Upper Calder Valley

The Upper Calder Valley lies in West Yorkshire in northern England, and covers the towns of Walsden, Todmorden, Hebden Bridge, Mytholmroyd, Luddendenfoot, and Sowerby Bridge, as well as a number of smaller settlements such as Eastwood. The valley is named after the River Calder, which runs through it.

The Upper Calder Valley falls entirely within the much larger metropolitan district of Calderdale. The towns of the Upper Calder are situated linearly along the valley, which cuts through the Pennines from Walsden in the west and reaches eastwards, eventually to Sowerby Bridge, a market town on the outskirts of Halifax.

The rugged and steep-sided Upper Calder Valley inspired such literary artists as the poets, Ted Hughes (who was born in Mytholmroyd) and Sylvia Plath (who is buried in Heptonstall, near Hebden Bridge), and the writer, Emily Brontë. The valley has also been a popular setting for film and TV.

Further reading

Jennings, B. "Pennine Valley: History of Upper Calderdale" Dalesman Publishing Co Ltd, 1992.