No one has a hard word to say about Chipping and you won’t find one here. It attracts epithets such as “charming”, “delightful” and “lovely” – all deserved. And of course it “nestles” below the Bowland Fells in “charming, delightful and lovely countryside”! This walk, from the village, will take you through some of that countryside and its wonderful variety – parkland, farmland, woodland and moorland. You will be enchanted – guaranteed!
Time: 2½ - 3½ hours
Terrain: Moderate; mainly across pastures and along farm tracks. Muddy in places. Suitable footwear and waterproofs recommended.
Map: OS OL41 Forest of Bowland
Map by kind permission of the Blackpool Gazette
Start: Chipping village car park close to the church. From M6 Junction 31a, follow signs for Longridge B 6243. At Longridge keep ahead on B6244. From this point follow signs for Chipping.
1. Chipping to Higher Greystonely (4 Km or 2½ miles: 1 - 1½ hours)
From the car park walk past the church on your left and continue down Talbot Street to the war memorial. Here turn left into the lane. A little further on take a concessionary path on the left that keeps you off the road. At the entrance to Leagram Hall turn left onto the drive. Continue along the drive with an enclosed wood on your left. After 300m near a distinctive oak tree tunnelled at its base,
turn sharp right to aim for a pair of gates and stile across the parkland.
Cross the stile and with a fence on left follow the path that leads past a plantation on left. Ahead you will have an impressive view of Pendle Hill.
Keep on this path eventually arriving at a footbridge.
Cross it and climb up to a double stile beyond scattered woodland. Before you is a limestone outcrop called Knot Hill.
Follow the footpath as it skirts the base of the knoll on its left side. Pass a quarry and then a lime kiln
to reach a tarmac farm track. Turn left and follow the track to the farmstead of Lower Greystoneley. Keep ahead, through a gate,
as the now stony track descends in woodland and crosses a brook by ford or footbridge. The track leads on to Higher Greystoneley. Follow it through the buildings onto the lane. Turn left and in 250 metres arrive at a junction near a phone box.
2. High Greystonely to Chipping (5 Km or 3 miles: 1 to 1½ hours)
At the junction turn left into a farm lane that leads to Lickhurst Farm some 800 metres further on. (12-15mins).
On reaching the main yard keep right. Ignoring a way marked footpath on your left, keep ahead through a metal gate onto access land and a rough moorland track.
This area of moorland is given the rather prosaic name of Stanley on the map. Since this is the highest part of the route, views soon become extensive. Before you the south west flank of the Bowland Fells; behind the Ribble Valley and mighty Pendle Hill.
Keep on the main track as it turns to the left 10 minutes after leaving the farm. After crossing a stream by stepping stones,
arrive at the tarmac lane below Burnslack in a further 15 minutes. On reaching the lane, look for a footpath almost immediately on the left across a stile.
Traverse a stretch of rough pasture aiming to the right of a hillock then cross a wire fence by another stile.
On reaching the wall of the next field turn right. Now views open out towards Preston and even Southport on the coast. With the wall on your left follow path down through a number of fields 750m (10mins) to Windy Hill Farm.
Turn right between buildings then immediately left onto a footpath through a gate.
Descend through the pasture, which can be very boggy, to cross a footbridge.
Passing through broken woodland a distinct path soon leads to the open side of the valley. Ahead the top of a telegraph pole will come into view. Aim for this. Cross a very large field to reach a stile in its left corner.
With a hedge on the left follow the path through three fields down to a lane, (close to an imposing white house.)
On reaching lane turn left and follow it through the chair works yard and down to the charming, delightful and lovely village.
