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| Whalley Abbeys main entrance | |
Just a small group of four tackled the inaugral walk of new leader Gail Bedson from Whalley on an overcast May Sunday morning. Setting off from near the entrance to Whalley Abbey we soon arrived at the Gatehouse which straddles the roadway. Passing through the structure the vaulted ceiling was wonderful to behold and time was spent admiring the intricate carvings. Continuing on along a narrow fenced pathway and through a new housing estate we were soon out in the fields. The open spaces were briefly interrupted by the very busy A59 (where traffic was expertly dodged) and we made our way towards Chew Mill. We followed Elker Lane past the buildings, and the amazingly large oak, to go uphill. Leaving the road on the bend we followed a track down to pass Hacking Hall and join the riverbank.
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left:
The Gatehouse |
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right: The Viaduct |
After recent rains it was soft underfoot on this stretch and upon entering the woodland further on the path became very muddy. However, with the bluebells and the wild garlic out in force, this part of the walk was a wonderful passage and a peaceful one at that. We stopped for a quick break upon leaving the woods and watched a fly-fisherman in the water before turning our backs and heading inland around the wood and up to Brockhall Farm. Just before entering the farmyard we turned through a gate to cross a field to a stile which in turn led to an enclosed pathway. This pathway in turn took us past the training pitches of the Premier League’s Blackburn Rovers FC Youth Training Academy - a huge swath of flatness. This is soon left behind as we follow the path over a footbridge and ascend a small woodland path before emerging into the open onto a path around the edge of a field. Before long we arrived at the farm buildings at Aspinalls. From here the route took us over a meadow and then downhill to cross a footbridge and ascend the opposite side up to the Black Bull Inn where lunch and a pint were readily consumed.
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left:
Bluebells and Wild Garlic |
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right: Woodland path and bridge |
After lunch the group visited the small church of St Leonards right next door to the pub. We were lucky in that this old building was open Sunday afternoons and we were able to look inside. Built in 1557 using parts of nearby Whalley Abbey (just after the Dissolution of the Monasteries) the chapel is of a simple rectangular plan. There are pews inside dated in the 17thC. The buildings fortunes have ebbed and waned over the intermediate centuries. One part of it’s history is that it has behind its own graveyard an annexe field which was the burial ground for the now defunct Brockhall Hospital, an ‘Institution’ that finally closed in 1993. A simple square memorial that lists all those who died there is situated centrally in the field.
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left:
St Leonards from the SE |
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right: Inside St Leonards |
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left:
The Remembrance Memorial |
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right: St Leonards from the NW |
Leaving here we crossed the road and went down the lane to Skenning Bridge and almost immediately took a stile into a field. We crossed this field and the next to descend to a small bridge over a brook. Ascending to another stile and on to cross another field we were afforded a splendid view of Pendle Hill and before long we arrived at Lower Elker and it’s colourful farm machinery.
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left:
View of Pendle Hill |
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right: Colourful farm machinary |
Joining the farm lane the going was easy as we headed for the road. Over the road bridge (a much easier and less life-threatening) crossing of the A59 - we immediately took a left turn through some trees to enter a field which we crossed to Whittams Farm. Through the farm yard and past it’s incumbent horses we took a track down to go through the new estate we had encountered on our way out. It was then a simple task of retracing our steps back to the car. All thanked Gail for a most pleasant and interesting walk.
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| Almost home | |
| OS EXPLORER 287 |
WEST PENNINE MOORS |
START POINT |
SD 731 361 |
| WALK LENGTH |
7.15 mls / 11.5 km |
TIME |
2 hrs 30 mins |
| MAX HEIGHT |
70.73 mtrs |
MIN HEIGHT |
33.05 mtrs |
| HEIGHT ASCENDED |
174.75 mtrs |
HEIGHT DESCENDED |
174.75 mtrs |
This map is for reference only and MUST NOT be used to do the walk.
Please use the correct OS map for all these walks.
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