Category Archives: Flora and Fauna..

FAR END OF THE FELL.

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P1070440No new ways today but I enjoy revisiting others and seeing what has changed since last time, bear with me. I’m up and ready early (for me) as I have an appointment at the hospital late afternoon. ( Junior doctors working on a Sunday to get the NHS back up to speed. Hope they agree to the new governments pay offer). Driving along the Chaigley road a fleet of vintage tractors is coming towards me, I pull in to get a photo. It is then I realise I have left my camera and phone at home. Some days I’m not fit to be let out.

So its back to the start, the tractors are gone and by the time I park up at Kemple End the morning is all but over. I wander past the few houses making up this community. Most are old cottages but the last house I encounter is a large new build, no doubt replacing an old barn. P1070442P1070445P1070448

Once in the fields I pick up the old sledge way for taking stone from the Kemple End quarries down towards Stonyhurst for construction of the Shireburn family home. Cows are thankfully docile in the heat. The building at the bottom was the stable for the sledge horses. It has been derelict for years but now after major refurbishments is a holiday cottage. P1070451P1070453P1070454P1070455

Up the road is one of my favourite Stonyhurst Crosses. The Pinfold Cross is a memorial to a former servant at the College and fiddler, James Wells. It was erected in 1834 after he died in a quarry accident. On the front is inscribed the telling ‘WATCH FOR YOU KNOW NOT THE DAY NOR HOUR.’ Above this is written, ‘OFT EVENINGS GLAD MAKE MORNINGS SAD’ perhaps suggesting drunken escapades. On the left is ‘PRAY FOR THE SOUL OF JAMES WELLS’ and on the right, ‘DIED FEB. 12TH, 1834. P1070458P1070459

The next fields have some of the meanest looking sheep around. Plenty of cows but the bull is far enough away to let me pass. P1070463 P1070464

The building you can see in the distance is marked on the map as Higher Deer House, a reference when this was the deer park of the Shireburn family who built what is now Stonyhurst College. The buildings are empty and being replaced by those ginormous agricultural sheds that are springing up everywhere. Soon will all livestock will be under cover and our fields redundant? P1070466P1070468

I often have trouble finding the hidden stile across the field, today is no exception.

The stile leads into a jungle at the bottom of which is a footbridge over Dean Brook, then back up through more jungle to emerge onto the bridleway next to Greengore, an old shooting lodge. The raspberries are sweet.

P1070477Renovations are going on at the old house so I take a picture of the new build in the back garden. P1070482

Now starts my long gradual ascent to Spire Hill some 600 ft above. It is a hot day and I take it slowly. More of those new metal gates keep appearing. The cyclist is a friend of mine trying out his new electric mountain bike. His wife appears as I enter the shady woods, no mountain bike for her – just taking the dog for a walk. P1070484P1070485P1070488P1070491P1070498P1070500It was good to get a bit of shade for a short time before walking up to the trig point, 350m.  The views were a bit hazy but all the Yorkshire three peaks could be made out but perhaps not on camera. Looking down into Chipping Vale is always a revelation, spotting individual farms and lanes from on high. P1070503

I continue along the ridge into the trees still devastated by a storm a few years ago. This is a concessionary path used my many and should have been cleared by now. A black mark Tilhill Forestry, a letter is being sent off to them. They should consider the recreation value of their holdings as well as the commercial value. Its a jungle up here, it would only take a couple of blokes with a chain saw to clear a way through. P1070510P1070507

Mountain bikers have marked a blue trial through the worst, Thank you.P1070509

At least the forestry people have cleared their own forest road eastwards, it was a nightmare before. But what a desolate mess they leave behind but given a  decade or so all will look good.P1070512P1070511P1070513

Along this stretch I come across a cyclist enjoying the view. Pendle is always prominent from this end of the fell. I compliment him on his Brook’s saddle, a cycling thing, and we get into conversation. Turns out he lives just round the corner from me and we have several mutual acquaintances. P1070515

I escape from the forest road and take an almost hidden path through the trees back to my car at Kemple End. The shade was welcome in the heat of the day. P1070518 P1070519P1070520

With all the stopping and chatting I was a little behind schedule and had to rush off for my hospital appointment. At least I had made the most of the day, as I should every day, but sadly often don’t.

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ONE TWO THREE.

