Hudbri one

Verified Slow Way

Verified by 100.00% of reviewers

Walked from Huddersfield to Brighouse. No major issues, but there are a couple of places where the route could be shortened or amended to avoid unnecessary ups and downs, so I thought it worth creating a tweaked version which I have uploaded as HudBri two. A few steps and one stile, also rough ground and tree roots, so not wheelable. The path up the hill through Upper Fell Greave is not always easy to follow. My dodgy knees found the long descent of Toothill Bank so painful that I abandoned the plan to continue to Bradford.

From Huddersfield we head north along the pavements of John William Street and St Johns Road, then up the hill a bit, turning right down Birkby Hall Road (some of this wasted ascent could be avoided by using Blacker Road North and Norman Road). We decline a possible minor detour into Norman Park in favour of Norman Road, which takes us fairly steeply uphill. Where Scale Hill ends we continue on the footpath straight on. Once in the open space, a well trodden diagonal shortcut saves a little time. The exit to York Avenue is overgrown and could do with cutting, which suggests it isn't used much by locals.

We go right a short distance then take the signposted footpath left up the hill, which passes between fences into an area of woodland. There is a choice of routes here neither of which corresponds exactly with the GPX plot - OpenStreetMap suggests that the first path to the right might be the shortest.

When we reach Bradford Road we almost immediately turn left up a flight of steps, then descend back to the road. This seems a wasted effort to me, as there is little scenic value in the detour, nor do you escape the traffic noise, so the pavement looks an easier option. We turn left onto Netheroyd Road and almost immediately take the signposted byway right (Judy Lane). The path left is further round the corner than the OS map and the GPX plot suggest - by the time we reach it, it is a sharp turn, but the path is quite good and well trodden. A few housing estate pavements take us to The Ghyll.

A fenced path takes us across to Upper Fell Gleave. The GPX plot here follows the official right of way line along the lane, but it is probably nicer to use the parallel path just inside the wood (in fact one could easily continue straight on to the junction of Fixby Road and Broomfield Road, saving a bit of effort). There is little evidence of a direct path on the right of way line up the hill, but the wood is sparse enough to make it fairly easy to improvise a route, and further up the hill the houses on the right are a good guide.

Although it is a dual carriageway, Fixby Road is easy to cross, with central refuges at both ends of the stretch we follow. We then turn right onto an unsignposted alleyway opposite a shop, which leads to a good well trodden field path to and across the M62 bridge. Where the path joins the old Toothill Lane, there is a stile and a few steps down. The green part of the lane is pleasant, and follows the top of an escarpment.

Where we reach the road, we cross and follow the pavement down Toothill Bank. Those with a tendency to knee pain will not enjoy the relentless downhill section, but eventually we reach flatter ground as the road passes through Rastrick. Eventually we branch half left onto Bridge Street. Lower down we have to cross the road as there is no pavement on the right/east side of the bridge. We go straight on along Bridge Road, which bends right as it approaches the Aire and Calder Navigation. A short pavement walk takes us across the square (there are benches here) and up to the Brighouse bus station meeting point.

A good walk that has enough parts that are off road to make it fun.

Route okay….a more interesting way through Upper Fell Greave at Fixby could be included.

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