Having walked for the last few days, we opted to drive into Whalley, only about three miles away, to have a proper look around.
We have lived in the next village for over a year now, and despite driving through many times, we have only really visited Whalley briefly for an occasional meal, so thought it was about time we had a proper look around.
There are many good reasons to visit Whalley, most of which have been well documented in online articles over the last couple of years.
A charming historic lancashire village, with many listed buildings and quaint streets, Whalley is filled with beautiful buildings, and has many independent award winning cafes, restaurants and shops. There are also several pubs, all offering something different.
Possibly its most famous sight is Whalley Abbey, dating back to the 14th century when it was a Cistercian abbey. Situated on the banks of the River Calder, it remains a working retreat, but also hosts business events and even has overnight accommodation. The public are welcome to visit the beautiful gardens and you can also see a man-made waterfall on the River Calder and a water wheel, which has been retained within the old mill building (now converted to residential apartments), where the resident monks would have gone to collect their water.
Another delight is St Mary & All Saints Church, where a stroll through the pretty, well-kept churchyard reveals three Saxon crosses dating from 628 AD.
Visible from the streets down below, another feature is the victorian Ribble Valley viaduct, a local landmark completed in 1850 with the aim of carrying the railway over the River Calder, which it still does.
The village sits at the foot of Whalley Nab, a large wooded hill on the other side of the River Calder and reached by crossing a stone bridge.
True to form, we decided to explore Nab Hill on foot - well a great village needs a great walk, doesn't it?
Crossing the bridge, we took the narrow road, climbing steeply through Painter Wood. We were quickly rewarded with views of the viaduct, and a little while later the whole of the Ribble Valley stretched out in front of us - beautiful!
We continued to climb, passing a couple of farms before turning right to follow Moor Lane, rising high on top of Black Hill over Billington.
Just before we reached the village of York, we took a left turn along a footpath which, at first, wound itself between some charming stone cottages, before taking us through a small patch of woodland and then up onto the moors, eventually tracking downhill towards Dean Clough Reservoir. We turned off the path before reaching the water and took a hillside path high above Great Harwood, through fields and along a narrow track lined with purple heather and spiky gorse bushes. The path on the map no longer existed at this point, so we continued along the hillside until a new path dropped us down onto Shawcliff Lane; we now had views over to Padiham Heights and could see down towards Accrington on its right and the Sabden Valley on its left, with the impressive Pendle Hill soon rising in front of us.
A sharp right turn down Berrys Lane then led us to a footpath which climbed steadily beneath a dense woodland canopy, along a rocky muddy path, emerging eventually with lungs bursting into bright sunlight. We passed some impressive houses before re-entering the woodland on Nab Hill, this time to descend steeply on a similar path, before arriving back on the Painters Wood Road we had started out on two and a half hours ago.
Crossing the stone bridge back into Whalley, we visited one of the aforementioned establishments for refreshment and to conclude that Whalley is indeed a great village with a great walk.
Comments