Friday 21 November 2008 - The Wells of Silverdale

Notchy joined Sue and me for this gentle afternoon stroll. We rolled up in unison at 1 pm, parking on the shore at SD 457 749 for lunch with this fine view.



At the edge of the parking area lurks Bard’s Well, also known as the Battling Stone Well as clothes were washed and beaten clean against the stones here. Sadly our lack of attention foiled our bid to examine this well, which may not have been flowing.

Our attention turned to a venue where something definitely was flowing….

 

But a ginnel to the right just before the Hotel led us behind some houses and across Lindeth road for the familiar sighting of turkeys on the back lane to Wood Well.

 

The way these big beasties were waddling along, they will provide meals for huge families.  They looked very happy though, for the time being...

At Wood Well water oozes from the bottom of a cliff and forms a stream for all of 10 metres:

It is immediately collected into a large basin, originally used as a watering place for cattle.



This well, like most in Silverdale, is really a spring, arising where a perched water table over a layer of impenetrable clay seeps out at outcrops of the impermeable layer.

From Wood Well a right turn leads up to a lane. Wolf House Gallery is 2 minutes away to the right, across the road from Gibraltar Farm. The gallery is much changed from the cosy nook with an intimate coffee shop, delicious home made cakes, and the lovely works of a variety of Lakeland artisans that we discovered on early visits to this spot. It’s now smaller but more commercialised, with fewer traditional paintings, but it does have a splendid tea room with excellent food.

Back up the road, we rejoined the woodland path and headed along the top of the cliff for 200 or so metres, from where we looked down upon Wood Well (we could have simply scrambled up the cliff from there, but the gallery is always worth a visit) before heading on across leaf strewn fields.



Informative signposts directed us to Silverdale Green, where a footpath beside a wall led us out past leaf-less trees onto Stankelt Road. 

 

 

A right turn here, then the second left, took us to a path signed to Burton Well.  We would recommend that others following this route should follow that sign.  We ignored it, and found ourselves being drawn inexorably towards Silverdale Church.  Extricating ourselves from this faux pas, we wound our way past Bottoms Farm Kiln to Burton Well.  There's a fascinating information board at the kiln, with a time line tracing the history of lime kilns from 2450BC to contemporary times, though only a fantasist would date this kiln anything like that far back.

   

Burton Well probably arises in the same way as Wood Well, and supplied water to the residents of Silverdale Green for many years.  Following the introduction of gutters and downpipes, water was collected from the air (there's no shortage of airborne water here) and stored in tanks.  Many houses were later built with tanks in their cellars, from which water was pumped into the kitchens by hand.  By then the wells were generally used only for watering livestock.

From Burton Well a narrow footpath leads over a stile into Lambert's Meadow and across the wooden bridge.

 

The meadow is National Trust property and forms a peaty hollow supporting tall grasses and rushes, with the herbs of unimproved grassland on its southern fringes (lady's mantle, knapweed, purple loosestrife, etc) though it was a fairly bare outlook that greeted us today.

A climb from the far side of the meadow led to a left turn onto a road, to the left of which Bank's Well has formed a small pond.  Opposite the pond, to the right, a track runs behind the houses and past the site of our 'Bouncing Campervan Experience' that so traumatised Jenny one dark evening a couple of years ago (she no longer subscribes to our evening ['pitch black'] walks as a result), to Dogslack Well, nicely fitted out - but no water emerged from the pump despite Sue's efforts.

 

This is Silverdale's only true well.  It supplied water to nearby cottages until 1938, when the aqueduct from Haweswater to Manchester was constructed, from which water was piped to supply the village.

Retracing our steps to the lane, we turned right, past the Row and across the 'main' road to the car park leading to Eaves Wood.  This is the site of Mark's (Beating the Bounds) crooked tree.  Our route didn't take us far enough around the wood to see that, but we did find this excellent specimen of beech.

Scary, actually - it appeared to be watching us!

Moving quickly on, and keeping to the lower path, avoiding right and left turns, we soon passed concrete water tanks used to store water piped from perched springs further up the hill.  A high 'Spite Wall' obscured the view into gardens - now perhaps not at their best - to the left.

A bench at Elmslack provided the ideal spot to consume the last of our provisions and a flask of tea, whilst scrutinising the litter bin that sits on the site of Elmslack Well.

