SOME good traditional Yorkshire pride was in evidence in Ilkley on Friday as residents celebrated the region's proudest day.

The mix of hot weather, and the carnival spirit inspired by the beginning of the first Ilkley Summer Festival, made for a memorable Yorkshire Day.

The town that gave it's name to Yorkshire's best-known anthem - On Ilkley Moor Baht 'At - found plenty of reasons to sing the song and celebrate all things Yorkshire.

The Yorkshire flag bearing the famous white rose was also put up around the town - including the centre of the busy Brook Street, and at Darwin Gardens Millenn-ium Green, a popular attraction for daytrippers.

The celebrations took place outside Ilkley Town Hall on Friday morning, when the Ilkley Town Crier, Chris Richards, read out the official Yorkshire Day Declaration before a crowd of loyal residents.

The ceremony was followed by a mass singing of On Ilkley Moor Baht 'At, accompanied on the guitar by Philip Beatham.

An All Saints Primary School pupil wore Victorian clothing to represent the character 'Mary Jane' from the song, while other residents brought along all kinds of 'Yorkshire' accessories - including one woman who made her own Yorkshire passport.

Ilkley Tourist Inform-ation Centre, next to the Town Hall, was also handing out samples of Yorkshire fare to mark the occasion.

But the traditions began earlier in the day, when around 30 intrepid walkers set out to walk across Ilkley Moor in the footsteps of the choristers credited with writing On Ilkley Moor Baht 'At.

The walkers met outside Bingley Railway Station at 10.30am to take a ride aboard a vintage bus to Dick Hudsons pub, near Hawksworth village.

A walk leader from Bradford Council's Countryside Service then led the four-mile trek across the moor to Ilkley.

The walkers were presented with a certificate and a celebratory glass of champagne.

The hot weather encouraged a few visitors to the historic White Wells spa to take a dip in the pool. There was also a bouncy castle which proved popular with children, while others turned up to watch Ilkley resident Kevin Hodgson fly his giant Bertie Bassett kite over the moor.