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As you can see, I’m rather incapacitated at present. I have had my first cataract operation, on the right eye, last week. Until it improves I have lost my stereoscopic binocular vision. I’m having trouble judging distances, my world is temporarily two dimensional for the most part. Simple little tasks like pouring a teapot need a lot of concentration to avoid missing the cup altogether. Even hitting the right keys on the keyboard is not straight forward. Driving is on hold for a few days. There will be no walks for awhile. Hence this more mundane post today.

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The operation was a little complicated for reasons I won’t go into, taking twice as long as usual and needing all the skill of the surgeon of whom I’m in awe. Lying perfectly still for three quarters of an hour wasn’t easy. Anyhow I’m on the mend, the shield has now come off except for night time and the blurriness is receding  One drawback, though essential, is having to use eyedrops every four hours. I set my alarm to remand me six times a day and to get me up for the 4am dose. The second operation, on my left eye, is due in August when I will go through it all again.

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This week whilst resting up I have had a series of appliance failures, electrical rather than bodily this time. I knew my microwave was ‘on the blink’ ( no direct reference to my eye problems) so before surgery I payed a visit to our local friendly electric shop and came home with a new microwave. Amazingly I was able to purchase the simplest version with not a digital screen in sight, just two knobs – timer and power.  Just like they used to be. P1070260

At the same time my expresso coffee machine, which has done good service over maybe 20 years, started to cut out. I suspect the thermostat is malfunctioning but in this throwaway society there is no chance of repair. My morning coffee is essential so I was starting to get withdrawal symptoms. Unfortunately the shop doesn’t sell these machines so I have to revert to the internet, I normally always try to buy local. What a complex subject with some versions costing up to a thousand pounds for the barista touch. Lakeland Plastics have a reasonably priced version just coming out but in their sale was the old version at half price. It arrives promptly in the largest cardboard box possible. I’m getting the hang of it, time will tell how reliable it will be. P1070266

They say things come in threes and yesterday I noticed my freezer had stopped working, possibly without my knowledge for a few days. Everything was well and truly defrosted and beyond safely saving. My job today was to empty it. Bread, cakes and pizzas have gone to the birds – I have a hungry family of blackbirds.  The vegetables and prepared soups etc were loaded into the barrow to boost the compost heap. What a shame. I haven’t thought about a replacement as yet. P1070234

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All this has me thinking – where does the expression ‘things come in threes’ – good as well as bad, come from?

The number three has historical as well as folklore relevance. The Holy Trinity and The Three Wise Men from the bible. The Trimurti triad in Hinduism.  Literature and Fairy Tales have three bears, three wishes, and three challenges. In everyday life we suggest the best of three and count to three before a race. Three darts. Three Lions. Three Bells.

The origins remain unclear but we continue to use it. Psychologists suggest that by accepting a limit of three we subconsciously create an end point and hope our bad luck will cease. Obviously there is no evidence to support bad luck occurring in threes, randomness prevails. We forget the times when bad luck didn’t occur in threes and hence perpetuate the the theory.

So my three bad luck stories this week are purely coincidental and there may be another one around the corner. Or lets hope for some good luck stories, preferably in threes.

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Whilst taking my defrozen food to the compost heap I am assailed by a deep sweet rose scent coming from rambling Bobbie James. I leave you with a picture of him, you will have to imagine the scent.

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I can’t help thinking that despite my troubled week I have come up smelling of roses.

THE LONGEST DAY.

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For the Summer Solstice I choose another leaflet from  Walks with Taste – Visit Ribble Valley. – this time from the Three Millstones in the village of West Bradford. It promises an “Amble along the well-trodden banks of the Ribble admiring this remarkably quiet section by a hidden industrial quarry”.

