Save Butterley Spillway crowdfunding appeal

Butterley Spillway Marsden October 2015

I write a lot about the hills and moors around Marsden and sometimes about the heritage of the area. That heritage has literally shaped those hills and moors, in the form of quarry, road, rail, canal and reservoir.

One of the most obvious examples is the daisy chain of reservoirs that fill the Wessenden valley. What was once a brook used by hunter-gatherers to corral prey, has become a series of reservoirs created in Victorian times. Culminating in Butterley reservoir at the foot of the valley. And that is ‘crowned’ by an impressive spillway. The spillway was given Grade II Listing status on 11th July 1985. If you have ever walked along the Wessenden valley to or from the Peak District or across to Black Hill, or looked around that side of Marsden, as a visitor – you’ll have stopped to look at this impressive structure.

The spillway is under threat and the High Court representation needs funds: https://www.crowdjustice.co.uk/case/beautiful-butterley/

read more >

The Secret Signs Of Marsden

new Colne Valley Circular Walk signs

I had a walk up above the Wessenden Valley and reservoirs at the weekend and noticed a new (to me) sign on some of the stiles. Bright yellow and clearly just applied with a stencil. And some of the posts that punctuated the wire-topped dry stone field boundaries also sported fresh yellow caps. Hmm. They were obviously marking out a route but I wasn’t sure which. The mystery (for me anyway) was solved via a Facebook discussion later that day. Turns out to be a refresh of the waymarkers for the Colne Valley Circular Walk.

read more >