Beyond here were good views of Silverdale in the fading light.

 

A delightful village scene with a bowling contest no doubt reaching its conclusion.

 

Continuing down the footpath signed to Cove Road, we turned briefly away from the village before taking a left to reach the beach, and our seventh and final well, Cove Well, of which there was no discernable trace...but the scene from the beach was pleasant in the low light.

A short stroll along the beach saw us back at the cars as the sun went down.

We then made the mistake of setting off on our short journey to Ings, enjoying en route the most magnificent sunset referred to by Mark here.  Once the sun had actually set, the sky turned crimson - the images above failed completely to capture the full glory of the wonderful after-sun glow.

The following morning a lecture from Colin Prior slammed home the point!

Credit for some of the information in this posting goes to a leaflet produced by the Countryside Management Service of the Arnside/Silverdale AONB.

I appreciate this location is home to Beating the Bounds - I do hope Mark doesn't object to this minor intrusion into his 'patch', which Sue and I regard as one of the hidden gems of the UK.

Here's a rough interpretation of the route - a flattish 6.5 km which should take a dawdly 2 hours.

Joy

The messages from our weekend activities will have to wait. 

We have an important job this week. 

We are guests of Andrew and Kate for a couple of days.

Last night we prepared a meal for them.

They ate it. All of it!

Now they have gone to 'work'.

That leaves us time to think....

...what shall we have for tea tonight?

Footnote:  This is what can happen when 'Stay at home Hazel' doesn't stay at home!!

A Quiet Week in Timperley

Monday - Sue and I lunched with JJ, another TGO Challenger, at Giobrio in Sale. Mauritzio was in good form and served up his usual tasty fare that would see us through the rest of the day. We do have difficulty working out his pricing structure, as the meal and drinks for the three of us, together with a generous (in relation to the cost of the meal) tip came to all of £10. [The price list seems to be a work of fiction!]

The trees by the canal are looking barer now, with the towpath supporting a thick carpet of leaves. This fearless Canada Duck took a real fancy to the Canon G10.
Tuesday - it's a small world. On a lovely sunny day by the canal, I bumped into a familiar jogger. Not JJ, but yes, another TGO Challenger. This one was also in training - on a 10-mile run which I was told would take an hour and 10 minutes. I continued, bemused.

Later that day: "not very good with numbers"...was the message..."should have said an hour and 40 minutes". Still not bad - I think Sue and I will be at the tail end of 'Team Timperley' when we reach Montrose. Possibly several days behind!

What looked like a food parcel from Markus, the kindly Austrian, arrived today - we opened it and realised that - yes, it was from Markus, pretending that he was from British Gas, with a present that will provide both heat and light to see us through the cold winter months:
Thank you Markus!

And another follower of this blog appeared. Welcome Martin.

Wednesday - I made a movie! Thanks go to Gayle for a bit of guidance on this, though the process that caused her a problem - conversion of movie clips from her camera to a format that could be used in Windows Movie Maker - seemed to just happen automatically for me. The trickiest bit was the upload to U-tube and insertion in the blog, and that was hardly rocket science.

We aren't any good at (indoor) photography, and the 'movie' was for a specific purpose, but I'm still chuffed with the result. Thanks for the inspiration, Gayle. Here it is:

I spent the rest of the day admiring my MSR Superfly stove,
contemplating my next adventure into the world of movie-making.
(And messing up a wonderfully clear image by the unnecessary use of drop shadow after deleting the original.)

The time could have been much better spent enjoying for a second time Mike Knipe's record of his travails amongst the Fells of Howgill. Here - they really are a good read.

Thursday - yet more time was spent on producing a slideshow of our recent trip to Egypt, and editing some of the postings to include more images. But I ran out of time so this all remains as 'work-in-progress' (I'll let you know when it's finished) as we were distracted by an appointment with 'The Singing Librarian' at the Royal Northern College of Music.

June Tabor's rendering of haunting melodies rarely fails to bring tears to the eye. The concert concentrated on folk songs dating from way back - even as long ago as when Normandy was part of Britain (apparently). Here's a clip of one of my favourites from her Anthology album:

Friday - we are off to Silverdale for a stroll, en route to Kendal for the Kendal Mountain Festival. As most of that involves listening and watching, we don't plan to post anything over the weekend, but will report back on Monday.

