Irwell Vale walk

This Sunday we did a much shorter walk starting at Irwell Vale Halt. Whilst Irwell Vale isn’t the best signposted spot it is worth finding. Unbeknown to us the Duke of Gloucester steam engine was making a run along the railway line into Rawtenstall and with many steam locomotive enthusiasts we stood in awe as this “steam engineering masterpiece”, blew its whistle and gave friendly waves with the brilliant white steam blowing into the clear skies. I managed to take one photograph before the battery went on my camera, ‘bout right!

Once again we were privy to beautiful spots of nature along our walk. Just 2.5 miles round trip we walked along the River Irwell, by the sides of and under the railway track, through fields and under enchanting bridges. Children of all ages would love this walk, not advisable to cycle or take pushchairs on the full loop but once again lots of interesting spots that would easily capture the imagination of the young ones. We keep stumbling across interesting heritage spots on our walks and this was no exception, this walk took us along the Irwell Valley Sculpture Trail where we passed the “In the Picture” sculpture. The work is a giant wooden picture frame, 4.8m high and 6m wide, which frames a view of an idyllic landscape of woods and fields, with carved wooden sculptures in the foreground. The footpath runs through the frame allowing the visitor to step into the ‘picture’ asboth the viewer and subject of the piece. The work comes alive through the participation of the viewer and encourages active engagement.