MMM – September 2019

62 outandaboutlive.co.ukSeptember 2019

Despite my personaldoubts about

Wetherspoons they do haveto be applauded

for the way they acquireunlo ved listed

buildings andbring them back tolife in an

arch itecturally se nsitive wa y.

Ironic, though, isn’t it? A place in which

the Bible-bashers were preaching hell

and damna tion against the demon dr ink

should become a temple dedicatedto

its consumption?

I thought India Mill and its startling

300ft-high chimney, was the ou tsta nding

structu ral offering inthe town, butLittle FA

preferred Wetherspoons.

Maybe because she do esn’t partake of the

demon drink.

Darwen’s greatest attraction , though,

is that every crack of light between the

buildings, andevery glance upwards above

the rooftops, reveals a green hillside.

A glimpse of freedom.The rows of

stone terraces clambering up the steep

hillsides also draw your eyes to the hills,

calling you upwards.

By repute Darwen has a pair of very

lovely parks, and they were to be the subject

of day numbertwo in Darwen, ju st 10 miles

from home.

This time, however, because we were

taking the 10-minute trip alo ng the M65

back toLeyland afterwards, we took the

’van intoDarwen in the hope of finding a

parking space.

This can be a ri sky ploy, butthere wasno

problem onManor Road, which leads up

aroundBold Venture Park. This is a typical

Victorian park in some ways, butbecause of

the grad ient, not quite lik e any other.

It also leads straight up toDarwen Tower,

where the view is massive. But do n’t do it;

well not yet, because a mile (or so) across

the hillside is Sunnyhurst Woods, the

other park ofnote, a nd is, we think, even

more beautiful than Bold Venture, which is

named after the stream runningthro ugh

it. Why would anyone call a stream Bold

Venture Brook? That’s the un answered

question*. After a quickpilgrimage up tothe

tower we went home, ju st 20 minutes awa y.

Was it worthwhile? Oh yes.

*And still unansweredafter s pending

hourstrawlingthe internet. For more useless

but interestinginformation about Darwen

look at itsWikipedia entry.

WE STAYEDAT

CharityFarmCaravanPark,Smithy Brow,

Wrightington, LancashireWN6 9PP

)01257 45132 6

charityfarm.co.uk

All year

£Two adults, pitch and electric:From £20

BrockleheadFarmCaravanPark,Roman Road,

Darwen BB3 3PJ

)01254 70374 2

brockleheadcaravanpark.co.uk

14 February– 17 January

£Two adults, pitch and electric: £20

ABOVE CLOCKWISEDarwen,

backedbyits hills; Darwen

Market; The author’sfrom

Leyland, the home of the

British CommercialVehicle

Museum, which iswell

worth a detour

Wenever book sites in

advance.Life’s more fun and

unpredictable thatway.

However, these twosites may

get a bit boggy after heavy

rain so advanced bookingin

wet weatherfor the limited

hardstandings is advisable

Mid-week is better than

weekendsfor walking the

Lancashirefells and moors if

youwant to be alone

TheOS Explorer Mapsfor

these areas(285 and 287)

are essential companions

There are a couple of nice

‘walk’ leaflets detailing the

ascentofDarwenTower via

both parksavailable from the

Information Centre in Darwen

Town Hall (nexttothe

Market Hall)

Have decentwaterproof

clothing andfootwearfor the

WestPennineMoorsas some

of the ground is morewater

than ground

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