I drive through West Bradford often but don’t think I’ve ever stopped off to explore. This morning I park at the Three Millstone Inn, after seeking permission. The village derives its name from its situation at a historic ‘broad ford’ at the nearby Ribble. Over the centuries the descriptive name of Broadford became  Bradford. The West was added in the late 19th century to differentiate the village from its much larger Yorkshire neighbour.  Somewhere there has been a cotton mill on the site of an older corn mill but as I walk out of the village this morning I don’t identify it, even though I spy a Mill Street sign. The stone cottages would have housed the workers. P1060975 P1060978

The Mill stream runs down the centre of the village helping to create some interesting gardens. P1070049

I’m soon out of the village and onto the northern bank of the River Ribble for the meat of the walk. I’ll be close to the river for the next three or four miles, the path is well worn and favoured by dog walkers. If you look closely at the pictures you will see a couple of Labradors swimming towards the weir to enjoy a ride down it. I bet they do that every day.P1060981

P1060984P1060985The river is flat calm for a stretch and then along come small rapids. I would think that at the moment the water is medium height, the whole aspect changes in flood conditions. Pendle looks on from afar.
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Coming back on the opposite bank is equally pleasant and there are woods giving some shade on what turns out to be a hot day. In the distance Kemple End on Longridge Fell keeps popping into view. All along this stretch to my left are abandoned limestone quarries which have grassed over and become part of the rural landscape, their extent can be seen on the map. I’m soon back at Bradford bridge. P1070005P1070007P1070014P1070011P1070019

But instead of following the suggested route straight up to the village I take another loop of the Ribble around the cement works in order to visit Crosshill Nature Reserve and part of the sculpture trail which I have previously described in detail  here. P1070025

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Once back at the Three Millstones I sit outside (it’s more of a ‘gastro pub’ inside, their lunch menu looks good and reasonably priced) enjoying a decent pint of Blonde Ale from Reedley Hallows brewery in Burnley, I’d never heard of them before.
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Later watching England play football on TV it certainly does feel like the longest day.

REVISITING THE FOOTHILLS OF PENDLE.

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Another  leaflet from  Walks with Taste – Visit Ribble Valley, this time setting off from the Assheton Arms in Downham.  

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 “This adventurous three-hour hike explores the foothills of Pendle, offering extensive views of the Ribble Valley, before diving into the wooded valleys beneath its flanks”  

It promised to be a good one. In fact when I think back I did an almost identical walk in reverse a couple of years ago, but that was then.

I’m joined by JD today. I arrived at his house and then realised I hadn’t brought the said leaflet so a bit of backtracking before we get going. We are still parked up in Downham before 11am. Soon enough for a short 5 mile walk. P1060910

All of the tracks today seemed well used by ramblers with good signage in the main. A popular area, and deservedly so. The scenery is classic Ribble Valley farmland with the limestone bed rock giving excellent walking and varied flora, all under the gaze of Pendle Hill. 

The first part was gently uphill passing idyllic farms on the undulating northern flanks of Pendle. P1060850

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On our way down towards Twiston we stopped for a bite in a sheltered limestone quarry below Hill Foot. We had time to observe the unique flora in these limestone undisturbed meadows. Identification of the individual species was not all that easy.  P1060888

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 And we had time to take in the fine view of Pendle from our perch.  P1060886

Passing the silted up mill pond of Twiston and then the old mill itself. then alongside the beck to a footbridge and up to yet another farm, Springs. Here we met up with a sunken track over Wooly Hill, which I’d never visited. There is a Roman road marked on the map – were we on the course of it back to Downham. The OS are not always accurate with marking Roman Roads. 

Throughout the walk we experienced a variety of stiles in the stone walls, some now neglected and bypassed by the functional wooden gate. At least none of those newfangled metal gates have arrived yet. Have a read of what outdoor writer John Bainbridge has to say.

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This or that? 

I have just remembered somewhere on the way we rescued, with difficulty, a sheep who had its head stuck through a wire fence. No harm was done to her or the fence, but JD suffered knee bruising when the released sheep ran straight into him and I ended up with stinking trousers where I had been kneeling in her shit.

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The afternoon ended well with a pint of Bowland beer outside The Asheton Arms as befits this series of summer walks. This has been a quick visit to our route but one worth you trying someday.P1060911

Oh, and one more picture of Pendle from the porch of St. Margaret’s Church..P1060915

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CICERONE’S LANCASHIRE – GREAT HILL FROM ANGLESARKE.

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Walk number 30 from Mark Sutcliffe’s walking guide. 9 miles.

I’m sat in the shelter at the top of Great Hill having a lunch time snack. There is a cheeky cool wind from the north.  I’m chatting to a bloke who has come up from Rivington the opposite way round to me. My hard work is over and I’m confident about the next couple of miles on the flagged path across Redmond’s Edge which I walked a month ago. Once again there are no distant views, Longridge Fell can just about be made out in the distance, but no hope of photographing it.

