Hebden Bridge Hostel - Who Are We?

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Who and Why we are:

Your hosts at Hebden Bridge Hostel are Dave and Em.

For over seven years Em has been running a solar-powered Organic Travelling Cafe called Weirdigans (with lots of help from Dave and friends). Weirdigans provides a cosy tented venue serving hot drinks, home-baked cakes and fresh veggie food at festivals.

Dave has been involved in various social and environmental projects in and around Hebden, including: Treesponsibility; Knottwood Coppicers; the Housing Co-op at the Nutclough Tavern; Hebden Bridge Conservation Services; HB Cricket Festival; and the Alternative Technology Centre.
Dave walked the Pennine Way in 2003.
Recently Dave has been running workshops in sustainable technology, leading to him setting up LEDfantastic Ltd, a company aimed at informing people about low-energy lighting and helping them to source and install LEDs.

Em is a long-term traveller with experience of working in hotels, bars, restaurants and spas around the world: from the Argyll Hotel on the Scottish Isle of Iona to The Sanctuary on Koh Phan Gan.
A keen walker, Em established walking trails and guides to Koh Phan Gan while working in Thailand.
Since moving to Hebden Bridge in 2000, she has been involved in organising and performing in community arts projects and festivals. Em is also a herbalist and writer.

In Spring 2009 Em and Dave noticed that a lovely big building, nestled into woodland on a hillside in Hebden Bridge, was empty. We sat in the sun outside it, picnicking, musing on what someone could do with it. A hostel, we thought. Affordable accommodation for hikers, travellers, backpackers, visitors; there's nothing like that in Hebden, we thought, even though it's a very special place.

Someone should rent this building and set it up as an Independent Hostel, we said.
Hmm... Someone like us, perhaps?
After six months of negotiations our bid to lease the building was accepted.

Whilst running Hebden Bridge Hostel - aka Mama Weirdigans - we'll still be doing Weirdigans Cafe at select festivals - plus LEDfantastic workshops and installations - but we'll be staying at home in Hebden Bridge more too and will share the looking after of the Hostel amongst the core Weirdigan crew.

We look forward to meeting you...

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