- parkrunday 18th September 2021
- parkrun #122 – Cliffe Castle
- Different event #69
- Time: 36:50
I’d arranged to meet up with friends Will and Judy in Hebden Bridge for brunch at 11am so was looking for a parkrun in the vicinity. I was originally going to go for Halifax parkrun as it was the closest, then I saw that Cliffe Castle were celebrating their 3rd birthday so I drove a little further to join them.
What is it with these rich Victorian, building a house, sticking turrets on the outside and calling it a castle? Situated in Keighley, West Yorkshire, Cliffe Castle was built in the 1880s as the home of textile manufacture (and millionaire!) Henry Isaac Butterfield. The building and grounds were bought in the 1950s by Sir Bracewell Smith who turned the house into a museum dedicated to local heritage.
The course is three and a bit laps through the park and woodland, including a rather steep hill known as the cliff. I walked the first lap with Tailwalker (and fellow tourist) Caroline Iredale and her dog Amber. It was yet another beautiful day for a parkrun – bright, warm and sunny – and it was good to see a range of people taking part. It was a smaller event than most (116 this morning) but like the weather it was warm and friendly.
I came in position 99 which, unfortunately, doesn’t entitle me to a free 99 ice cream in the cafe afterwards. What a shame!
This was my fifth Yorkshire parkrun after Pontefract, Peter Pan, Skipton and Fountains Abbey. If I want to reach 100 different events I’m going to have to do quite a few more!