The day started badly with half an hour looking for my camera back at base. It was hidden in a shopping bag in the car yesterday whilst I visited Sainsburys. I know I shouldn’t hide things these days as I never remember where. I end up like a demented squirrel searching for his nuts.

Calm restored and another coffee drunk before I venture out onto the motorways. I’m soon through Chorley, past The Black Horse, the Bay Horse and The Yew Tree. Funny how you remember an area, all pubs we used to drink in after climbing in Anglesarke Quarry.  I park on the road just above the quarry but there is no sign of anybody climbing there today. How the trees have grown and obscured the buttresses. P1060733

Dropping back down the road I take the obvious way alongside Anglesarke Reservoir and onto High Bullough Reservoir. I don’t seem to recognise the way at all despite countless traverses before. P1060735P1060738

A random photo appears at Bullough Reservoir with no explanation. Here is what I found later. “John Frederick La Trobe Bateman FRSE FRS MICE FRGS FGS FSA  (30 May 1810 – 10 June 1889) was an English civil engineer whose work formed the basis of the modern United Kingdom water supply industry. For more than 50 years from 1835 he designed and constructed reservoirs and waterworks.” There is a lot more about him on Wikipedia, he had an amazing career. P1060736

A chance encounter with a walker in a group, extolling the virtues of ‘Trekking Poles’. I concur with him, having used them for forty or more years, ignoring the comments back then – “where is the snow”. But this chap is serious, having attached heavy weights to his poles to give him a full body workout. I’d never heard of that before. Impressed or perplexed I continue with my feather light poles.

There are some lovely trees along this stretch, I like the way those three have gown as one – Entangled Life. P1060742P1060743P1060739

I recognise the road near Waterman’s Cottage nestled between the trees at the end of the reservoir.  I popped out here once to see Bradley Wiggins flying past on a training run, remember him?

I hesitate my way forwards, but a lady points me across fields in the right direction to White Coppice. We fall into step, she explains that she is six weeks after a new knee operation. You would hardly know as she keeps up a good pace whilst waiting for her husband, freshly retired, to catch up. I relate to her my friend Sir Hugh’s first knee operation and the thousands of miles he covered and even after his second new knee he was still averaging 10 miles a day. I hope I have given her encouragement to eventually go beyond what her specialist has mentioned. We part company at White Coppice as they head for lunch in Brinscall. I don’t get to take a photo of the iconic cricket pitch as I keep to the right hand fell side of the Goit.  P1060745

This is then the steep bit. Up from the sign, which at first looked like one of those erected by Peak and Northern Footpath Association, but no, this is a Ramblers copy. A surprising number of people are climbing up this way. Can you see the white Mormon tower in the top centre?P1060747P1060746P1060751

At the end of the steep bit are the scattered ruins of Coppice Farm with an excellent information board including a map of the abandoned farms to the north of Great Hill. Can you imagine farming only 5 acres up here? They presumably would have been largely self-sufficient with the occasional trip down to market to sell and to buy.

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Onwards. I’m envious of the runners who effortlessly pass me and disappear into the distance. Distant memories in deed for me.  

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At a cross roads of paths another Ramblers sign appears. What is the Thomas Lockerby Footpath Fund?  “It uses the income from the assets of the Fund to preserve, maintain or improve public footpaths and bridleways located not more than 50 miles from Manchester Town Hall.” Do we need this proliferation of signs on the already well used paths? Would the funds not be better spent on gaining more access to the countryside within 50 miles of Manchester?P1060766

Onwards I pass another abandoned farmstead, Drinkwaters. I should nave looked for their spring water supply.P1060771

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Onwards the summit comes into sight but it still feels a long way off. P1060786

I’m passed by a youth running bare chested with no spare clothing. He does however have his head phones on so has missed the sound of the wind and the skylarks. Of course he stops at the summit for a selfie and then disappears back down. Make of that what you want. Off road cyclists are looking more and more like trail motor cyclists, which is in fact what many of them realistically are. Old age grumpiness over. P1060793P1060794

The way across the ridge is indeed easy with all those flagstones. Everywhere around me is bleak moorland enriched in parts by the nodding white cotton grass. All I have to do is find the path going west downhill 300m before the Belmont Road. Did I pass it just then, I backtrack but am not convinced. I come back and there within 5m it is. Obvious. P1060802P1060803P1060804

