START: Beacon Fell Country Park. Main pay and display car park near the visitor centre. Beacon Fell is situated on minor lanes north of Longridge and west of Chipping. Follow the brown tourist signs.

DISTANCE: 5 miles (allow 2-3 hours)

MAP: OS Explorer OL41 Forest of Bowland

HIDDEN down back lanes at the edge of the Bowland is Beacon Fell Country Park, a wooded hill with a summit that provides a spectacular view north and west across the valley of the River Brock to the high moors of Parlick, Fairsnape and Bleasdale and over to the flat mosslands of the Lancashire coast and Morecambe Bay.

This walk drops steeply downhill to the lovely wooded Brock valley, a river that rises in Bowland on the steep scarp slopes of Fair Snape Fell and meanders west beyond the A6 road at Bilsborrow eventually to join the River Wyre.

The walk climbs again to Beacon Fell reaching the trig point on the summit at just over 870 feet. Like many of our northern hill summits, an Armada warning beacon was once to be found here.

1 Starting from the visitor centre, join the lane that runs between the upper and lower car park. Turn right along this and follow it through woodland until a crossroads of tracks is met at another car parking area on the right signed as Starling Wood.

Turn left here to go through a kissing gate next to a field gate. This leads out of the woodland and into a field sloping very steeply downhill with an amazing view across the Lancashire plain.

Follow the well used path straight ahead downhill.

It passes through a lower woodland then continues straight ahead through a field to meet a lane.

2 Turn right then almost immediately left down the adjoining lane, White Lee Lane. This continues gradually downhill and bends right crossing a road bridge over a stream and entering the woodland overlooking the River Brock on the left.

When the lane turns sharp left to a bridge over the river do not cross it but go straight ahead through the stone gateway and follow the track passing in front of a row of cottages.

3 The waymarked path runs along the boundary of the cottages and enters a large field. Go straight ahead across this and the path meets the woodland on the left overlooking the river.

Cross a stile on the left and a riverside path is joined heading upstream.

Keep to this for nearly half a mile until the waymarked path turns right away from the river and climbs a wooded bank to reach a track.

Turn left along this track and follow it towards a picturesque house. Join the path running along the right boundary of the house along the edge of a wood and the river is soon rejoined. Continue straight ahead alongside the river until a ford and footbridge are reached on the left.

4 Do not cross the bridge but turn sharp right here following a stony track that runs uphill eventually to become a tarmac lane, Snape Rake Lane.

Keep to this lane straight ahead for about half a mile until it reaches another lane junction after passing the entrance to a scout camp.

Bear left along the lane and at the next junction turn right following the signs for Beacon Fell. The lane soon bends sharp left. It then starts to climb uphill.

At the t-junction turn right and the lane continues to climb into the woodland. Keep to the lane until the car park at Starling Wood is reached.

5 Turn left up the track here and follow it uphill through the woodland following the waymarked path and signs for the summit. At a crossroads of paths turn left to reach the summit trig point on the open fell and enjoy the spectacular view.

Retrace your steps to the crossroads and continue straight ahead downhill following signs for the visitor centre and car park. The path bends right and the start point is reached.

Nick Burton’s guided walk events for spring 2019 can be found at www.allroutesnorth.co.uk