Drive & Stroll, with Ron Freethy - this week, the River Calder

NOT long ago the Calder was one of the most polluted rivers in Europe, with the run-off from the coal mines and mills of East Lancashire polluting it -- not to mention the human sewage adding to the load.

Even many locals do not realise how things have changed and now this is wonderful walking country, full of history and natural history.

I enjoyed two strolls punctuated by lunch.

The first was around Altham and the second was a circular stroll around Gawthorpe.

The reason for this week's stroll was as a follow-up to last week's visit to Pendleton.

I mentioned that the Puritan Thomas Joll Jollie (1629-1703) had been thrown out of Altham church because his extreme views which did not meet with the approval of Charles II's new rules.

The cleric left Altham and continued to preach in breach of the law.

Altham's church has a history way beyond the time of Jollie and may well date back to Saxon times.

There is a wonderful old font given to the church by John Paslew, who was born in Wiswell and was the last abbot of Whalley.

A stained glass window denotes the life of James Hacking, who invented a carding machine which accelerated the preparation of yarn before being worked on the loom by combing the cotton fibres straight.

Hacking deserves his memorial as one of the princes in the land of King Cotton.

In the church and on the bridge over the Calder is a memorial mourning the loss of 68 men and boys killed on November 7, 1883 by a massive explosion caused by methane at the nearby Moorfield Colliery.

All trace of this mine has now disappeared and even the pollution leaking out of the old mineshafts has now been diluted.

Altham is still a site dominated by factories but do stroll by the bridge and onto the meadows.

Here I saw lots of birds on the fields obviously preparing for their autumn migration.

The area was still damp from overnight rain and there were lapwings, redshank and mute swans.

During the spring many of the footpaths around Gawthorpe were closed because of foot and mouth but I was able to prove that the mute swan has again bred successfully along the river.

Gone are the smells once associated with Padiham's river and in its place are fish, including trout, and lots of attractive flowers such as flag iris.

Cowslips which were once rare and now growing in profusion along the Calder.

I intend to make full use of the autumn wildlife to explore Gawthorpe Woods but I cannot resist having a look at the hall, one of the gems of Lancashire's history.

There is plenty of parking but it is a pleasant walk from Padiham bus stops.

Gawthorpe began life as a medieval pele tower, built as a defence against the Scots in the 14th Century. Many alterations were completed around 1600, giving Gawthorpe its Jacobean appearance.

In 1850 a young architect by the name of Charles Barry (later Sir Charles) was employed to give the hall a facelift.

He must have done well because he was the man who designed the Houses of Parliament.

If the Houses of Parliament are one of the wonders of London, then it is true to say that Gawthorpe is one of the joys of Lancashire.

The Shuttleworth family made a lot of money from coal, which was literally found beneath their feet.

A Shuttleworth heiress married the educationist Sir James Kay.

The Kay-Shuttleworths entertained many famous people at Gawthorpe, including Charlotte Bronte.

We should never neglect the chance to follow in the footsteps of Charlotte and on my walk through the autumn woodlands I saw green woodpecker, nutchatch and treecreeper.

I look forward to next spring when I shall look for iris cowslip and hope that the mute swans return to breed.

We hope that foot and mouth will have been consigned to history and we can all enjoy an East Lancashire spring stroll.

THE base for both these strolls is around the area of the A680 and A671 roads. Altham is reached via the lower road into Simonstone and Gawthorpe Hall is signed off the main road between Burnley and Padiham. Both are easily reached by public transport.

YOU should spend at least 1 hours around Altham and perhaps a little longer at Gawthorpe in order to see how the National Trust looks after the old Jacobean hall. The circular walk around the extensive grounds is a real treat on a fine day.