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| The Lost Twin |
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Date : 18th July 2010
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Leader : Phil Bedson |
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Report by : Phil Bedson |
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Photos © : Phil Bedson |
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| The very wet Group on Pendle Hill | |
Downham car park was the start point for the 12 mile ‘Twin Peaks’ walk led by Phil Bedson. Pendle Hill was to be the first of the peaks that was to be climbed although we had to find it first due to the low cloud and rain that was gradually becoming heavier.
Leaving Downham by way of field paths we headed out towards Worsaw End before dropping down past a barn to join the country road. Following the road for a short while to a bend the route went straight on to start the ascent of the lower slopes of Pendle. The rain had eased slightly at this point which made the next (quite steep) 100m a little less painful and also helped the group to gain a nice view back to Clitheroe and its castle.
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left:
Below Worsaw Hill |
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right: The first steep bit |
Levelling out slightly we ascended Worston Moor to a wall corner before starting the next part of this climb diagonally up to Pendle Moor. The rain returned with interest at this point as a headwind made it virtually horizontal and succeeded in testing our waterproofs to the max. At the cairn it was a case of heads down as our way forward was along the top, past the Scout Cairn and Wind Shelter, to the stile.
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left:
Pendle through the mist... |
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right: Climbing the stile atop Pendle |
Three people of note need to be mentioned at this point with the first being the guy awaiting the arrival of his friend, standing stock still in the driving rain, in just a t-shirt and shorts! The second was upon arrival at the trig point were a black and white portrait of Nelson Mandela adorned the white structure in commemoration of his 92nd birthday this very day. Lastly, also at the trig point, was a man with his wife and grand-daughter who turned out to be none other than Keith Carter, the Lancashire Life freelance journalist who joined the Hyndburn Group on the 75th anniversary celebrations!! It’s a small (very wet) world.
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| Mandela atop Pendle Hill! | |
Leaving the trig point we headed off once more directly into the wind and rain. This only lasted a short while however as we dropped off down the path to Pendle House and were instantly rewarded by the shelter afforded by the hillside. At the bottom we passed a large group of walkers going the opposite way and looking back we were happy we weren’t with them. The field paths into Barley went by in a blur really and by the time we arrived at the Pendle Inn we had barely noticed the rain had stopped. Claiming a couple of picnic benches out front we settled down for lunch with a more than welcome pint of ale from within (subsequently covered up as more rain began to fall). And all the time the dark clouds were staying above Pendle.
The title of this walk on the programme was ‘Twin Peaks’ and, despite repeated requests from some people both in the weeks leading up to and on the walk itself, the leader had refused to name the 2nd peak after Pendle. All was revealed during lunch however as Phil calmly revealed to all those present that the second peak would be the identical twin of the first i.e. another ascent of Pendle. Due to the inclement weather the choice of an easier route back was offered as the top of Pendle was still enshrouded and, although everyone was still pretty wet, Phil was surprised the original route was chosen. Leaving the Pendle Inn we had barely reached the end of the village before an injury to one of the party would leave us with no option but to take the easier route. Re-tracing our steps back through the village (and past the pub again) we left by way of a track leading to Lower Black Moss reservoir and round to Foot House Gate. Passing the lovely named Salt Pie we crossed a ford before following the track to join Black Moss road. The rain was by now intermittent but nonetheless not enough for any of us to dry out any. Crossing moorland and fields we soon arrived at Brownlaw Farm where, after fighting our way through a huge nettle bed, we found the path down to a footbridge.
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left:
Big End from Black Moss road |
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right: Crossing the bridge at Brownlaw |
Crossing the field on the other side to another footbridge we ascended up to the track into Ravens Holme where a coffee stop was declared. The rain at this point stopped being ‘on/off’ and became fully ‘on’, staying this way all the way back to Downham. We plodded on over fields to go past the barn at Lane Head and down the meadow towards Clay House. From here the paths were easy to follow all the way back to the car park at Downham where we were thankful for the ability to remove our wet stuff in a sheltered area before heading off to the pub. All in all it had been a good walk, not the one originally planned, but safety and wellbeing have to take precedence.
| OS OL 21 |
SOUTH PENNINES |
START POINT |
SD 784 440 |
| WALK LENGTH |
10.1 (11.2) mls / 17.7 (19) km |
TIME WALKING |
4.5 (5) hrs |
| MAX HEIGHT |
555 (555) mtrs |
MIN HEIGHT |
131 (130) mtrs |
| HEIGHT ASCENDED |
626 (855) mtrs |
HEIGHT DESCENDED |
626 (855) mtrs |
Figures in brackets are those for the intended route
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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