Friday views

Set off quite early this morning and walked from Harden Moor across to Long Lee.
This was almost a continuation of our Hainworth walk on Wednesday with extensive views over Keighley to the Aire Gap and along the Aire valley rather than the Worth Valley.

Crossing the fields below the moor we saw more starlings than I think I’ve I ever seen together before, there must have been hundreds. Seems an odd  place for them to be.

From Long Lee we walked along the top of Park Woods into Thwaites. Lots of cobbled alleys here and I took the wrong one but it just brought us out a little lower down Thwaites Brow where there was another way-marked path which, luckily, joined up with the intended one at Currer Laithe Farm. (Pictured) 

From there, where there were some lovely donkeys, was the only real climb back up to Altar Lane at the top of the St Ives Estate. 
The view across the Aire Valley takes in the village of East Morton and, to its left, Micklethwaite. Beyond both is Bingley Moor which extends over to Ilkley Moor, who knows where one becomes the other, and the town of Ilkley itself.
Interestingly there seemed to be lots of contrails in the sky today.

In the bottom picture you can see a line of cows. It amused me that they were walking in line. The first one seems to have decided to go for a drink and all the others followed it, all socially distancing of course.

Saw hardly anyone, even when we entered the estate.  Crossed the Fairfax Entrenchment to return to the moor car park. Pleased to find that, even if I went a bit wrong in Thwaites village.

Very warm today and appropriately the red hot pokers are starting to bloom in the garden amongst the Aquilegias and Cornflowers.

Have a lovely weekend and stay safe everyone.