Rejoining the canal at the nicely preserved Eanam Wharf, I had an early-morning greeting party.
The east side of the town was much easier on the eye, with the imposing Granada news-office (sadly closed in 2005) before the the north bank abruptly gave way to open country.
Although I hear many grumbles about the British weather, I find conditions like today give the country a unique beauty, particularly the way the clouds shroud the hill-tops and the temperature was perfect for brisk walking without ever feeling uncomfortably cold. The south bank was fringed with modern industrial units for another couple of miles, providing me with the sight of a mini-cow and, on the canal, my one and only sighting so far of this species of this bird so far.
With open fields on both sides, the canal here is a rich vein of wildlife to reward the passing walker.
Nearing the next town on, Rishton, I passed the first boat of the day which had attracted a couple of showboating gulls. There were some excellent views across the fields to the north and the canal crossed over the M65, which stalks the canal fairly closely from here onwards.
Passing some very chilled out cows, the town of Chruch soon followed and delighted to find these old ovens by the canal where coal would have been converted to coke which was critical in driving the industrial revolution firstly enabling iron smelting as well as fuelling the trains in later years.
Church is quite significant in the it marks the exact half-way mark of the canal, shortly followed by the never completed Peel Arm to Acrington to the south.
The second crossing of the motorway preceded Clayton-le-Moors which offered views across towards the distant Pendle Hill, before open country returned. As the canal picked its way through the low hills, I became the object of fascination to some cows across the water but less so to a couple of pigs.
Having got a feel for how best to pace my journeys now, I had today opted for a three stop strategy, with a longer 11 mile stint through to lunchtime, opting to stop for some refreshment at Hapton, with the map indicating a couple of pubs near the boatyard. However, I was unsurprised when yet again my choice of stop resulted in the sight of a pub that was no longer open. Thankfully there was a nearby chippy to save the day.
Crossing the motorway I was reaching the fringes of Burnley, and was unexpectedly evicted from the canal where the footpath ends at Gannow Tunnel. Having negotiated some sinister-looking subways under the motorway (though most subways seem dark places to me) I managed to find my way back onto the Canal near Burnley Barracks. First up in Burnley was the Weavers Triangle which for me was the best for examples of Victorian industrial buildings as well as having an excellent (and open) pub which was perfect for the second stop of the day at the 15 mile mark.
Next up was the Burnley Embankment, also known as the The Straight Mile which is listed as one the Seven Wonders of British Waterways. Rather than build a series of locks, engineers opted to build, by hand, a 60 foot high embankment to carry the canal across the centre of town. It offers fantatsic views of the rooftops as well as Turf Moor.
Thompson Park and crossing over the River Brun marked the north of the town as the west bank opened into more open country again, whilst the east featured Reedley Marina.
The distant mill chimney marked Brierfield, which I had chosen for my third and final break of the day. Unsuprisingly, the pub I'd picked was closed up and there was plenty of boarding up and demolition around but I eventually found one open on the main street.
From here, I had 3 more miles of canal to cover plus a further mile from there to the station in Colne. Consulting train times, there was an hourly service from Colne which gave me a target of 4 miles in 80 minutes which I felt I could manage. Pressing on, I passed by Nelson which was a much better-looking town and the geese cartainly agreed
As the town of Colne doesn't quite reach the canal-side it was open country up to the start of Barrowford Locks (the first since Blackburn) and the end of the M65 which was my cue to leave the canal for Colne and arrive at my waiting train with 10 minutes to spare.
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