Drive & Stroll, with Ron Freethy

THE all clear has been sounded to indicate that the countryside is now open for business and that the foot and mouth epidemic can now be consigned to history.

Those of us who love the Ribble Valley are entitled to express concern as we are certainly not a disease free zone in this area.

So why is this walk featured in this column? I recommend this stroll because the crisis has hit local pubs hard. I have therefore walked on roads which are not very busy and on the route there are three pubs. All must have found things difficult and need custom.

Why not stop and give custom to the Spread Eagle at Sawley, the Coach and Horses at Bolton by Bowland and the Copy Nook, situated between the two?

The route

From Sawley Abbey stroll to the Spread Eagle and turn left. Just over Sawley Bridge turn right and follow the road to the Copy Nook. Turn right and cross a bridge into Bolton by Bowland. Continue past the Coach and Horses to the church and beyond that a large village green. Retrace this route to Sawley.

Distance and time

The road route is two and a half miles one way and so five miles is the distance. Enjoy the road route but take note of the well marked footpaths which are very sensibly still closed. When things do eventually improve the footpath distance is around four miles round trip. Remember - for the foreseeable future the countryside needs your business. Give it all the help you can.

My walk

The first Saturday in August dawned bright, warm and clear, but by the time I reached the abbey at Sawley the storm clouds were gathering. The abbey grounds are open free of charge throughout the year.

The abbey has been a ruin since the monks of England got on the wrong side of Henry VIII in 1536. There are, however, notices describing the history and the architecture and Sawley should not be rushed. Some wonderfully ornate carvings remain to show that abbey architecture was one of the joys of medieval craft.

Sawley was founded by the Cistercian monks in 1147 as a result of the generosity of William de Percy, whose family had been given huge areas of land in Ribblesdale by William the Conqueror.

The Percys had fought with William at the Battle of Hastings and it was this Norman family which built Clitheroe Castle.

While I was looking at the carvings of the abbey, I noticed that the swallows were flying very low - a sure sign that it was about to rain.

After the recent heatwave, I decided that a drop of cool rain might add enjoyment to my stroll. I got much more than I bargained for and by the time I reached Bolton by Bowland the thunder was rolling and rain was coming down in sheets.

From the Coach and Horses, opposite which is the old market cross, I hurried to the church of St Peter and St Paul, which was open and a real sanctuary for a very wet traveller.

The church was rebuilt by Ralph Pudsay, the lord of the manor at Bolton, and was completed in about 1467. Sir Ralph died in 1468 but he ensured that his line did not die out. On a flat marble tomb he is shown with his three wives who between them produced no fewer than 25 children.

It is known that there was a church on the site in 1190. Opposite the church are the entrance gates to Bolton Hall and in happier times a footpath leads through the grounds but for the moment this is closed and should be respected.

The hall was demolished in the 1960s but many of the outbuildings remain and at least part of what was once one of the most important estates in northern England can still be recognised.

The rain eased off slightly and outside the Coach and Horses I overheard a man say that the rain was welcome for gardens. I quite agree but I had to complete my walk. Part of the time I was hot but by the time I reached Sawley the heavy rain had returned with a vengeance. By the time I reached my car I was soaked to the skin.

Walking in the rain, however, is still very pleasant especially when it links two of Britain's most beautiful villages.