Latest Images by Tom Blackwell http://www.geograph.org.uk/ 2013-05-19T18:39:55GMT text/html 2009-04-30T19:48:08GMT http://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/36042 Tom Blackwell 53.899806 -1.739572 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1279630 This looks like it may be a Victorian municipal graveyard. Its name is "God's Acre Cemetery" and it is situated just north of Menston beside the former path of the old railway line which used to connect Otley to Burley via Milnerwood Junction. text/html 2009-04-30T19:15:08GMT http://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/36042 Tom Blackwell 53.892877 -1.697770 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1279589 One of the outer marker beacons for Leeds Bradford Airport marks the highest ground on Otley Chevin. text/html 2009-04-30T19:01:30GMT http://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/36042 Tom Blackwell 53.918787 -1.856387 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1279559 A couple sit and watch the world go by on the rocky outcrop at Woodhouse, Ilkley Moor. text/html 2009-04-30T16:01:41GMT http://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/36042 Tom Blackwell 53.900243 -1.695891 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1279257 Clouds diffuse the light of the setting sun over the wintry landscape above Otley. text/html 2009-04-30T15:21:14GMT http://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/36042 Tom Blackwell 53.712107 -2.101776 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1279210 Apparently known as "The Great Wall of Tod", this huge brick retaining wall supports the railway as it enters Todmorden from Lancashire. text/html 2009-04-29T20:54:55GMT http://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/36042 Tom Blackwell 53.899435 -1.734248 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1278170 Walking along the former railway line to the west of Otley, Wharfedale; between what were the old Milnerwood and Burley Junctions (closed during the Beeching Axe). This section is described in an 1888 book by Frederick Williams called "The Midland railway, its rise and progress, a narrative of modern enterprise". "...as [the line] sweeps on through the magnificent dale of the Wharfe, it descends at first by a gentle fall and then by a heavy gradient. Between Milnerwood and Burley is the central portion of the joint line from Otley to Ilkley, over which the two railway companies run in common, and which is one of the most beautiful portions of the whole route. The length of the North Eastern line from Arthington to Ilkley is about nine miles ; but that of the new portion from Otley is only six. From Ilkley to Burley the line is a steep ascent. The only cuttings are near Burley, and they are not of great depth. The deepest met with on this part of the line is between Milnerwood and Otley. It is, however, through a sandy formation, whereas a deep cutting in the neighbourhood of Guiseley is through rock. The remainder of the line to Otley lies at the base of Otley Chevin." [Full book available as a PDF from The Internet Archive] http://www.archive.org/stream/midlandrailwayit00willuoft/midlandrailwayit00willuoft_djvu.txt text/html 2009-04-29T17:02:21GMT http://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/36042 Tom Blackwell 53.899720 -1.787055 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1277663 This is one of the many reservoirs situated on Ilkley Moor which were built by the municipal water companies of the Victorian era. The moor serves a range of towns as it represents a large rain catchment area and is situated higher than most of the surrounding districts. text/html 2009-04-29T16:52:55GMT http://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/36042 Tom Blackwell 53.912965 -1.806626 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1277631 Several of these rusty metallic spouts, rising from the heather and bracken of the surrounding moorland, are the only clues betraying the subterranean reservoir which lies underneath. It was built in the late 1800s to supply drinking water to Ilkley. The purpose of the overground pipes is presumably to allow oxygenation of the water. There is an article on the Yorkshire Evening Post website - http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/news/Unusual-Ilkley-home-for-sale.4439770.jp - about a now-decommissioned pumping station on the edge of the town which was built to serve this reservoir. The building can be seen in the distance of this image - http://www.flickr.com/photos/tjblackwell/3436076294/ text/html 2009-04-29T16:40:52GMT http://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/36042 Tom Blackwell 53.905132 -1.750650 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1277607 This ancient but sturdy little stone bridge has been taking the weight of all kinds of locomotives since its construction around 1865. The one in this picture is a metro train heading from Leeds to Harrogate on a stretch of line built by The Midland Railway company in the early Victorian era. text/html 2009-04-29T16:23:53GMT http://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/36042 Tom Blackwell 53.986358 -1.666747 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1277590 John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster (alive from 1340 to 1399) was the third surviving son of King Edward III of England. He gained his name "John of Gaunt" because he was born in Ghent (in today's Belgium), then called Gaunt in English. His descendants include Kings Edward IV, Richard III, and Henry Tudor. These humble walls and the trench of what was once a moat are all that remains of the ancient building known as 'John o' Gaunt's Castle'. Whilst grandly named, the castle was more of a forest lodge, for the residence of the park-keeper and his assistant forest rangers; strong enough to repel the attacks of any band of outlaws which might harbour in the forest. Although small in size, it probably played host to King Edward II at some time around the year 1323. text/html 2009-04-28T14:24:56GMT http://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/36042 Tom Blackwell 53.885404 -1.659182 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1276078 This shot was taken standing just outside the control bunker of 644th Regiment's Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery on Otley Chevin. The concrete is slowly crumbling and the main bunker is now flooded but the site is still intact enough to be easily recognisable. The base of what was probably a gun predictor - http://www.flickr.com/photos/tjblackwell/3380517180/ - can be seen off to the left. Anthony Hodgetts includes tales of barrage balloons and artificial cows in his excellent account of the locality: "This site also had a barrage balloon later on in the war, which was used for training paratroopers when the Airborne Division was formed. Many years later, when I was showing some pictures to friends, one of them, Andy Clements, revealed that he had done his basic parachute training at Carlton, being billeted at RAF Yeadon and jumping from the balloon basket. He told me that his platoon was assembled every evening at dusk, put into the back of a three-tonner and taken up to the Avro factory, where their task was to move the artificial cows around, to maintain the illusion that it was still a farm field - we were aware that something of the sort was going on, but it was only after the war that the activities of the camouflage experts of the film industry became known." Quote sourced from BBC: http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/stories/27/a4017827.shtml text/html 2009-04-28T14:13:52GMT http://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/36042 Tom Blackwell 53.978504 -1.459291 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1276054 Situated between Harrogate and Wetherby in the North of England, Plumpton Rocks is a historic garden of 30-acres which is host to a range of strange and fascinating rock formations. The garden has been used in numerous television programs, and it is rumoured that Robin Hood once hunted deer there. text/html 2009-04-28T13:52:17GMT http://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/36042 Tom Blackwell 53.905894 -1.599958 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1276017 A sandstone 21-arch viaduct spanning the Wharfe valley, built for the Leeds and Thirsk Railway circa 1850. text/html 2009-04-28T12:46:41GMT http://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/36042 Tom Blackwell 53.862592 -1.634431 http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1275933 The rock, particularly at this end of the tunnel, proved difficult and expensive to blast during its construction in the 1850s. Flooding and subsidence also presented a constant threat - it has been estimated that in total some 1,563,480,000 gallons of water were pumped out of the workings during construction due to the gradient sloping downwards from this point as the tunnel snakes over two miles to the Arthington portal on the north side.