green lane that became Hainsworth Road had served farming settlements for more than 500 years.
Above: Hainsworth Road farmland has given way to housing in recent times.
