BOOTboys

BB1103 : A Promenade Of Pensioners

Thursday 24th February 2011

What is the group name for a band of old men out for a walk?

This was the key issue that we were determined to settle as we made our way around Silverdale. The consensus was that Stuart H’s contribution of A Promenade of Pensioners was the most relevant for this extremely large gathering of aged BOOTboys

Indeed, with ten of us in action, it is possibly the biggest group we have ever had out. In addition to last week’s six, we had the two knee replacees, Graham and John L, plus Stuart H on only his third outing with us in several years and long distance commuting BOOTboy, Pete.

Normally, we plan our own routes even though we might take guidance or inspiration from Wainwright or other sources. This time, however, we threw the whole responsibility over to Mary Walsh who, only the previous week, had written about The gentle pastures and deciduous woodlands of Silverdale in the Westmorland Gazette.

We met up at the Eaves Wood parking area and climbed up through the woods, passing en-route some charcoal burners (i.e. the men who chop down the trees and prepare the charcoal) before reaching the Pepperpot- a Victorian Jubilee monument at a fine view point over the village and estuary. Unfortunately the day was not yet as clear and bright as we had hoped.

Charcoal burners

Comitibus: The Pepperpot

The view from the Pepperpot

After our team photo, we dropped down past the Llama farm into the Elmslack outskirts of the village and beyond to the Cove with its cave.

The Llama farm

The Cove Cave

The Cove

After an inconclusive investigation of the cave, we made our way through the fields to emerge on the road just above the Silverdale Hotel. The route then took us along a footpath running along the back of the houses down to the Woodwell pond and rock spring. This came as a total surprise to me. All the years I have been going to the area (our family had a caravan at Far Arnside for over 40 years) and I did not know it was there.

The Woodwell Pond

The Woodwell Spring

After emerging on the road, we passed the Wolf House Gallery, then Lindeth Tower, through the Jack Scout area with its limekiln.

Lindeth Tower

The Limekiln

Just before stopping for lunch in a now emerging sun, we walked by Jenny Brown’s Point, which Mary Walsh tells us was part of a scheme to reclaim Silverdale Sands but was turned down by the House of Lords and then abandoned.

Jenny Brown's Point

The lunch stop view

Some way after (Jenny) Brown’s Houses with their Manx lifebelt, an isolated ex-limekiln chimney and a broken bridge across a tidal watercourse, we reached a path leading back up the hill. As we turned to climb it, whom should we meet but daughter Emma with her husband Scott and baby Luca!

Jenny Brown's Douglas Lifebelt

The broken bridge

The chimney from an old limekiln

Emma, Luca and Scott

No, it wasn’t a surprise! It was a planned encounter. They had started at the Wolf House Gallery rather later than expected and so travelled in the opposite rotation to ensure we met up. They then made the right decision to continue on to the coastal section and really enjoyed their outing back to the Wolf House.

Passing round the back of Silverdale

Snowdrops and whotsits

Meanwhile, we headed up through light woodland and fields, almost into the centre of the village then out to The Row and back to the car park.

I thought we were finished but I was then sent back to identify and photograph some flowers that John had seen in a field. I thought they were snowdrops and aconites but perhaps the light purple flowers were small crocii?

Whatever they are, Mary Walsh is hereby thanked for an entertaining walk of just the right length for today’s group.

Don, 24th February 2011

Post Script: I don't know if there will be a BOOTboys outing next week. However, I do know that, if there is, I won't be part of it as I go into hospital on Monday for my biopsy. My thanks to all those who, one way or another, have sent messages of good wishes. They have been most encouraging.

Jamie will be blogging my medical progress at News of Don.

PS2: The Flowers

John has consulted his Nature Guru, Mike, who confirms that the flowers are a collection of snowdrops and crocii. Mike goes on to discuss the collective noun for the group and suggests that a Prosthetic of Pensioners would appear to be more apt. Personally I prefer the original!

STATISTICS:

BB1103	Thursday 24th February 2011
Distance in miles:	6.8
Height climbed in feet:	667
Wainwrights:	-
Other Features:	Silverdale Pepperpot, Jenny Brown's Point
Comitibus:	Bryan, Don, Graham, John L, Pete, Philip, Roger, Stan, Stuart H, Tony

If you have Memory Map on your computer, you can follow the route in detail by downloading BB1103

To see which Wainwright top was visited on which BB outing see
Which Wainwright When?

For the latest totals of the mileages and heights see: BB Log.

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2011 Outings

BB1101 :
Wasnfell Revisited
Tuseday 11th January

BB1102 :
Recuperation Scar!
Thursday 17th February

BB1103 :
A Promenade of Pensioners
Thursday 24th February

BB1104 :
The B Team
Thursday 3rd March

BB1105 :
A Little Bit Of Wind
Thursday 10th March

BB1106 :
A Linthwaite Round
Thursday 17th March

BB1107 :
Home From The Pulpit
Thursday 24th March

Click on the photos
for an enlargement
or related large picture.

Wainwrights

To see which Wainwright
top was visited on which
BB outing see Which Wainwright When?.

To download a log of heights and miles and which Wainwrights have been done by which BOOTboy in the "modern" era, i.e. since the advent of BOOTboys
click on BB Log.