I must confess I know very little about Grindleton Fell, but what a very lovely place to visit when the sun is shining. Hugo and I joined a friend and her dog on one of their regular walking routes around the fell, which has conifer tree plantations, heather moorland and far reaching views.
To get to Grindleton Fell my friend drove up Main Street in the village of Grindleton, the road eventually becomes narrower as it heads into fell country. There is roadside parking, we presently turned left up a farm lane and parked near some cottages, starting our walk from there.
There are fire tracks and lesser worn footpaths criss crossing Grindleton Fell, with plenty of opportunities to extend your hike over to Waddington Fell or Easington Fell. We found a small cairn from which we made out various distant hills and closer ones, Pendle Hill was one of course!
It was just so nice to actually feel a little warmth coming from the sunshine. There was a bit of a breeze , but we soon warmed up whilst yomping through the rushes . I actually took my jacket off outside for the first time this year. Spring has been slow coming!
On previous walks in the area my friend has encountered shy Sika Deer, sun basking Lizards and Green Hairstreak Butterflies. Today we spotted a hovering kestrel, 2 Red Legged Partridge and a couple of fast fluttering butterflies, not Hairstreaks, but lovely to see all the same.
We passed through a couple of impressive stone gateways on the fell, though I’m unsure if there was once a grand house here or are the stone pillars, simply what is left of the plantation walls? I have no idea.
This is a great hiking area, very quiet, can be boggy/muddy in places. I hope to return!
Before the sun broke through the clouds yesterday and all the social distancing sunbathing and street parties commenced, we headed out for a walk up Worsaw Hill. The grassy limestone knoll is walkable from my hometown of Clitheroe, we managed an eight mile circular route before lunch time. 🙂 Here are a few images from our morning.
Lambs and Pendle Hill.
Blossoming Horse Chestnut Tree.
Hello Nanny 🐐.
Sheep sculptures ~ Worston Village.
Bunting ~ Worston Village.
Footpath sign after the Calf’s Head pub in Worston.
Footpath with Worsaw Hill ( I only took one actual picture of the hill itself, doh! ) In the distance.
Curious cows.
Water Avens.
View to Pendle Hill from ( almost the top of ) the much smaller Worsaw Hill.
View of Pendle. We rested and ate an Aldi version of a Tunnocks Tea Cake. Hugo had half an apple. 🙂
Downham Hall and Church from the other side of Worsaw Hill.
And views toward Kemple End and Clitheroe.
Violets.
Pretty path towards Chatburn village.
Tortoishell butterfly.
From Chatburn we headed for the river. Hugo had again rolled in something dead! Time for a dip.
The Ribble between Chatburn and West Bradford Bridge.
Bad dog! 🙄
Mute Swan.
Any ideas botanist bloggers? On the Riverside.
Canada Geese.
Dandelion clocks.
Hanson Cement works on the outskirts of Clitheroe.
Heron doing a Greta Garbo. 😅
Dusky Cranesbill.
This was a quiet walk with great views, wildlife and if done in the future, places to find refreshment. Also for film buffs, Worsaw Hill appears in Whistle Down The Wind , which was made locally.
This afternoon we donned our waterproofs and walking boots, packed a lunch and flask of coffee and headed to the centre of the UK !
The pretty village of Dunsop Bridge in the Trough Of Bowland is the nearest village to National Grid reference SD63770 56550 Hanging Stones. Apparently this area has been determined to be the exact centre of the country.
From the village car park ( £1.40 charge for four hours) we walked past the green and took the tarmacked track to the left of Puddleducks Tea Rooms and Post Office. From here we followed the lane through a couple of farm cottages and up through the valley as far as the water pumping station and back.
Heading toward the Dunsop Valley.
Hugo really enjoyed dipping in and out of the brook and chasing sticks. 🙂
Meanwhile the weather was a mixture of sunshine and hale stones, plus it was blowing a bit of a hooley.
I think the weather conditions frightened off most of the wildlife. I saw a few ducks and the odd pheasant. Lots of purple catkins on the alder trees gave the countryside a lilac hue.
I think the scenery in the Trough is every bit as beautiful as in the Yorkshire Dales or the Lake District.
We didn’t venture further than this water tower but I’m sure we will return one day soon and follow the lane up into the fells.
We turned back and headed for Dunsop Bridge. This walk covered five miles in total.
It was lovely to see bunches of wild snowdrops growing by the stream and dotted round the village. Hopefully Spring is on its way..
Back in March when Wil and I spent a particularly Ice Cold Night In Haworth , I picked up a Railway children’s Walks leaflet from the train station. We eventually returned one showery ( but much warmer) day in September and tried out the longer of the two circular walks, which is six miles long.
The Railway Children is a 1970 dramatization of E Nesbit’s Classic novel about three children whose lives change dramatically when their father is sent to prison, and their mother takes them to live in rural Yorkshire, uprooting them from their middle class London life. Their new home backs onto a railway line , which brings unexpected adventures and also new friends, when the going gets tough. The film is an endearing family favourite, and one that can still be enjoyed today. 🙂
Although Howarth is definitely more well known as the home of the literary Bronte family, it’s cobbled streets, old-fashioned railway stations, surrounding buttercup meadows and even the Bronte parsonage itself, made for inspired location casting in the film. Hopefully Author E Nesbit would have been pleased with the result!