Sunday 16 November 2008 - A Walk in Calderdale

Sue, Andrew and I were joined by Richard, who we had first met on Wednesday at our slide show to Stockport Walking Group, for this scenic stroll from New Bridge car park, the access point for Hardcastle Crags - just beyond Hebden Bridge.

We set off into the pretty woodland of Hebden Dale before rising to admire the churches and museum at Heptonstall.  A fine view south drew our eyes to the sun drenched valley in which the village of Mytholm nestled comfortably below the prominent monument on Stoodley Pike.

Ambling west along the Calderdale Way, above the sunlit trees in Eaves Wood, we soon reached the Pennine Way.  A rocky outcrop provided a fine location for elevenses - tea and CCS - much to Richard's amazement.  The people with whom he usually walks have yet to discover the pleasures of the mid-morning break!  The sun lit up the valley below us, with the fields by Colden village shining in the low November light. The section of the Pennine Way over Clough Head Hill was only moderately gooey, with large stone slabs aiding us across the wettest bits.  With the yellow orb on our backs it seemed no time at all until Gorple Lower Reservoir came into view.  Here we descended to Graining Water for our picnic lunch.  It was very warm for mid-November and Richard relished in daubing himself with sun tan cream.

A 10 minute stroll found us outside the Pack Horse Inn, enjoying pints of Black Sheep ale.  We said hello to Waggy's double (TGO Challengers will know the type) as he continued on his hike/pub crawl.  A mountain biker arrived, alone, forsaken by the other 20 members of the Swaledale Outdoors Club.  His back tyre had been shredded on a rock, and had been patched up using a new inner tube, lots of gaffer tape, and a toothpaste tube.  But an off-road route was out of the question for him, so he would continue happily along the minor roads that abound in this area.

Heading north, a text message from Gary and Sue, who like several others had hoped to join us but had other commitments, indicated that we weren't the only ones enjoying a good day out.  Passing alongside the picturesque Walshaw Dean Reservoirs, we then turned south over Dean Gate, the highest point of our walk at over 400 metres, before descending to Walshaw.

A steep and slippery path led quickly down to the track along Hebden Dale that drew us inexorably back to the car, on an increasingly busy path, with the sun slowly leaving us as we strolled contentedly along.

A short slide show (19 images) is here.

Here's the route - 18 km, about 650 metres of ascent, and it took us 5½ hours, including stops of more than an hour.

The Mountain Bike Route over High Street

 Cycling beside Ullswater towards the end of the day

Whilst the previous entry shows the route fairly clearly, I thought I'd provide this link to the detailed route card, should anyone be using this entry as a 'resource'.  The map references could be useful if the cloud comes down and you have a GPS.  On the other hand, it may be better to wait for a clear, dry summer's day, or a very frosty winter's day - when you should take lights and warm clothing - to follow this route. 
I'll be pleased to receive any comments from those who do follow in our tracks.

Saturday 15 November 2008 - A Ride along High Street

Easy, this... But it's getting steep, we need a rest... Better push, it's too steep to cycle... No, that doesn't work, I think I'll carry it... Cheer up!... We'll make it to the top... And you're not the only 'Pusher' around here, Al... The view across Ullswater is magnificent... And so it was - Alastair and I enjoyed a fine excursion in the Lake District today.  To describe it as a 'ride' is a little optimistic.  You'll realise why from the statistics as well as the photos:

6 hours 16 minutes
23.7 miles
Average speed - 3.7 mph

So we could have walked it faster!  But it wouldn't have been such fun.  We covered miles of sodden ground with the tyres hidden from view as they sloughed through the marshes. 

We were running late as my rear tyre, perhaps in sympathy with what was to come, exploded on the journey north.  Otherwise the ancient steed performed impeccably, though the brakes did develop a juggernaut's horn impression in the latter stages, frightening walkers beside Ullswater.

Alastair's bike, nearly as old as mine, had a few brake problems of its own - of the malfunction variety; and bits of his bike seemed to come loose from time to time, as did his trousers, which disintegrated during the course of the day.  On the occasions when he was able to mount the bike, it seemed to object to his presence, as from time to time (Al was usually ahead) I came across man and machine spreadeagled across the path as if performing some bizarre ritual.