Pleasantly downhill towards more abandoned farms, Higher and Lower Hempshaw’s. Not much left standing. P1060808P1060812P1060815

I cross a stream onto a track and then take the wrong “grassy track by a tumbledown wall” There are tumbledown walls everywhere. All is not lost as I do a longer loop on a land rover track above the Yarrow Valley. Another ruin is passed, Simms. The scenery is changing from the bleak uplands to green fields and wooded cloughs with Rivington reservoirs in the background. One forgets how close to Bolton and Manchester we are. P1060817P1060818

Not concentrating I miss a faint path going right into trees and find myself at junction of paths in Lead Mines Clough which I recognise. I need to be farther north so I head up the stepped track leading to the Wellington Bomber Memorial, remembering a 1943 aircraft crash nearby. For a detailed description and more information I recommend reading – Bomber Zulu – Anglezarke.net

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By now I’m well lost, there are paths everywhere and I end up getting my phone out to plot a way back Jepson’s Gate. A final stroll down the road and I’m back at the viewpoint carpark.  P1060729

Todays walk felt like stepping back in time with the ancient tracks, mine workings and abandoned farms.  I have a book which paints an intimate picture of those lives only a hundred years ago.  Lost Farms of Brinscall Moors – Carnegie Publishing  What will the scenery look like in another hundred years?

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RAMBLING ON THE RIVERBANK.

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My enthusiasm in last weekend’s sunshine for getting an early start has waned. Today I’m still faffing about late into the morning, procrastinating over the weather and a suitable walking route. But the weather is improving so I shouldn’t miss the day. Whilst I was in Clitheroe I picked up half a dozen leaflets describing walks based on local pubs. Walks with Taste in Ribble Valley. published by Ribble Valley Borough Council and sponsored by Whalley Warm & Dry, a trusted outdoor shop.

I find on their website there are more, 16 in total and all downloadable.P1060494

For convenience I choose the one starting in Hurst Green, 15 minutes away. 

“This riverside ramble starts from the Shireburn Arms and descends through farmland to the River Ribble, crossing the impressive footbridge at Dinkley, then following the river downstream towards Ribchester, returning through the woods and pasture to  Hurst Green.”

I have walked this way many times but never tire of it, a route for all seasons. So lets go.

Parked in Hurst Green by 12 am. I take the familiar Lambing Clough Lane down to the dilapidated farm, Trough House. I can never tell if anybody actually lives here, a few years ago there was an invalided lady struggling on. There must be life as there are cars about and pullet eggs for sale.  (Pullet eggs are small, extra-rich eggs laid by young chickens. Loved by chefs, they are not usually found in Supermarkets. and often go to egg powder factories)  £1.50 for a dozen Michael!   I buy six and use my waterproofs to hopefully transport them safely.  A good start to the day.

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Trough House.

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Pullet eggs.

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Shopkeepers.

I cross the heavily engineered new Dinkley Bridge, which has replaced an earlier, damaged, suspension bridge and an even earlier ferry.  One of my old posts from 2015 illustrates that earlier bridge. Today the Ribble is in playful mood down the rapids, I have seen it in full spate here –  a sight to behold. P1060543P1060546P1060551

I wander down to the sandy beach which was probably thronged last weekend. You can find a wide variety of geological pebbles down here.  Strangely I find a decent garden trowel which goes into my backpack. 

Then the sheep cropped turf is a delight to walk along. A meeting with a Blackburn Muslim couple gets me talking about early days vegetable shopping in Whalley Range, Blackburn and the Chapati and Dahl cafes back in the 70’s. P1060553P1060556

Into Marles Wood, a tangle of tree roots. Trees seem to be having a tough time recently with lots blown down in the area.P1060562

The river is fast flowing through the gap into Sales Wheel where it all calms down again, I’ve seen it much worse.P1060569P1060570P1060566P1060568

I escape from the trees onto the road for the unavoidable mile long trudge to Ribchester Bridge. The river will be flowing faster than I am walking. Along the way…

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Salesbury Hall.

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Manor Court Offices.

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Elderflower wine?

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Ribchester Bridge.

