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INTRODUCTION

Brennand farm, set in Lancashire’s rolling hills (Walk 16)

For generations of walkers, to speak of ‘Lancashire’ would have instantly brought up mental images of vast smoky grey blocks of heavy industry, although the reality is completely different, and was described by the late comedian Les Dawson as a ‘memory of lakes and woods and rolling hills’. Few who don’t know the county will, I suspect, identify with the latter, even though Lancashire boasts two sizeable Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The larger is the Forest of Bowland, measuring 310 square miles (800 sq km), and this, plus a bit more, is the region covered in this book.

Imagine that: Lancashire, a place of outstanding natural beauty. If nothing else, this book sets out to show that there is much less smoky greyness about present-day Lancashire, and considerably more from which to fashion fond memories.

Primarily, this book offers walks within the AONB, but this is split between the Forest of Bowland and the ‘bewitching’ countryside of Pendle to the south. Between the two lies the Ribble Valley, centred around the town of Clitheroe. So, to make life simple, and provide a remarkable contrast of walks, the range of the book reaches from north of the River Lune (which passes through the northern part of the AONB), across the Ribble Valley, and around Pendle Hill to the outskirts of Colne and Nelson. In essence, then, the Forest of Bowland and Pendle AONB, plus all the delectable countryside in between.

Summit of Parlick – a rash of stones set against the Lancashire fells (Walk 14)

The terrain within this area is extremely diverse, from the lush farmlands of the Ribble Valley, to the more rugged rough pastures of the Forest of Bowland uplands, to the huge boggy uplifts of the main Bowland massif itself. It’s all wonderfully wild walking country.

For walkers who like to ‘collect’ summits, there are six of the so-called ‘Marilyns’ within the area of the book, only two of which (White Hill and Easington Fell) are not included in a walk. White Hill may be added as an extension to either Walk 17 or Walk 24, but not without boggy effort. Easington Fell is easily accessed from the car park at the top of the Waddington–Newton road adjacent to Waddington Fell. For the record, the other Marilyns are Ward’s Stone, Pendle Hill, Longridge Fell and Fair Snape Fell.

THE BEGINNINGS OF LANCASHIRE

The ancient county of Lancashire came into being during the reign of Henry II (1154–89), when the first sheriff was appointed to collect taxes for the whole county. The earldom of Lancaster was invented for Henry III’s youngest son, Edmund Crouchback, in 1266, and he was given extensive powers within the county. In 1351, when the fourth earl, Henry, was awarded the title of duke, he was granted palatine powers for life by Edward III. This authority gave Henry a position not unlike that of the Earl of Chester and the Bishop of Durham, and vested in him the right to exercise immense powers in matters such as the appointment of judges and the holding of courts.

When Henry died the palatine powers were resumed by the king, then 29 years later granted to his successor, John of Gaunt. When John of Gaunt died, the duchy was seized by his nephew, Richard II, whereupon Gaunt’s son, Henry Bolingbroke, returned from exile and recovered both duchy and kingdom from his cousin, and was crowned Henry IV, the first of the royal house of Lancaster. The duchy was never again surrendered by the reigning monarch, and the loyal toast in Lancashire is to ‘The Queen, Duke of Lancaster’.

The first occasion on which the ‘county’ of Lancaster appears is in 1168. The principal advantage of the town of Lancaster lay in its strategic position in relation to the Lune valley, a main through route to Scotland, but this command diminished as the military significance of Lancaster castle declined, and other important centres to the south grew. In 1798 the seat of county government switched from Lancaster to Preston, where it has remained ever since.

Beside the Lune (Walk 2)

AREAS COVERED IN THIS GUIDEBOOK

I have grouped the walks into a number of areas (see below). This is purely for organisational purposes and should not be taken to hold any other significance.

Lonsdale

The River Lune rises among the northeastern fells of the Howgills, in Cumbria, and as it carves its way through the hills provides a long-standing through route to Scotland, before swinging westwards to reach the sea near Lancaster.

The Lune valley provides many excellent walking opportunities, and because of its strategic importance in medieval times, the towns and villages along its banks are heavy with the history of Lancashire and of England.

The Forest of Bowland

The Forest of Bowland and Pendle Hill were designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in 1964, and though Pendle Hill is quite separate geographically, the two share the title Forest of Bowland AONB. It is the eleventh largest of the 40 AONBs and is almost entirely in Lancashire, though a little bit extends into Yorkshire. The Bowland Fells are a designated SSSI on account of the heather moorland blanket bog that supports important upland breeding bird populations.

Hodder landscape, north of Whitewell (Walk 19)

The forest is, of course, a former hunting forest, not a woodland. The name ‘Bowland’ probably derives from ‘bu’-land, the land of cattle, and has nothing to do with bows and arrows. In times gone by, wild boar, deer and wolves roamed here, making the area a much-prized hunting ground for kings and nobility.

The central core of the area contrasts gritstone fells with steep-sided valleys and peaty moorland expanses, and for many years access to this excellent walking country was a vexed subject. But with the introduction of Access Land under the provisions of the Countryside and Rights-of-way Act, 2000, much of this land became legally walkable.

Pendle Hill across Black Moss Reservoir (Walk 38)

The Bowland Fells consist of an upland area of heather moorland with deep wooded river valleys, and together with the Bowland Fringe and outlying Pendle Hill they have considerable conservation interest. Dominated by blanket bog and heather moorland, there are also upland pastures here. The fells are incised by rapid-flowing rivers, giving rise to steep cloughs (steep-sided ravines or gullies) with occasional trees and lush wooded valleys on lower slopes. The valleys and cloughs provide a transition between the exposed moorland fells and the rural lowlands, and include an attractive mosaic of woodland, unimproved meadows, rush-dominated pasture and flushed grassland slopes, with marshes and streams at lower levels.

