Bank Holiday Weekend Out - Day 2

Bury to Todmorden
Distance: 21 miles
Ascent: 750m
Weather: warm and cloudy,  getting sunnier

Midges, a kingfisher,  buzzards,  goats, piggies, coos, sculpture,  ostrich,  deer, a very long dark tunnel,  bunnies,  squirrels, llama llamas, chickens,  sheep and lambs.

We waited until the shop opened at 10:30 before setting off, which was quite late considering the distance planned,  although the route was fairly flexible - there are plenty of path options.

At first we were in a very secluded little valley (not many place names on the map) which was quite wet underfoot and filled with midges.

We emerged on to a narrow little lane, and turned right at a t junction,  thankfully the massive skip lorry went the other way.

Our route took us up to Bull Hill around the edge of the escarpment looking over to Peel Tower. There was a stream to cross that took a bit of navigating, it rained quite a lot last night. This area is marked as a Danger Zone, as it is a firing range - but there was no firing today, the red flags were down, plus we'd checked on the government website before setting off. 

Up on Bull Hill it was cloudy,  but it stayed dry all day (apart from a very brief shower) and the sun was out for quite a bit.

Coming down off the hill, we crossed a road and joined the Rossendale Way - which does not appear to be much used. We visited a manure heap, and then realised that the path was on the other side of the fence. Crossing over and around the edge of a grassy field, we entered a dingly dell with little stream, bluebells and a slippery stone footbridge.

The path comes out in Rawtenstall and we met the River Irwell, complete with horses. The Irwell Sculpture Trail follows the side of the river, occasionally muddy, occasionally very pretty, occasionally a bit of a mess. We saw one of Thomas the Tank Engine's friends on the East Lancs Railway and then, whilst trying to identify said engine (ed- it was James) saw what was undoubtedly a kingfisher, flying along the river looking very bright and blue, my first ever.

Once into the urban terrain the route became less clear, and we weren't sure for much of the next couple of hours that we were even on the current route of the trail, although coming unexpectedly upon a sculpture made us feel we were on the right track.  Through Rawtenstall and along the Rossendale Valley the surrounding areas became more industrial, with echoes of old mills and railway lines, including a very long dark tunnel to walk through,  just hoping that there wasn't a big hole in front of you. The path through Newstead Tunnel is part of the new Valley of Stone Greenway that is under construction. 

Above Bacup we were back on moorland tracks, passing wind turbines and smallholdings with interesting animals and quite a variety of tidiness. It turned out that the ten minutes we had for a possible tea break,  we spent visiting a deer enclosure...

The path was still quite wet over Todmorden Moor, but the path pleasantly clear and easy down to the Staff of Life Inn at Eagle's Crag.