I have to admit that I was 'chucked off' a few times, as well.

This was a demanding ride.  Even the narrow rocky bridleway along the south side of Ullswater undulated viciously and required great care.

The route, shown below, took us from Hartsop (1) to The Knott (2) and on to Racecourse Hill (High Street - 4).  From there we retraced and headed for 6 miles along the Roman road that we discovered has very poor foundations.  Over High Raise to Red Crag (5), and on to Loadpot Hill (6), with stunning views across the District.  Then down to The Cockpit (7), from where a sharp turn leads down to Howtown (8).  Then a rising traverse around The Coombs took us to a road at Martindale Hause.  We sped down there to Sandwick (9) for the (Tedious?!) bridleway to Patterdale (10) from where we rushed back up to Hartsop (1) on the speedy tarmac to reach the car just as darkness fell.  Just as well; neither of us had any lights.  We like going off road, but I have to say, regaining the tarmac at Patterdale was quite a relief!

Given the softness of much of the terrain on this route, and the amount of time we spent walking, I think next time I'll leave the bike at home and leave boot prints rather than ugly tyre grooves.  However, I've wanted to cycle along High Street's Roman road for many years, so today that ambition was achieved - it's very satisfying.

Here's a later entry, and here's a more detailed route card.

Thursday 13 November 2008 - An Evening Stroll around Wilmslow

Notchy joined Sue and me for a pleasant evening stroll over the ground covered on 11 November, which was in effect a recce for this evening walk.

Starting into Lindow Common (above) we passed the slumbering ducks on Black Lake, which was indeed very black.

Quiet lanes and bridleways delivered us in due course to the boggy pathways of Lindow Moss.  The warm, calm evening was in great contrast to the weather that confronted us for last month's abandoned evening outing to Whaley Bridge, and it really was most pleasant.  Sadly, the full moon was obscured by heavy cloud, but the rain kept off and there was sufficient ambient light to avoid the need for torches apart from one short wet section under a thickly foliaged canopy.

Here's the birch lined path through the Moss.It leads over a couple of narrow, slippery bridges, precariously perched above deep drainage ditches filled with black water.  One slip, and you could be gone for another 2000 years, like 'Pete Marsh', Lindow Man.  Notchy joked "what would they make of this strange 'Gore' clothing and the peculiar 'Petzl' object on its head?"

We emerged safely on this occasion into Newgate Lane, past a private fishing lake and country residences on the edge of Wilmslow. Where the autumn colours are striking just now. Here's the 5 km route; it involves negligible ascent and takes around 1 hour 15 minutes.All in all, a pleasant little excursion, courtesy of Tony Bowerman's 'Walks in Mysterious Cheshire and Wirral', which describes this short stroll in luxurious fashion over a passage of 12 pages.

Would my readers like more than this brief description?  I could always revisit this venue, on a slightly different route; it's a 15 minute drive from Timperley.

Wednesday 12 November 2008 - A Talk to Stockport Walking Group

 Sue looks across Lac della Valla in the Maritime Alps on 4 July 2008

The walking group honoured us last night by turning up in droves for our 'Italian Border Route' talk.  We managed to deliver it without incident to the audience of 30 or so, in the allocated time, before chatting to Richard and then adjourning to the Grapes for a welcome beer. 

Pam introduced herself: 'I'm Gavin's mother-in-law'.  Wow!  Gavin is the son of my oldest (longest standing that is) friend.  It surely is a very small world.  Hello Mike!

Diaries were produced.  They want us back.  It's an honour to be asked.  So Wednesday 25 February is in the diary, for 'Walks and Via Ferrate in the Dolomites'.  That should be fun to compile.  Here's a taster:

Punta Fiames summit in the Dolomites on 15 July 2007

Blue Skies over Timperley

On a beautiful Autumn day, this was a view from within our small garden: 
I make no apology for yet another canal picture - the view changes with the seasons - it was most appealing today:

Tonight we have the pleasure of revisiting 'Summer in the Alps', for the second time this week, with our slide show to the Stockport Walking Group.  You are all welcome to attend, or place a booking.

