Day 7.   Radcliffe to Manchester Cathedral.

An easy 10-mile walk along cycle paths.

The good weather is lasting, so it’s time for another section of my ‘pilgrimage’ from home to Manchester. A  walk, a bus, another walk, a train and a final bus deliver me to Radcliffe bus station by 10 am. Strangely, there was an Emu puppet on that crowded bus from Bolton.

I’m surrounded by busy roads and feel a little disorientated. Across the way is Asda, which I recall being mentioned in my guide: “go down alongside their petrol station to pick up the Cycle Route 6.”

It is signed up a ramp onto the bed of the old Manchester to Bury and East Lancs line. I used it before coming out of Accrington.

Like magic, within seconds of stepping onto it, all is peace and quiet. Only bird song is audible – and quite a collection of species, all no doubt mating and preparing nests. I cross the Irwell Viaduct  (Built in 1846 from timber, but replaced with cast iron in 1881 and reopened as a cycle way in 1999) and plunge into the woods. This is Outwood Country Park, where coal mines once existed.  Little, inviting paths go off in all directions.

The cycle route joins the Irwell Sculpture Trail from time to time; signposting is excellent. I was along here before    https://bowlandclimber.com/2014/08/06/irwell-valley-trail-2-into-manchester/

The remains of an old platform for Ringley Road station are passed.

The rail line traverses beautiful, remarkedly undulating, wooded land.

I can hear the motorway long before I reach it.

I catch a glimpse of part of the Clifton Viaducet carrying the old railway across the Irwell once again; It has thirteen arches, a remarkable construction from 1846.

The day warms, and I end up stripping off layers for a change. I’m glad I brought plenty of water as I sit for an early sandwich. Dog walkers appear from everywhere. Notice boards tell me I am in Phillip’s Park, land previously an estate for a wealthy Manchester industrialist, but before that a medieval deer park. 

More parkland, Drinkwater, nothing spectacular, but with all the greens of Spring coming to the fore. Primroses, Blackthorn, Cherries and Willow catkins adding colour.

 In a clearing, there is a totem ploe.

I just keep following the cycle path 6.

My route keeps me away from the River Irwell until I arrive at the first road, Agecroft, of the day and a car park.

I cross the bridge over the river adjacent to the Thirlmere pipeline. ‘Manchester Corporation Water Works – 1892’. 

Continuing between the river and a massive cemetery. I’m impressed by the many graves that are brightly bedecked with flowers  – of course, it is Mothering Sunday this weekend.

The Irwell creeps into town. The Manchester skyline is ahead. The inevitable urban litter starts to appear where I reach housing; we are a messy and wasteful society..

When I last visited the Kersal wetlands, it was all wild; now there are houses. And this was/is a flood plain.

Murals on a pumping building reflect local history.

I cut across the fields to Cromwell’s Bridge, an impressive Victorian structure. In fact, as I wander by the Irwell, I cross several bridges with their foundation plaques.

I had noticed several large black canisters strewn by the path earlier, but now I come across a nest of them. On closer inspection, they are industrial-grade laughing gas, an illegal Class C drug. These are full and no doubt hidden for use at a later time. Welcome to the city.

I’m now surrounded by skyscrapers. 

The River Irwell creeps off through them to join the Ship Canal in Salford.  Would it be worth using a scooter or bike for the last section?

I find my way through the maze of streets to the Cathedral forecourt. I’m unlucky; the Cathedral, dating from Saxon times, is closed for a charity dinner this evening.

I will have to make time to explore when I return for onward travel to Lichfield. Yes, what started as a ‘pilgrimage’ from my house to Manchester Cathedral is leading to bigger things. I need to get the maps out and start planning.

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With time to spare, I spot a statue of Mahatma Gandhi.

“Be the change that you wish to see in the world”

Our present world leaders are intent on war, land-grabbing and financial deals. A far cry from Gandhi’s vision.  Let’s have a look at some of his other famous quotes.

“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”

“The greatness of humanity is not in being human, but in being humane.”

“In a gentle way, you can shake the world.”

“Change yourself – you are in control.”

“I will not let anyone walk through my mind with their dirty feet.”

“The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.”

“Freedom is not worth having if it does not include the freedom to make mistakes.”

“We need not wait to see what others do.”

“A ‘No’ uttered from the deepest conviction is better than a ‘Yes’ merely uttered to please, or worse, to avoid trouble.”

“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”

“To call woman the weaker sex is a libel; it is man’s injustice to woman.”

“Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s needs, but not every man’s greed.”

“Love is the strongest force the world possesses.”

“Nonviolence is a weapon of the strong.”

“A man is but the product of his thoughts. What he thinks, he becomes.”

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On a lighter note, the Manchester bee is all over the place.

The facade of Victoria station advertises the places it serves.  Inside, everything is new and confusing. Northern trains have a bad reputation, but I am soon back at Preston.

And on a hoarding, there is this line from Erin Hanson.
.

There is freedom waiting for you,
On the breezes of the sky,
And you ask, “What if I fall?”
Oh, but my darling,
What if you fly?

A good enough take on life as I enter another decade, I have flown most of the time.

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