The Railway Children ~ Peter, Bobbi & Phyllis.
The walk starts at Howarth Station ( we parked in the main car-park , not far from Haworth Centre), where we were lucky enough to see a steam train puffing into the station:)
Steam Train Approaching Haworth Station.
Before I could so much as wave a white hanky, we set off from Haworth Station forecourt, crossing the main road and turning right , before turning left up Brow Road. After a short distance we spied a footpath sign on the right and followed a well trodden path through farmyards and passing Oxenhope water treatment works as we walked along side Bridgehouse Beck and Worth Valley Railway, almost to Oxenhope Station.
Horses near Ives Bottom Farm.
This section of the walk wouldn’t normally take very long, but we found ourselves caught up in a Fell Race, and had to keep stopping and grabbing Hugo, making way for Fell Runner after Fell Runner. Talk about bad timing on our part! One poor runner nearly tripped over the dog! We were relieved when our paths finally divided and we crossed the railway.
Railway Crossing.
Perfect spot for lunch. 🙂
We had packed some lunch and after our fraught run ins with the fell runners we decided to sit a while on a bench overlooking the railway line, watching a few straggling runners appear now and again. The race did remind me of the paper chase in the film though. 🙂
After our impromptu picnic we carried on over the stile in the wall behind us and up the meadow where Bents House appears on the left. Better known as Three Chimneys, this is the Yorkshire home of The Railway Children. 🙂
Three Chimneys. The foliage obscuring it’s actual three chimneys.
By now it had started raining heavily, so we changed into our waterproofs after passing the stone gap stile which “Perks the Station master” has difficulty squeezing through, whilst delivering a basket hamper to Three Chimneys in the film.
Stone Gap Stile.
The walk then took us to the hamlet of Hole after passing through a farmyard and a large field full of very frisky cows, who were a bit too interested in Hugo. After much shooing we managed to negotiate ourselves around the cattle and the mud. Even though I grew up on a farm and don’t usually mind walking through livestock, these ones were a bit lively, even for me! After this adventure we got a bit lost ( which does usually happen on our walks ;0) ), so we were very glad when the Railway Children Walk signs re-appeared, and we found ourselves walking the short way from Hole into Haworth, via Haworth Churchyard and the Bronte Parsonage Museum, the Doctor’s house in the film.
Bronte Parsonage Museum is Doctor Forrest’s House.
The Tourist Info Office was used in the film as the butchers shop.
Haworth Main Street. In the film the children call in at various shops and houses in Haworth, collecting birthday gifts for Perks.
Various houses and shops in Haworth doubled up as locations in the film. We had a wander down the Main street and shared a ‘ Yorkshire Scallywag’ in the Bronte Boardwalk Café, before continuing with the walk.
A Scallywag is a Yorkshire Scone. 🙂
The next part of the walk took us to Oakworth Station, which is the railway station used in the film. We headed down Main Street , turning left opposite The Fleece Public House, crossed over the busy main road and walked down the cobblestones of Butt Lane ,before following a diagonal path over some playing fields onto Mytholmes Lane. We then ambled down hill and the route re-joined the footpath after a row of cottages on the right. The path follows the railway and in the winter when the views aren’t obscured by foilage, you can apparently get a better view of the embankment where the landslide was filmed and the children waved the girls red petticoats to warn the driver of the 11.29 train of the danger.
We then encountered some danger ourselves, when two curious ( and very mahoosive! ) horses came cantering up out of nowhere, as we were giving Hugo a drink from his portable water dish. The gigantic beasts probably thought food was on the menu, and chased us to the nearest stile. Presently we found ourselves walking down a main road toward the station , and noticed some unusual little houses painted into the wall.
Oakworth Station is an Edwardian Railway Station with a very olde worlde charm. We purchased a platform ticket for 50p and had a quick wander round. Much of the action in The Railway Children movie features on the platform and in the station rooms here.
The platform.
Picture postcard platform.
The station even has a ladies waiting room, decked out as a perfect replica of the Edwardian one in the film. There are also Railway Children merchandise and mementos on display.
Ladies Waiting Room.
Its a nice thought that you can actually sit in such a nostalgic lounge and wait for your train. I wonder if the fire is lit on cold winters days? I did spot a couple of burly British Rail workers in the station enjoying a tea break at a tea clothed table , complete with doilys and vintage China. 🙂 Both steamers and diesel trains pass through Oakworth Station on a regular basis. 🙂
We continued the walk, crossing over the level crossings and passing Station Cottage which is Mr Perks home in the film. We kept following the road past Vale Fold Cottages and crossed a stile onto the footpath which runs parallel to the railway line again.
Station Keepers Cottage.
Mytholmes Tunnel. In the paper chase scene , one of the grammar school boys gets stuck in the tunnel.
Another approaching Steamer. 🙂
It was fun to see another Steam Train puffing its way towards us as we followed the footpath over a road and watched it chug under the bridge below us. We then walked up a main road again ( Ebor Lane) and back into Haworth.
I really enjoyed our Railway Children Walk despite the rain, run-ins with fell runners, frisky cows and hungry horses. ; )
sunshine and celandines 