TENNYSON summed up the delight which I feel when I sit by the side of many of our local streams and rivers.

By thirty hills I hurry down

Or slip between the ridges,

By twenty thorps, a little town

And half a hundred bridges

This week I strolled alongside three of our riverside footpaths -- Ings Beck between Twiston and Downham, the Calder at Whalley and the Ribble at Edisford Bridge. I was in search of migrant birds and I discovered sand martins and my first common sandpiper of the year.

Swallows were chasing insects over the water and I watched dippers and grey wagtails feeding their young. Spring and early summer is also the best time to enjoy the varied colours of waterside plants including marsh marigold, water mint and yellow spearwort which is a sort of aquatic buttercup. In the damp fields surrounding the streams I found cowslip, self heal and mayflower .

I could see brown trout in the pools beneath Edisford Bridge. I thought also about the Monks of Whalley Abbey who had fish traps on most of our rivers. This just shows how rivers have as place in our local history.

And out again I curve and flow

To join the brimming river,

For men may come and men may go

But I go on for ever

I wonder if any LET reader has written a poem about one of our local rivers. If so I would love to hear from them.