Gisburn walk (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Gisburn walk

9:19am Wednesday 1st September 2010

• Print
• Email
• Comments(1)

At one time Gisburn was a vital staging post on the 18th century turnpike toll road but only one of the old inns, the White Bull, still serves food.

Another of the one-time hostelries is now called Cromwell House. Dating to 1635 and once called the Ribblesdale Arms, it was famous for having a resident ghost.

*Start at the splendid and recently-restored parish church of St Mary the Virgin, which has a Norman tower plus some stonework in the nave which was taken from Sawley Abbey following its dissolution in 1537.

Inside are memorials to the Lister family, who later became Lords of the Ribblesdale and whose home was Gisburne Park.

The ‘E’ was only lost in the 19th century, perhaps at the behest of the railway company.

In the churchyard look out for the grave of Frances Duckworth a famous composer of hymns during the late 19th and early 20th Centuries.

His hymns were named after local villages and the most famous was dedicated to nearby Rimington where the composer was born.

Follow the A59 through the village, passing the White Bull on the right, to reach a turn-off to the right indicating Bolton-by-Bowland.

Pass the livestock market on the left.

*Also on the left are buildings associated with the old station. Sadly this is now no longer operation but the line itself is still functional.

Follow the narrow road towards Bolton-by-Bowland and head through mature woodlands which in the season smells strongly of wild garlic.

*Approach Gisburn Bridge, spanning the River Ribble, but do not cross. Bear right and see a private home on the left which was once an old mill. Look out here for inserted stones which were taken from the ruins of Sawley Abbey.

Turn right along an even narrower track and close to the railway line find a track leading to the right.

*You are now entering the grounds of Gisburne park. Gisburne Park Hospital is visible on the left.

This splendid building dates to about 1750 but there was a substantial residence on the site long before this. The first of the family to be created Lord Ribblesdale should be remembered for the planting of a million oak trees which still grace the area.

*Continue along a track through the trees to reach a delightful little bridge over Stocks Beck, which is a delightful and substantial tributary of the Ribble. Ascend a wooded bank to reach the Hellifield Road A682.

*Cross this road carefully and pass through a gate on the opposite side. The track heads across a field through which runs a tiny stream.

Suddenly you come across an underpass beneath the railway. In the 1850s the Listers were not pleased to have the railway slicing through their estate but the lure of money proved too strong and they agreed — but made one stipulation: all the bridges close to and through the estate were to be designed to resemble medieval castles.

As the obvious track meanders through fields and gates look out to see the whale-like humps of Pendle Hill and the foothills of Weets Hill.

*At the Painley Farm complex continue to stroll through a generous slice of agricultural history before descending to Stodes Beck.

*Cross a footbridge and ascend a grassy bank to Crow Park. Pass through a farmyard to reach the A59. Turn right and return to the church.