Oxenhope Straw Race - The Chippendales?

The fun continued well after the finish of the Oxenhope Straw Race, as you can see in this cheeky shot. One of the teams entertains the crowd outside of the Dog and Gun at Oxenhope.

Oxenhope Straw Race 2013

I spent an enjoyable afternoon at the Oxenhope Straw Race today.  Contestants have to carry a bale of straw from pub to pub around the village of Oxenhope, stopping off at each holstelry to down a pint of ale.  Most of the participants are in fancy dress, so there is a carnival atmosphere, and the event raises money for charity.  I was impressed with this band who managed to push their stage around with them, with all their gear inside (generator, amps, full drum kit, the lot), and up some seriously steep hills!

Oakworth Village Morris Men - Weekend Of Dance

Morris Dancing at Oakworth Station on the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway, part of a weekend of dance organised by Oakworth Village Morris Men.  Around a dozen morris sides from different parts of the country spent their Saturday at various villages in the Yorkshire Dales and their Sunday morning at the famous heritage railway line which runs between Keighley and Haworth.
The team pictured are Kinnerton Morris Men, a Cotswold style side from the Chester area of the UK.

Beware Of Trains

     I spent a couple of hours at the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway yesterday morning.  The heritage steam railway society was holding its annual Winter Steam Gala, a weekend (well, three days actually) of  special events on the Keighley to Oxenhope branch line.  The picture was taken at  a pedestrian crossing point just below Oxenhope station and shows locomotive No. 80002, which I believe is shortly to be taken out of service for a major overhaul, on its downward journey to Haworth and Keighley stations.

Top Withens - Haworth

We have had our first winter snowfall here in Yorkshire recently, it didn't snow very much and it didn't stay long on the ground and unfortunately I didn't manage to get out and capture it with the camera.

The picture above was taken two or three years ago when I had my film camera and shows the ruin of Top Withens (or Top Withins) which is believed to be the Earnshaw house in Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights. The building has been unoccupied since 1926 and I can quite understand why, it's usually cold, wet, and windy at this location, the clouds seeming to cling to the hilltops. I'm hoping to walk the Bronte Way this winter, it's approximately 40 miles long and passes through the Bradford area on its way from Gawthorpe Hall near Burnley in Lancashire to Oakwell Hall in West Yorkshire. I will be doing the walk in short sections over several weeks which should give me plenty of time to take pictures along the way and write a little bit about them.

Busker - Haworth

I haven't been able to get out with the camera much recently, so I'm struggling a bit for pictures for the blog. This busker was in the main street a Haworth two or three weeks ago, I stopped to listen for a few minutes, he was pretty good. His mame is Jonny Walker and he has a pages on myspace and facebook.

Scroggling The Holly - Haworth

The start of Christmas shopping was marked by a 'scrogging the holly' event in the main street of Haworth today. Local children were accompanied by a stout gentleman called a 'beagle' to the church steps. Apparently a beagle was an officer of the law before we had policemen.

BMX Bikers - Belle Isle Road

I was driving back from the Halloween parade at Haworth on Sunday when I spotted these BMX bikers practising at the side of the road. I'm no expert on BMX, but these lads looked pretty good at it.

Halloween Parade - Haworth

I spent an enjoyable couple of hours in Haworth this afternoon. A Halloween parade was taking place in the village, starting at the bottom of the cobbled main street and working its way up to the church steps at the top of the street. The kids taking part in the procession seemed to really enjoy it, so did the spectators, and so did I, I'm a big kid really!

Brian Blessed?

This was one of the participants in the Bronte Tractor Run on Sunday, quite a character really, he reminded me of the actor Brian Blessed, he even had the same kind of laugh!

Bronte Vintage Tractor Run

The Bronte Tractor Runs Group raise money for charities such as the Yorkshire Air Ambulance and the Sue Ryder Hospice. Around twenty tractors took part in one of these events on Sunday. The group assembled on the outskirts of Haworth before heading out on moorland roads to Hebden Bridge and then returning to Haworth later in the day, collecting money for charity on the way. The beautifully restored tractor in the picture was made by International Harvesters and could possibly have been made at their Idle, Bradford factory.

Lamb Inn - Oxenhope Straw Race

Contestants in the Oxenhope Straw Race leaving the Lamb Inn after downing a quick beer.

Elvis at the Oxenhope Straw Race

As well as taking part in the race, Elvis and his band managed to put in a couple of performances at the Oxenhope Straw Race.

Oxenhope Straw Race

The village of Oxenhope lies about nine miles West of Bradford and is probably best known as the terminus for the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway. The village is also famous for its annual Straw Race. Contestants in the race have to down a pint of ale at each pub in the village whilst carrying a large bale of straw, not an easy task as there are some seriously steep hills to negotiate. The event is to raise money for local charities and most individuals and teams compete in fancy dress.

Sgt. Oddball - Haworth 1940's Weekend

     I had walked past this chap a couple of times, he looked vaguely familiar, and then it came to me, the film Kelly's Heroes.  I went back and had a quick chat, and yes he was playing the part of Sgt. Oddball (played by Donald Sutherland in the film) and would I like to take any pictures, the answer was of course, yes.

Haworth 1940's Weekend

     The village of Haworth has been transformed into wartime Britain this weekend.  The cobbled streets are full of British, American and German(!) soldiers, military vehicles and 1940's entertainers.  A photographer is really spoilt for choice at an event like this.  I kind of liked these little buns with the flags, they were a pound each with the proceeds going to the charity 'Help For Heroes'.

Drystone Wall - Haworth

     These drystone walls are everywhere in Yorkshire, they form the field boundaries in valley bottoms, run up steep valley sides, and sometimes run for miles across open moorland.  This wall is on the moors above Haworth.

Bronte Country

     This ruined farmhouse high on the moors above Haworth is thought to be the location of the Earnshaw home in Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights.  The ruin is within walking distance of Haworth and is popular with Japanese literary tourists, some of the footpath signs in the area are in Japanese as well as English.