Moon river

It is place of wind-swept moors and sheltered river valleys where solid, no-nonsense mills were built to produce acres of cloth; a hilly place where canals were cut and railways built on viaducts to transport the textiles to market.

But gone are the days when Britain's bread hung by a thread. The mills, with their smokestacks, have had to find other uses as Yorkshire's once mighty textile industry suffered decades of decline.

The industrial towns and villages of West Yorkshire have had to re-invent themselves to earn a living in the 21st century. Instead of relying on shoddy and other textile products, many Yorkshire folk are banking on tourism to put bread on the table.

I visited The Weavers Shed at Golcar, a village perched above the Colne Valley on the western fringes of Huddersfield.

The property still boasts a big chimney, but cloth is no longer finished there. Instead chef Stephen Jackson prepares delicious meals using fruit, vegetables and herbs from his own kitchen garden, which even has geese and chickens on egg-laying duty.

Stephen and his wife, Tracy, have a passion for food; they want their diners to enjoy quality ingredients cooked simply to bring out their flavour.

As Tracy explained to me during dinner: "If you are serving expensive ingredients you don't want to obliterate them with rich sauces; you want to allow the taste of the food to speak for itself."

My main dish was black cod simply served with carrots and potatoes. The fish, cooked to perfection, was full of flavour. Flakes of white fish fell on to my fork.

Stephen likes to have fun with food. Dinner at a classy restaurant should not be a serious, po-faced affair. Rather the diners should be entertained. Hence, an appetiser of plumb and ginger served with space dust that explodes in your mouth like a fireworks display.

Another culinary surprise was the gingerbread milk. Served after a sumptuous desert of banana and caramel, its rich flavours earned it the title "a fruitcake in a cup".

The Weavers Shed also has five letting rooms, each named after an old mill. There's no trouser press, but there is a complimentary mini-bar and a rubber duck for bath time.

The rooms are comfortable, but the main focus is firmly on food. The full English breakfast I ordered after spending a night at the Weavers Shed was one of the best I've ever tasted.

Shortly after dispatching sausages, bacon, black pudding, fried egg, mushroom and tomatoes, I met John Gleadow, a countryside access officer employed by Kirklees Metropolitan Council. His brief is to encourage more people to enjoy the great outdoors and the Yorkshire Pennines have plenty of that to offer.

My partner, Janice, and I laced up our walking boots in the village of Holme and John led us on a circular walk of nearly five miles. We followed the route anti-clockwise crossing a series of fields on the Kirklees Way and descending to the Bilberry and Digley reservoirs. We then joined Nether Lane, the longest uninterrupted bridleway in Kirklees, passing the uninhabited settlements of Greaves Head, Bartin and Goodbent Lodge, We then turned south to cross Marsden Clough to stride over moorland with grouse butts. We crossed two fords and then turned east to join Issues Road, a track that led us back to Holme.

We started the walk at 1,000ft above sea level, descended to 800ft and climbed to 1,300ft. The moors were magnificent. We came across a couple of other walkers and a brace of mountain bikers plus some volunteers clearing scrub from the banks of the reservoirs. Skylarks singing in the big blue sky and grouse darting among the heather provided our only other company.

During our stay in Kirklees we visited Holmfirth, famous as the home of the BBC's evergreen television series Last Of The Summer Wine with its legendary characters, including Nora Batty, Compo and Clegg.

Janice and I enjoyed a cosy lunch at Beatties, a delicatessen next to Sid's Café, where a dummy of Compo stands ready to be snapped by many a tourist toting a camera.

We also strolled along the tow-path of the recently-restored Huddersfield Narrow Canal at Slaithwaite, a village famous for its Moonraker Festival.

In 1802, according to local legend, smugglers hid barrels of whisky and rum in the reeds on the edge of the canal to avoid being caught with contraband by soldiers. Later, on a bright moon-lit night, they were using large wooden rakes to retrieve the barrels when soldiers again interrupted them. Asked what they were doing, they replied: "Can't you see - the Moon has fallen into the water and we are raking her out".

Fact file

For an overall view of Huddersfield, Holmfirth and the valleys visit the website www.pennineyorkshire.comThe Weavers Shed, 88 Knowl Road, Golcar, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire HD7 4ANTel: 01484 654284Website: www.weaversshed.co.uk