Bury (Lancashire): Deer Near the Seven Arches

One day, after visiting a terminally ill friend, I saw two deer on the way down to the Seven Arches:

Just wish I'd had a proper camera with me to capture them properly.

The Seven Arches lies on the River Roch, on the outskirts of Bury, heading towards Heywood:

I got down there through going down Pimhole not long after passing St. Thomas church on Rochdale Road:

 At one point, I found myself going through a tunnel:

 And then following the river round a field:

 Until I arced round towards the wonderful Seven Arches:

 

A friend of mine has told me that homeless people sometimes find themselves sleeping down at the Seven Arches, which may help explain some of the rubbish that was on the river bank.

Still, the Seven Arches was a mighty sight, the first time I'd seen the place since being a teenager:

 But the most impressive sight of this short walk was, of course, the deer:

 View my encounter with the deer as some kind of grace and blessing.  

Bury (Lancashire): Walking up to Birtle

 Passing up a back street of Fourth Avenue here:

 Then heading past the underground reservoir on the way up Castle Hill Road:

First seeing Church Wood:

 Whose paths led me to the burial ground of the Anglican church of St. John the Baptist:

After this, I just walked round the corner to Birtle Quarry:

 Which looked quite fetching in late winter/early spring:

This was all retracing my footsteps from years ago, in my hometown of Bury (Lancashire), of course.

Belmont Towards Bolton

 Back down from Winter Hill, it was too beautiful a day to hang around a bus stop.

 So I decided to walk down the road from Belmont towards Bolton:

 Passing another reservoir (or another part of a reservoir) along the way:

 This was perfect prolonged exercise on a hot-cold afternoon.

And what a reward, passing an incredible mural:

Guess the mural may be Amphitrite, the ancient Greek goddess of the sea (I've just looked this up), but I could be wrong, of course.

Couldn't take my eyes off the mural:

Hats off to Bolton Water Company, of course.

After this, I was still accompanied by reservoir water getting nearer to Bolton:

Great views were still on offer on the Bolton side of things:

 But a bit further down, sadly, my bright autumn walk had to hit the urban expanse of Bolton.

Up Winter Hill (Near Belmont, Lancashire)

While waiting at a bus stop just outside Belmont, I saw a public sign pointing up towards Winter Hill.

And of course, I had to walk up:

 This climb wasn't entirely easy, but the views were great:

About 45 minutes after starting, I found myself at the top of Winter Hill.

Soon learning about the murder of a Scotsman in the 19th century, and a few plane crashes that have happened up there:

And of course, the place was full of telecommunication pylons:

 

Had to take a few shots of this structure, which veered almost endlessly into the sky:

 

Kind of beautiful in its own way. 

Have just read that it is the Winter Hill TV mast, providing television transmission for many people in north-west England.

While up Winter Hill, I was tempted to walk down the opposite end towards Horwich.

But needing to get back to Bury quite fast, I decided to climb back down near Belmont.

It was a strange old feeling being up Winter Hill, I'm not surprised there are claims of UFO sightings up there, it just seems that kind of place.

Have just read that the three boroughs of Chorley, Blackburn and Darwen, and Bolton all meet up on Winter Hill, the highest point in the West Pennine area.

Belmont (Lancashire): Passing the Black Dog Pub

 Just before looking at St. Peter's church, I passed the impressive-looking Black Dog pub.

 Which like the church, lies at the heart of Belmont village:

 

Rather foolishly, I wasted the opportunity to have a pint inside the Black Dog, but I was in a bit of a rush, wanting to get up Winter Hill.

Have just read that the pub building:

Dates back to the 1700s, first serving as a village courthouse, then as a farmhouse, before becoming a pub in 1825.

St. Peter's, Belmont (Lancashire): Beautiful Poem

Have just read that St. Peter's church, which stands tall at the heart of Belmont village, was built in the mid-19th century.

St. Peter's church certainly is an impressive building:

 And in the surrounding burial ground, I found this uplifting poem:

It was a prize find during my early afternoon walk.