Capitol Centre -Frenchwood - Avenham

Fully kitted up in our rainwear, and ready to tackle anything the weather has to throw at us, we set off along London Road towards Preston. On the other side of Walton Bridge stands the Shawes Arms which has been neglected and in a sorry state for a few years since it closed. Now however it is being refurbished, but it is going to open as an eatery, not as a pub unfortunately.

Turning onto the Boulevard, The owner of this property must be the chairman / chairwoman of the local neighbourhood watch 😟

As we pass Christ the King catholic high school, the playing field is deserted, and who can blame them. But there again, thinking back to my own school days, it took more than a bit of rain to cancel our outdoor sports.

Talking of sport, here is John sporting his new yellow jacket, I used to have one very similar in my working days, it was company  issue though. 😅

Having reached the top of the hill, before proceeding on our way through Frenchwood, we stop for a breather.

At the end of a short cull -de - sac, part of a small housing development off Frenchwood Knoll, stands this mock Georgian house with it's rather ostentatious ironwork.

At the end of Frenchwood Knoll we entered the wildlife garden, but the only wildlife on view today was a little robin that was flitting from branch to branch, just keeping ahead of us, before flitting to the next one as we caught up.

                                The Riverside Walk through Avenham park.

By the time we reached the cafe / pavilion the rain was very heavy. The rainwater from the roof does not discharge into drains but empties onto the surrounding path. Anyone who feels they need a shower can have one here free of charge.

We crossed over the river on the disused Combination railway bridge, carrying on along what was the old railway line, on our way to our dinnertime venue. The bowling green at the Vernon Carus Sports Club on Factory Lane has a shelter on the edge of the bowling green that we have made use of previously on wet days. Dave was waiting for us when we got there.

Dinnertime over, the rain had eased off, so Martin and Dave decided to walk a short way with us.

On reaching the embankment again. with the weather still iffy, a short cut back to Walton - Le - Dale was considered to be the best option so we made our way down this flight of steps to a path that was not entirely puddle free at the bottom.

   At which point Dave and Martin took their leave of us and strolled off back to their cars              

As the soggy Meanderthals crossed the bridge over the river Darwen, it was only a hop, skip and a jump back to the cars, but the Meanderthals being advanced in years, decided that a slow stroll would be more to their liking. That's two wet walks in a row we've had, so we're hoping that John will have more luck next week, fingers crossed.                                                                                                                      DK