On the hottest May Day for many years, 11 members of the Rambling Group headed for Earby in Lancashire for our monthly outing. This lovely little gem lies on the Lancashire/Yorkshire border and is stated to be placed in some of the North West’s most beautiful countryside. Having made use of the ” facilities” in the Centre we took a winding lane out of the village and started a slow steady climb along side a babbling stream up onto the moors.
The pace of the walk was much slower than usual, given that we were walking in 23 degree heat with the sun beating down from a cloudless blue sky. However, everyone had taken sensible precautions with hats, sunscreen and water and it was great to be able to walk without the burden of carrying waterproofs! The lush green fields spread out beneath us as we gained height and were dotted with many ewes with their lambs of varying sizes, whilst the sensible ones among the flocks were lying in the shelter of the dry stone walls. The tracks took us up the trig point where we stopped for a sandwich lunch, admiring the far reaching views over towards Pendle hill in one direction and the Yorkshire Dales in the other. We were surprised to find a new monument alongside the trig point which is dedicated to the Health and Social care workers during the pandemic. Named Pinhaw Beacon it contained a Coronavirus Sonnet which can be read in one of the photos in the slideshow. Having been fed and rested we retraced our steps back to the road where we had a quick chat to another larger group of ramblers who were taking part in the Settle Walking Festival. The timing was good as they were heading up to the trig point we had just vacated. From here we took the downward paths across the moors and after a couple of wrong turns and some dodgy stiles, we turned onto a repurposed railway track which led us back to the welcome sight of the Punch Bowl Inn where cold drinks were enjoyed by all. Thanks to Peter for doing the recce with his lifelong pal and then leading us yesterday.
Smashing photos and such lovely weather