We began the walk at the Old Bridge of Tilt car park- a lovely space with lots of trees, and the river nearby. We passed a bug hotel on the way up towards the castle.
Bug Hotel
We stopped to admire the statue of Hercules from the 18th century near the entrance to the eponymous Hercules Walled Garden. This statue cost £25!
Hercules and his walled garden
In front of the castle we saw (and heard!) the piper who presumably comes out at regular intervals to entertain (or scare away) the visitors.
We went into Diana's Grove where there were some truly spectacular conifers, again largely planted in the 18th century.
The path took up to the few houses which constitute Old Blair and then we went into the woods along the high riverbank. This took us, after a sharp turn back, up to open country with lovely views. The track then went into another plantation, passing a small reservoir which was a surprise, leading to the firing range and a bridge over a small stream.
Bridge by the firing range
Luckily there was no activity there that day and we just wandered down the track towards Gilbert's Bridge (an excellent lunch spot), passing Siobhan running the opposite direction- she had already clocked up 12 miles when we met!
We turned around at Gilbert's Bridge, the shorter version of the walk in the Cicerone guide that Rachel had given to us- this meant that we messed the opportunity to see Marble Lodge again (visited in June 2018, just before Jacinta's retirement). It was a lovely walk back to the car park, with extensive views of the rolling hills, the various lambs and their mothers (some limping...).
A field of limping sheep
Most memorably, we passed two pigs who were having the best sleep in the sun at the side of their custom built house.
Most of the way back we were able to take a green, grassy track until it joined a lane above Fenderbridge from where it was a pleasant stroll downhill to the car park, passing the private drive up to Marble Lodge.
Forest of Bowland- Cross of Greet, Bowland Knotts, Ravens Castle and Raven's Castle The mist was down and remained so for the day, but nonetheless, we managed to get out and do an 8-mile walk. It started out at Cross of Greet Bridge, the old dividing line between Yorkshire and Lancashire. We followed the line of the River Hodder and then up the hill above Catlow Farm and past a barn, Passing Catlow Farm barn working our way up to Bowland Knotts. On the way to Bowland Knotts Bowland Knotts- the views (apparently) are excellent Bowland Knotts views At Bowland Knotts, we followed the wall in the (increasing) mist- it went up and down, not as easy walking as the guidebook suggested. Due to the conditions, we didn't get the views over the Yorkshire Dales and the Three Peaks. We carried on past Copy Nook and Cold Stone to the first Ravens Castle (no apostrophe) and then on to Raven's Castle (with the apostrophe). On the way to Ravens Castle At this point, we were able to cross t...
Pendle Hill: David and Paul For one of their occasional walks, David met with Paul at Whalley Warm and Dry where Paul was buying a new pair of boots (after his old pair had trashed his feet on our last walk.). As time was therefore a little restricted and the weather forecast was not encouraging- Scotland was being lashed by Storm Babet- we chose a walk on Pendle Hill, a couple of miles from Whalley. David chose Walk 10 from the Freedom to Roam guide to The Forest of Bowland , which Jacinta and he had used during their January stay . The walk started in the picturesque village of Worston with a three-kilometer walk across fields. Initially, the view of Pendle Hill wasn't encouraging: Pendle Hill- mostly in the clouds By the time that we reached the very distinct start of the hill (the ground steepened considerably), the clouds had lifted to above the summit level and we were able to enjoy the views. After a pretty steep climb on a relatively unused path, we reach...
Shining Tor and Thursbitch Our last walk of 2023 was not very ambitious on account of the weather. We went up to Shining Tor as usual- battling into the wind; the cloud was low and just grazing the top of Shining Tor. Shining Tor with its head in the clouds After a very short break at the top, instead of just reversing the walk, we went down into the valley and visited Thursbitch for the first time this year. Clouds blowing in from Shining Tor towards Cats Tor The ruins of Thursbitch We saw no one except for some (hopeful) sheep who wrongly assumed that we might be bearing food. Optimistic sheep Persistently optimistic sheep The only downside to this really nice walk is the somewhat boring plod up the road from the end of the drive to Howlersknowl up to the car park at Pym Chair and the welcome sight of the car. It was then home for lunch. An occasionally cold and occasionally wet outing of 4.6 miles with 320m ascent but well worth doing nonetheless.