The surrounding Bowland Fringe has a diverse landscape of undulating herb-rich hay meadows and lush pastures, broadleaved woodlands, parkland and water bodies, such as Stocks Reservoir.

Retrospective view of Stocks Reservoir from the north (Walk 23)

The Pendle Hill outlier is geologically linked to the main upland block, but separated from it by the broad valley of the Ribble.

The Forest of Bowland supports a considerable area of semi-natural vegetation forming important wildlife habitats. The upland massif with its vast expanses of unenclosed heather moorland and blanket bog is of international importance for breeding bird populations. The in-bye (i.e. land within a farmed area) grasslands and herb-rich hay meadows are important features of the Bowland Fringe, and semi-natural clough woodlands survive where they are inaccessible to sheep.

For the birdwatcher, the area is simply superb. The moorlands support important populations of hen harrier, peregrine, red grouse, lesser black-backed gull, merlin, golden plover and curlew. The area is also important regionally for short-eared owl and ring ouzel, and eagle owls are known to have bred here.

Pendleside and the Ribble Valley

Pendle will forever be linked with tales of witchcraft – indeed, it was once said that witches filled the burrows alongside the rabbits, so numerous were they. The myths and legends that grew up around these claims prompted an excellent book by Harrison Ainsworth, The Lancashire Witches, which makes ideal supplementary reading for anyone coming to this region for the first time.

The River Ribble, for the most part a majestic river, rises far away in Yorkshire, but it is not long before it becomes Lancashire’s river, and flows through idyllic countryside into Pendle, on by Ribchester – where the Romans had a fort – and onwards to meet the sea near Preston.

NOTES AND ADVICE FOR WALKERS

Walled ‘occupation’ lane, Twiston Moor (Walk 38)

None of the walks in this book presents technical problems in good weather conditions, especially in summer, and the vast majority may also be tackled in winter by competent walkers. However, some of the walks traverse bleak and featureless moorland where mist becomes a major hazard, and others involve a measure of road walking where you will need to take care against approaching traffic (although road stretches have been kept to a minimum).

In addition to the commonplace yellow, blue and white waymark arrows, the countryside around Bowland and Pendle is dotted with beautifully carved waymarks in stone, made by local craftsmen.

For all the walks I have assumed that readers possess navigational skills, are conversant with map and compass technique, and know how to clothe and protect themselves effectively. In winter, with snow and ice on the ground, an ice-axe may become an essential item of equipment on some walks, but it is useless without the knowledge to use it properly.

At the start of each walk a box provides information on the start/finish point (including details of refreshment and toilet facilities), distance, height gain, the terrain along the route and the relevant Ordnance Survey maps. In the appendix at the end of the guide there is a route summary table, which is useful for comparing routes when you are planning days out.

In the text, key landmark features appear in bold to assist with route finding.

Maps

As well as including details of the appropriate Ordnance Survey map(s), each walk is supported by a map outlining the route. In the main you will need three OS maps, or the new walking and cycling map from Harvey Maps:

 OL21: South Pennines

 OL41: Forest of Bowland and Ribblesdale

 Explorer 287: West Pennine Moors

 Harvey Maps: Forest of Bowland

Distances and Height Gain

These are approximate and have been rounded up or down, but they are sufficiently accurate to allow calculation of times using Naismith’s (15 minutes for every 1km of distance plus 10 minutes for every 100m of ascent) or other rules.

Paths

Waymark – one of several dotted around the moors (Walk 8)

There are numerous paths throughout Lancashire’s countryside – the county is well stocked with rights-of-way – but it should be noted that any reference to paths or other lines of ascent does not imply that a right-of-way exists.

Access

The author has walked without challenge throughout the Lancashire countryside for many years, and most walkers enjoy the same liberty. The Countryside and Rights-of-way Act, 2000, however, made a great deal of what was technically a ‘no-go’ area freely accessible to walkers – go to www.gov.uk/right-of-way-open-access-land. You’ll see that Access Land areas are marked on the latest maps. This general freedom, however, must be exercised responsibly, and is not a licence to clamber over walls and fences indiscriminately, causing damage, or to tramp through fields of crops.

The Hodder at Burholme Bridge (Walk 19)

The reality is that while the freedom exists to wander wherever you want, the conditions underfoot often counsel against doing so – footpaths evolved where they did for a reason, and often that reason was to do with the nature of the land. If you want to go ploughing through a bog, and it is on Access Land, then you can do so – but this book doesn’t take you that way.

Dogs

A good deal of the northwestern part of the Forest of Bowland – land used for breeding and rearing grouse – is a dog-exclusion zone. Elsewhere dogs may be banned on land used in connection with lambing, and enclosures of less than 15 hectares, for up to six weeks a year, and from areas important for ground-nesting birds.

Otherwise the new access rights include the right to walk dogs between 1 March and 31 July (and at other times near livestock or nesting birds) as long as they are on a 2-metre lead. Frankly, this lead-length restriction can make walking with a dog rather awkward, and here I write from experience – the dog is often just a bit too close to you for comfort. Not everywhere has such an exclusion, but where a walk falls within a dog-exclusion area, the information at the start of each walk will say so.