Horsforth, like Headingley, is a former village turned leafy suburb of Leeds; unlike Headingly, it hasn’t been overrun by students, and is now a reasonably affluent area for commuters working in Leeds and Bradford. This is in spite of the fact that its closeness to Leeds-Bradford Airport means that the sound of aeroplanes can regularly be heard. A village until 1999, it has existed since at least the time of the Domesday Book, in which it is recorded as Horseford, Horseforde and Hoseforde and the name is derived from the Old English meaning Horses’ Ford, a reference to a nearby crossing point over the River Aire. Like many settlements in the West Riding of Yorkshire, Horsforth was originally an agricultural community, but expanded following the Industrial Revolution, along with the growth of Leeds in the nineteenth century.
Horsforth Railway Station opened in 1849 on the Harrogate Line; the original buildings were demolished in 1969. The station was extensively refurbished in 2002-2003 due to growing demand, with new waiting rooms and a ticket office provided. We leave the station on Station Road, turn left (looking out for the nearby Fox and Hounds public house), and then turn right along Haigh Wood Road. We then take the next right along Silk Mill Gardens, then just as this bends left, turn right and follow a footpath under the railway track into Haigh Wood, a rather charming surviving woodland tucked away between the railway line and houses. Turn right and then follow a path curving downhill to the left, eventually crossing a Grade II-listed seventeenth century Clapper Bridge over stream. On the other side, continue straight ahead along a drive to reach Low Lane, then cross straight over and follow a path between houses to reach Bachelor Lane.
Turn right then left along another footpath and follow this to Hopwood Road, then walk to the end and turn left along Long Row. Just after passing the Brownlee Arms on the right, bear left at a fork (still on Long Row) and walk to North Broadgate Lane, where the Malt Brewhouse can be seen on the opposite corner. Turn left and follow the lane to St Mary’s Roman Catholic Church. Turn right opposite the church and follow Broadgate Lane to Town Street, then turn left. Shortly, pass the Central Methodist Church on the left, opposite which Horsforth Library (original the Mechanics’ Institution) can be seen. Take the next right turn along Church Lane and follow this to a crossroads, then continue straight ahead (still on Church Lane).
Follow the lane as it curves left, shortly reaching the Church of St. Margaret. The Grade II-listed sandstone church dates from 1877-1883, with its spire completed in 1902. When the lane turns right past the church, turn left along Church Crescent and when it curves right continue straight ahead along a path to Church Road. Cross this, then turn right and then left along a footpath next a supermarket car park to reach Town Street. Cross this and walk straight ahead along Kerry Hill to reach New Street. Turn right and follow this past Grove Methodist Church on the right, then turn right into a car park. Walk to the far side, then turn right and then left to return to Town Street.
Turn left, passing between The Old Kings Arms on the right and the Black Bull on the left,
following the road as it bends right, passing a garden of remembrance on the left. Opposite this, Horsforth Village Museum can be seen; this quaint but informative museum has displays and collections relating to local history and is worth a visit.
Horsforth Village Museum
When Town Street ends at Church Road, cross straight over, looking out for Emmanuel Baptist Church on the right and Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Clock on the left. Proceed along Hall Lane, then bear left to enter Horsforth Hall Park. Follow paths diagonally left around the park, passing the bandstand (and taking an optional detour to the right see the former stable block of Horsforth Hall and the Japanese Garden). After passing the cricket club, turn left between it and the Skate Park, then bear left to exit the park on Ring Road.
Take a detour to the left to visit Horsforth Cenotaph, close to which the Eleventh Earl public house can be seen. Otherwise, cross Ring Road and walk straight ahead along Park Side to reach New Road Side, passing another pub – The Fleece – on the corner. Cross over and walk straight ahead down a drive and then a footpath, before taking the first right turn to reach Victoria Mount. Turn right and walk to Calverley Lane, then turn left and follow this to Ring Road, taking another optional detour to visit Horsforth Cemetery halfway along Calverley Lane.
Turn right and walk to the pedestrian crossing, cross Ring Road, then turn left and walk back down the road to turn right and continue along Calverley Lane. We are now embarking a more rural part of the walk, which illustrates Horsforth’s proximity to the countryside of North Yorkshire. Stay on Calverley Lane as it gradually turns left and runs downhill to cross the railway track. Over the parapet on the left, the site of Calverley and Rodley Railway Station can be seen. This station opened in 1846 on the former Leeds and Bradford Railway and closed in 1968; the station house survives as a private residence. Just after crossing the railway, the lane turns left again; here, continue straight ahead to a Grade II-listed eighteenth century stone bridge over the River Aire. Do not cross this, but instead turn right and follow a footpath beside the river.
Bridge over the River Aire
Stay on the riverside path as it passes under a railway viaduct, and when it eventually leaves the river and ends at a track, turn right. Follow the track (which eventually becomes Wood Bottom) and when this ends at a junction continue straight ahead along Low Hall Road. Turn left along Wood Bottom Lane, which shortly ends at a pair of houses; here, turn right and follow footpath signs around the edge of the houses, the uphill through woods and fields to reach Rawdon Road. Turn right, then left along Water Lane, and when this ends continue straight ahead along a footpath next to a field. When this ends at a T-junction turn right and follow the path to West End Rise.
Turn left and then take the next right along West End Lane. Just after passing a school, turn left along a signed footpath and follow it uphill into Hunger Hills Wood Nature Reserve. On reaching a fork, bear right and continue uphill through the edge of the woods, eventually emerging from the trees at a junction of paths. Turn right and walk downhill across a field to reach Lee Lane End. Continue straight ahead along St. Margaret’s Road and follow it until it ends at a roundabout, where the Old Ball public house can be seen on the left (another public house, the Queens Arms, can be seen just to the right along Long Row. Finally, walk anticlockwise around the roundabout then turn right along Station Road and follow this back to the station.
From Horsforth, we return to Leeds, and then set out to visit the final three stations in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough, this time on the Leeds-Bradford Line.