The lane past the timber store, signed The Ribble Way, has been resurfaced and I’m soon back on the riverbank for awhile. This section can be difficult, flood debris, tree roots and the river itself encroaching on the path. All good fun. I push my way through Himalayan Balsam  which will be more troublesome later in the year. P1060497P1060509P1060510P1060511

A metal gate, despite being bypassed. is probably safer than a dilapidated wooden stile.

I never quite know where to go after leaving the woods away from the river. Vaguely up the field, down to a stile and up the next field to an oak tree and gate. It’s up here you get those views down to the Ribble and Dinkley Bridge with Mother Pendle in the background, Onto a lane above Heyhurst, down again to a footbridge and then alongside fences. My leaflet gave decent directions. Shame that the Ribble Way is denied access to the Ribble for long stretches. A failed project.  P1060527P1060525

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I walk through a sea of buttercups. The cows are back in the fields, time for me to start heading to the fells. At least this lot are lying down – said to be a sign of rain in country folklore. (Cows are more likely to lay down when they’re chewing their cud rather than when expecting a storm.)P1060532P1060529

I’m back where I started almost, why didn’t I wait till back here to collect the eggs? It did come onto rain along the road to Ribchester Bridge but as you know my waterproof was being used as safety wrapping for the half dozen eggs.

By the time I reach the top of the lane I’m ready for a pint in the Shireburn Arms. Bowland Brewery beer and a packet of crisps equate to the calories my phone says I have used on the walk. C’est la vie.  P1060585

Another point, regarding the Trade Descriptions Act, less than two miles of this nearly six mile riverbank walk were on the riverbank. Blame that on the anglers and landowners denying us access to our rivers.

I’ve enjoyed it none the less – a classic Ribble walk. 

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RETURN TO THE FELL.

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                                                       Bowland fells and Chipping Vale.

I haven’t been up here for two months. I was rather depressed after my last visit when I discovered one of my favourite trees had been uprooted by recent drainage operations. The lovely leaning Scots Pine which I had Christened ‘Grim up North’. I have a selection of trees that I admire in the area but this one I probably had visited most.

Today after some drier weather I set foot once more on Longridge Fell from the Jeffrey Hill car park. Please note the obvious signage on the gates. P1060290P1060313

Between March and July on open fells the ground nesting birds are in residence, Lapwings, Curlews, Skylarks and Pipits that I know of. There is an obligation on dogwalkers to keep their dogs on the lead to avoid disturbance to the nesting birds. Hence the obvious signage. The first two people I meet coming off the fell have their dogs running loose. I pass the time of day with them and politely mention about dogs being on a lead. Both reply that they hadn’t seen any signs to indicate this, that advertising line ‘you should have gone to Specsavers’ crosses my mind. Perhaps next time they will think again.

All the boggy areas from Spring have at last dried out and it is a joy to walk on the springy turf to the summit trig point. P1060291

White patches of Cotton Grass stand out. In the past it has indeed been used to stuff pillow cases and as a wound dressing.

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I pause at the summit to chat with a cyclist who has come up from Clitheroe via Kemple End. A steep ascent mad easier by the electric motor on his bike. I head into the plantations for an alternative way back. A small area that was replanted a few years ago has greened up nicely. The tree blocking the way is still down and a devious route around and under it has been established. This is in fact a Public Right of Way but Tilhill Forestry whom, I think, manage the land are slow to clear fallen trees. On I go down that tree tunnel.P1060297

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Now I am walking down alongside the wall towards my fallen tree. I’m pleased to see it still looks alive despite loosing more than half its roots. A sad sight but let’s hope it survives and in the coming decades puts on growth towards the sky. P1060304P1060305P1060310

Coming off the fell I meet up with a friend just finished exercising his well behaved dogs, I can’t resist a photo. P1060311

A BIT MORE OF BLEASDALE.

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Here I am in Bleasdale again, I walked around a couple of weeks ago.

Mike is  searching for a four mile walk for his, increasingly aging, walking group. I suggest this as an option. good surfaces on the whole, no stiles or steep inclines. a toilet at the start and a pub not far off for lunch. We are joined by Moira who will be leading the walk if Mike is still sailing in Scottish waters. A perfect warm Spring afternoon awaits us.

I am writing it up again as I have come across some additional interesting history of the area, courtesy of Historic Walks around Bleasdale, Dixon and Jarvinen, hidden in my bookshelves from 1988. Anyhow I never tire of this circuit in the bowl of the fells.

