Hebden Bridge is a great place to visit with its many small independent shops and cafes, and its lively and friendly atmosphere.   It is a wonderful centre for walking with its river and canal, steep wooded valleys, tumbling streams and wide open moors.

There are a multitude of footpaths and tracks which give a wide variety of routes for all levels of walking.   The town is at the junction of several valleys with walks going in all directions. There are gentle walks along the valley bottoms or using paths that climb gradually.  There is also the option of taking a short hopper bus ride up to one of the local historic villages ‘on the tops’, such as Heptonstall, and walking from there.   There are also steeper hills to climb which can be done at a pace to suit you.

Once out of the valley, paths take you through upland farms and meadows, and then onto the moors.   There are wonderful long distance views, meadow flowers and curlews calling in the spring.  The long distance paths of the Pennine Way and Calderdale Way also run close by.

There are interesting places to visit with connections to the Brontes, Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes. There are many ancient stone clapper bridges and old packhorse paved paths.  The area is also renowned as having been at the heart of the textile industrial revolution – with fascinating examples of old water powered mills nearly lost now in the wooded valleys.

Hebden Bridge itself is famous for its ‘under and over-dwellings’ (mill workers houses built on the steep valley sides) and several of the old mills are now transformed into artist studios.   There is a lively arts and music scene in Hebden Bridge which has a music venue (The Trades Club) and independent cinema (the Picture House).  There are many B&Bs and also an independent hostel (see useful links).