Next Open Committee Meeting - Weds 8th July 2026

The next open meeting will be held at 7-00pm on Weds 8th at the Drop Inn, 12 Elland Lane, Elland, HX5 9DU.

Please come along and support your group. I'll be leaving Holmfirth and passing through Huddersfield so if you would like a lift please get in touch (07773 45080).

Calderdale Crawl - Saturday 1st August

Our Challenge event is now FULL
Arrangements are being finalised and staffing for the day is in place. However, a recent recce of the route showed that some sections are quite overgrown, The intention is that work parties will try to tackle these, probably in the week of Mon-Fri 20-24 July, but actual time, date and place(s) to be confirmed. We would be grateful for any offers of help with this. Please get in touch.

Navigation Course - Sunday 2nd August

Venue: Neiley Pavilion, 30 New Mill Road,, Honley, Holmfirth, HD9 6QE. Price £10.  There are only 2 places remaining for LDWA participants so, if interested, please contact me directly for details and to secure a place. 07773450860 neil.midgley49@btinternet.com 

Congratulations ....

(1) to Tom Airlie who completed the Nidderdale Way over 4 days in June. This 53 mile circular is traditionally started from Pateley Bridge and divided into four stages covering lowland pastures to open fells near the source of the River Nidd. Stunning scenery on a route which Tom described as "fairly moderate" by LDWA measures.

(2) to Shaun Mabey, Noel O'Connor and Russell Sill who completed 'The National Three Peaks' Challenge on the 20th June. The challenge is to achieve the national summits of Scotland, England and Wales in 24 hours, with timing starting from setting out to the first and ending when getting back from the third. This involves 23 miles of walking with just over 10,000 feet of ascent which the team managed in a little under 11 hours. When driving time in between is included they completed in 22 hours and 15 minutes.  Ben Nevis was tackled first using the Pony Path from Glen Nevis, then the drive to Wasdale Head for the walk up Scafell Pike, and finally to Pen-y-Pass, out on the PYG track to Snowdon with a return on the Miner's Track. None of this would have been possible without Claire, Shaun's partner, who did the driving (almost a 1,000 mile round trip from the Holme Valley!) and provided the support including hot meals etc.

Perhaps their only mistake (or was it?!) was not going the following weekend when they would have had the Princess of Wales for company

(3) to Paul Winn and his wife Vicky who followed in the footsteps of Kath and Sue (see last newsletter) by completing the Coast to Coast on Saturday 27th.  An account which provides useful advice for anyone else thinking of taking on the route follows below.

Well done to all the above (including Kate!). Remember I can't acknowledge your achievements if you don't let me know!

Social Walk (details on the website)

Saturday 11th July, High Burton Round, 14 miles, led by Jane Guest

We are always looking for members willing to lead a social walk. Please get in touch.

New Members

A welcome to the following who have joined the group since the last newsletter.

Nicola Crust, Andy and Vicki Shortt.

We look forward to meeting you on one of our social or challenge walks.

The Coast to Coast National Trail - Paul and Vicky Winn

We started Wainwright's Coast to Coast and latest National Trail as a walk, but quickly appreciated we were on a journey across the country. It's a journey of variety. Variations of landscapes unfold as you progress: the challenge of mountainous routes, the inviting passages through dales, the welcoming villages and towns, the charm of gentle pastoral countryside and the barrier of high moorland. Then there's the two coastlines and seas of course.

Walking the C2C presents logistical and practical challenges too. We spent 15 days at a comfortable daily walking average of 12 miles or so. Choose how you carve up the 192 miles according to your own preferences and requirements. However, given the abundance of the new National Trails signage, few would stray from the "official" route, though being "old school", we were never without OS map and compass. And it seems there is a selection of Apps to guide the walker on the path.

Accommodation will usually dictate where each day's walk will end. There's a fairly wide range of accommodation directly on the route, all readily available on websites, and, in our experience, geared up for "Coast to Coasters". On the whole, they will cater for breakfast and packed lunches. Evening meals, more often than not, have to be planned for and booked, usually. Choice of food can be limited, though it can also be varied and attractive. But plan your accommodation and book early. There is high demand and commercial tour companies block book rooms.

AS we did, most of the walkers we met on the route, who, by the way, were of many different nationalities, had used baggage handling companies to transfer their luggage between accommodation. It's a slick and efficient operation. Choose to carry what you need on the day, but have an eye to the weather forecasts. In June, we experience days of cold low cloud, periods of heavy rain, days of blistering heat, calm sunny summer afternoons and dramatic thunderstorms that left us saturated and stung by hailstones. But there were few lows and many highs on our coast to coast journey. In the end, traversing the country from westerly to easterly facing cliffs along such an inspired route is a deeply satisfying walk; and one that seems to have acquired an iconic status. But to leave the final word to its creator, AW, it remains just "an enjoyable walk across England".

That's all for now, all the best to everyone, Neil. 07773450860