As usual we park at the Grade II listed Saint Eadmer’s Church, the only one named so in the country. “There was a church on this site in the C16th. In 1702 Christopher Parkinson of Hazelhurst  gave £5 10s a year for the wages of a minister. It was rebuilt in 1835. Mullioned windows from the original church were incorporated into the tower and decorated stones can be seen in the wall next to the gate“P1050362 P1050368

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Nearby is Admarsh Barn, now converted into living accommodation. “Above the door is a date stone 1720 with the initials of the Robert Parkinson” mentioned above. P1050970

The short diversion to Bronze Age Bleasdale Circle is duly taken. It will look better when the replaced circle of trees have grown.P1050982

We walk on heading for the fells. Sheep and lambs are everywhere and we spend time trying to reunite a bleating lamb with its mother in another field, best to let them sort it out themselves. P1050979

Bypassing Admarsh Farm (1814) we climb slowly to Holme House farm, these are remote farmsteads. Now for an interesting historical update. The lane continues to Hazelhurst Farm passing an isolated cottage on the way. this had been derelict for years but is now refurbished and occupied. 

“A hamlet known as Coolan once existed here, consisting of six cottages, the inhabitants making a living from wool combing and straw hat manufacturing. Only the old village stocks and a deserted cottage remain today (1988) as forlorn reminders of their industrial enterprise. The wool was transported as far as Burnley and Halifax and the packhorse bridge  was built along the route at Brooks. Careful inspection of the farm walls around Hazelhurst will reveal the remains of mullioned windows, dressed building stone and old doorheads, part of the old Coolan“

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We are distracted by the farmers bringing in their sheep so we don’t see the stones – next time I will be on the lookout. P1050997

On through Clough Head, over the bridge built by the boys from the reformatory school, whose buildings still stand along the way. “This bridge was built by the boys of North Lancashire Reformatory School between 1858 and 1859 under the guidance of Christopher Foster, mason instructor at the school. Above the upstream arch of the bridge is a dated foundation stone and above the downstream arch is a carved tablet showing the bridges tools of construction. The school was established by W. G. Garnett, J.P. of Bleasdale Tower in 1857, to give one hundred boys useful employment, principally in agricultural labour, and their farming operations brought many areas of moorland into good cultivation“

I managed to take a photo of the downstream parapet once,

We don’t go up to the Tower but follow the estate road left past the Packhorse Bridge, by beautiful beech hedges and the old school buildings, closed in 2019 when only two pupils were registered. back to our car. P1060006

What a lovely walk in the bowl of the fells and now a little more of its history told. 

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‘THAT LOCAL WALK’

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P1050880I haven’t done ‘that local walk’ this year. The fields, to be honest, have been too wet. It was a walk I repeated many times during the lockdown, remember that? It has always been one of my favourites taking me straight into the countryside. From my front door up the road and into the fields. Across them to Gill Bridge, up the lane and into the Derby Estate. Through Ferrari’s Country House grounds and back on the road past Little Town Dairy and the Derby Arms.

Today was the first time this year I’ve been able to walk in the area in trainers, sun and wind have helped to dry the ground in most places. A pleasure to be out. The grass was long and lush ready for silage.

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Even the path by the pond was dry enough. P1050885

Along the lanes and hedgerows white flowered Cow Parsley, Garlic Mustard (Jack by the hedge) and Stitchwort predominate.

Orange Tip Butterflies are ever present but decline to rest for a photograph. I thought the same of the Lapwings wheeling about but I managed to capture one in flight. P1050925

What’s afoot along the lane, lots of new agricultural buildings, more industrial looking than rural. Large plant machinery is using my track to dump clay from the site into nearby fields. Scary monsters. P1050907

Ferrari’s has just been sold for a rumoured 2.5 million pounds. The gardens look perfect today, they have been designed with weddings in mind – that’s how these sorts of places make their money, not from you and I buying a pint and a packet of crisps. P1050954

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I’m tempted to stop for a drink at the Derby Arms but it is early in the day and one might become two. I could have had a pot of tea at the farm shop. And let’s not forget  the Alston Arms on the corner. Aren’t we lucky to have an abundance of catering establishments within walking distance. Locals on the local walk.P1050966

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That local walk weighs in at just under four miles. I should do it every day.