This has to be one of my favorite places I've been to so far. I love Haworth, the home of Charlotte Bronte (author of Jane Eyre) and her family, because of it's location on the Yorkshire Moors. The Moors are wild and untamed and they have such an amazing charm (at least for me). There are lots of trails out here and many of them lead to significant sites that are mentioned on the Bronte's books. This particular trail that we are rambling on today leads to Top Withering. It is said to be the location that Emily Bronte might have had in mind when she wrote Wuthering Heights and inspired her in the placement of the Earnshaw's home. When you wander out here, you can see why the Bronte sisters ' novels had so much passion and emotion in them. The moors just inspire that sort of thing. It was in their blood!
As you can see in the background of these pictures, the moors are rather bleak looking at this time of year. When I was here in September, the heather was in bloom and the moors were all purple and lovely. For those of you familiar with the poem "The Highwayman" there is a part where the highwayman comes "riding, riding, over the purple moor." This is exactly the place the author was describing in the poem. This could also be the very place where Mr. Rochester, while riding his black horse Mesrour, slips on the ice and first meets Jane Eyre. I can see her sitting just under such a tree as I've taken a picture of at this exact time of day!
These next three photos are of the ruin Top Withering. The name Wuthering Heights fits just perfectly into this setting. 
This photo gives you a really great look at the moors out in the distance. It's lovely, even though it is winter. It gets dark here at about 4:15 p.m., and these pictures were taken at about 3:30 p.m. Dusk comes early up here in the north!
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