TGO Challenge 2009 - Let the Training Commence

The letter has arrived, so training has commenced.  There's no escape from publicity for this Challenger from Timperley, seen jogging down Woodlands Parkway at 11.05 this morning.  He was identified from the clothing, which he doesn't seem to have changed since this picture was taken on 20 May 2008 beside Loch Lee. 
Hiya JJ.

Lindow Moss and The Bog Man

I passed by this scene of desolation today.  It is near Lindow Common in Wilmslow, where an assortment of birds were active on Black Lake, including the diver pictured below.  I think it's a Great-crested Grebe hiding its crest, but I stand to be corrected.

 
Anyway, whilst the small area of Lindow Common has been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), nearby Lindow Moss, a much larger area and possibly of greater scientific importance, continues to house a commercial Peat Farm.  A matter of some local debate.

It was here that in 1984 some workmen discovered a body that had been preserved in the peat for around 2000 years.  This was 'Pete Marsh', whose wounds indicated a ritual killing whereby he was knocked unconscious, then slowly garotted, then had his throat cut.  His stomach contained burnt bread and mistletoe, sacred to the Druids.  It is possible that after this last sacred meal he suffered the 'threefold death' referred to by the Roman chronicler, Lucan, as a sacrifice to a triad of powerful Celtic gods: Teutates, Esus and Taranis. 

Pete's twisted body is now a popular exhibit in the British Museum in London. What other secrets may Lindow Moss hold, I wonder?  One murderer confessed to killing his wife when a skull was found in 1983.  That skull was later found to be from a woman who had died around 500BC, in the Iron age!

I've gleaned this information from Tony Bowerman's excellent little book - Walks in Mysterious Cheshire and Wirral.  This book is no longer available from Amazon, so may soon be difficult to obtain - get it while you can!   More information on Lindow Man is available from the British Museum, and from Wikipedia, as well as from this 'Mummy Tombs' website.

Monday 10 November 2008 - A Trip to Southport

Today we had the pleasure of Tim and Kate's company at their home in Southport for an afternoon of photos from our Italian Border Route trip, and from the TGO Challenge, on which we walked with them this year from Newtonmore to the upper reaches of Glen Feshie. 

They are seasoned backpackers and have done 'The Challenge' ten times, so the slide show took a bit longer than usual as we tried to explain some of the intricacies and incidents of the Italian trip.

We did manage to find time to wander down to Ainsdale Sands (above), which Tim and Kate are lucky enough to have on their doorstep.

The Black-headed Gulls that have taken up residence on our local canal also proliferate in the coastal region of Southport.  Here they are lining up, readying themselves for target practice.

There were lots of Coots and Tufted Ducks on the pond behind the sands, mostly looking very lazy and well nourished.

 
Thank you, Tim and Kate, for an excellent lunch and a most enjoyable afternoon.

Saturday 8 November 2008 - Ellie and Jason get married

An enjoyable day was had by all, at Sandhole Oak Barn, near Congleton.  This was the (really excellent) venue for my niece Ellie's wedding.

There was a hyperactive man taking lots of photos, so we didn't try to compete with him, but here's a glimpse of some of the 'usual suspects'.

And this picture shows Ellie and Jason cutting into the results of our chemistry experiment with the slurry we had concocted at the time of the last posting.

The weather stayed fair for them, and they probably don't care much about today's inclemency, as they set off at 6 am (ugh) this morning to join the Trans Siberian Express on the first leg of a round the world trip which is planned to take a whole year.

We wish them a wonderful life together and a very happy year that really does put our own pathetic efforts at travelling into perspective!

Meanwhile, today (Sunday) I managed a pleasant bike ride before the worst of the rain arrived, but the towpath was muddy and 'she who must be obeyed' insisted on hosing me down before I was allowed back into the house!  I'm sparing you, dear reader, from any grey canalscapes that I may have been able to capture through the gloom of the November afternoon.

I'm becoming increasingly conscious of the 'lack of depth' to my postings compared with some of the other outdoors bloggers, but notwithstanding that I have today gained a fifth 'follower', Ron Bloomquist, who writes an entertaining blog - Walking Fort Bragg.  Hello Ron, I hope you will enjoy following the (mainly) outdoor activities, and hopefully the occasional pleasing image, from this layabout based in the north west of England.