RIBBLETON

 A RUBBISH WALK  5 Miles

Walkers :-  Martin John W.

With Covid 19 lockdown restrictions causing frustration, uncertainty and anxiety I think Martin and I were the only Meanderthal duo that set off on a walk today. To make matters worse today was one of only a handful of days in our entire history when it rained ALL DAY.

Martin and John enjoyed their walk but LOOK at the TITLE !

We left Martin's and walked eastward along Blackpool Rd.

..... till we arrived at Morrisons. Over the car park and down the ramp onto the old Preston to Longridge Railway line

IT WAS RAINING !

Right from the off we were appalled at the amount of "Rubbish"

Everywhere we looked. On ground. In the water. In the bushes . There was rubbish it was SHAMEFUL !

Trying to ignore the rubbish we continued along the old track towards Longridge not intending to get there of course. Once in the confines of the railway cutting we lost all sense of just where we were.

 
The first bridge we came to was Cromwell Rd. though we had to climb up to the road before we recognised it as such. We then very cautiously paddled through the huge pool beneath the bridge.

IT WAS RAINING !

The path itself was completely underwater and we walked along the wet muddy edges.

Here John is pointing to the house were he grew up the roof of which can just be seen. Time and distance lend enchantment they say but he feels sure that the area in which he played was never such a horrific "Grot Spot".  The camera slipped in Martin's cold, wet hands and perhaps ironically gives the impression of "Uphill struggles"

Our walk continued passing behind Greenlands Primary school, just visible behind the tangled overgrowth.

COFFEE TIME

Seating, of any kind,  was not to be found anywhere  so we took our brew leaning against the bars of a footpath crossing. 

I can only imagine that this overkill of fencing at this crossing was designed to stop "Bikers" using it.

Just through this maze of bars was this another awful mess. A passing local complained bitterly about the state of the area he lived in. "We pay council tax for all this !" he expostulated.

Martin's doling out of "Firewater" was even more welcome than usual. 

We continued our walk till we arrived at Gamull Lane. Here we left the rail track and crossed the road for a brief visit to St Maria Goretti's church.

A wet rather dismal spot for a nativity. ( 2000 years plus and nothing much has changed. )

Back across the road and our route now took us through Brookfield Estate.

As we walked , however, we were being watched,

 A rare opportunity for a smile on this walk. Leaving the estate a path led down into Brookfield Park . Just for once an almost grot free area.

As we dropped down into the park a cheerful little girl with her mum, excitedly told us how they had been splashing about in the large areas of water covering the park.

IT WAS RAINING

Running through the park is the nascent Savick Brook the banks of which were littered with rubbish.

IT WAS RAINING !

IT IS NOT RAINING 😀

NO, IT'S SLEETING  😒

We were now looking for somewhere to eat our butties but there was no shelter and everywhere was dripping wet. We decided not to bother and carried until we arrived at Cromwell Rd a few hundred metres from where we had followed the rail track underneath it earlier.

Across the road and down a narrow passageway which opened out into a  quite attractive stretch still following Savick brook and still sadly strewn with litter.

The path continued to wind it's way alongside the the brook alternating between merely Wet and being Under Water until we arrived at an incongruously BLUE bridge

From here the path took us behind Holme Slack School (Once the most vandalised school in Lancashire) before taking us to the back of Sainsbury's store and so up to St Gregory Church.  Before it did so , however, the GREAT GOD OF GROT and GRIME had a final card to play . 

A burnt out car. "There's a shady crook IN a babbling brook "  ???  Perhaps.

From St Gregory's it was just a short plod back to Martin's and the end of our walk.

Was it a good walk ?

Physically (exercise) ... Fine

Mentally..... Mind numbing

Spiritually.... Paralysing.

This was not a walk I would wish to repeat in the near future . Near being in the NEXT decade. Despite all this Martin and I enjoyed each other's company.

THE END

Perhaps after such a walk Martin's contribution might well be a good idea.