Marsden Walking festival took place on possibly the wettest day of the year so far. The village of Marsden sits at the end of the Colne Valley and under the foothills of the Pennines, so, thankfully local walkers are no strangers to downpours!

Members of Marsden Walkers are Welcome led four guided walks of differing lengths and complexity around the locality, in addition, the programme included a Heritage Open Days local history walk, in collaboration with Discover Huddersfield, a family friendly Pied-Piper Walk with Caribbean music and food, led by We In Front, of Radio 4’s Ramblings fame, and a nature reserve walk led by the Canal and River Trust. Despite the main road of the village looking more like a river, the walks all took place with enthusiastic, hardy hikers heading out onto the hills.

The festival offered a range of additional activities for people who were keen to be involved, but didn’t necessarily want to don boots and waterproofs. These included the Art Walk – originally conceived to take in some of Marsden’s breathtaking scenery – but, with the prospect of soggy sketchbooks, this took place indoors and participants instead sketched still-lives inspired by natural objects. The indoors craft market was popular – especially as it included the local Scouts’ Kitchen!

In the evening, audiences were mesmerised by the beautiful, haunting music of The Brothers Gillespie – a duo playing new-folk, inspired by the landscapes around their Northumbrian home.

The success of Marsden Walking Festival is put down to the variety of imaginative activities available and it was this that meant the festival was busy and enjoyed by many, despite the best efforts of the Pennine rain clouds. Sadly, it transpires that rain isn’t always the best weather for ducks – resulting in the cancellation of the ever-popular Duck Race. However, the ducks were happy to be housed in an indoor pool, where they were drawn at random, keeping both prize-winners and ducklings happy!