Weir

One final photograph from Yorkshire (probably the last for a while).

This is the River Aire and the weir beside Salt's Mill, constucted by order of Sir Titus Salt in order to give a constant supply of water for the wool making process.

Originally, Victoria Road crossed the Aire here, but it was closed in the 1950s and dismantled during the 60's due to the structure being unsafe. The bridge portals can still be seen at both sides of the river.

Now, the Aire is spanned by a metal footbridge which allows access between the village of Saltaire and the newly refurbished Roberts Park.

The first time I saw this view, back in December, the refurbishment was in progress and there were copious quantities of orange fencing. Much nicer now!

Yorkshire Aire

At 71 miles, the Aire is Yorkshire's longest river. It rises in the Dales, near Malham, and winds its way south east towards the more industrial landscape of West Yorkshire; cutting through the centre of Leeds before heading for the Ouse at Airmyn, and so into the wide estuary of the Humber which feeds the North Sea. Ironically, only a short distance away the Ribble rises, but turns the other way out of North Yorkshire, to head for Lancashire and the Irish Sea.

The Aire is responsible for much of the industrial heritage of West Yorkshire serving as a means of transporting goods and also providing power. Many mills were established along its course, including Salt's Mill and the worker's village of Saltaire built by Sir Titus Salt in 1853. For loads of interesting photos and information about Saltaire, visit JennyFreckles blog here.

This far upstream, the river was not navigable and so the Leeds Liverpool Canal was constructed to meet the growing demand for the transportation of goods. The presence of both river and canal played a significant part in Sir Titus selecting his location.

Downstream, the river was still shallow, so in 1704, the section of the Aire between Leeds and the River Ouse at Goole was canalised. It became the Aire and Calder Navigation and was used by Tom Puddings; compartmentalised boats which were strung into trains and pushed by a tug. The Tom Puddings transported coal from the Yorkshire collieries to Goole.

Because it was so industrialised, the river became very polluted, to the extent that, as recently as twenty years ago, it was considered dead. When the Water Board was privitised and responsibility for the Aire passed into the hands of the Yorkshire Water Company, protesters made such vociferous appeals, that they took action and cleaned up the river. Now, some of the upper reaches are considered good spots for fly fishing and, in 2006, porpoises were spotted in the tidal section.

The section along which we walked is far away from the tidal waters, being between Bingley and Saltaire. There is still evidence of the densly populated nature of the neighbourhood; residential areas coming down to the waterside, the by-pass crossing over the new bridge overhead, but it is also a peaceful place with lots of greenery and some open spaces.

Waterways do make attractive walks.

Ground floor gallery

According to the Visitors Guide,

The 1853 Gallery is so named because that was the year the Victorian Mill was originally opened for manufacturing fabrics.

The Victorian Mill in question is that built by Sir Titus Salt close to the market town of Shipley in the West Riding of Yorkshire and alongside the waters of the River Aire. Now renovated, the ground floor is given over to the 1853 Gallery, which houses a permanent exhibition of works by the Bradford born artist David Hockney. http://www.davidhockney.com/

My first impression of the gallery was the airy feel of the large, high roofed room with its regimented rows of tall arched windows and beautiful stone tiled floor. The second was of colour. Many of Hockney's paintings are awash with colour and the vibrancy of the artwork gives a surprisingly modern feel to the historic building.

I'd be hard pushed to say what caught my eye the most, but I was drawn to this display of pottery; just one part of the much larger Burmantoft Pottery Exhibition.




There was something strangely satisfying about the combination of the pattern, colour, shape and size of the pieces, arranged in juxtaposition, which just made me want to look.