Cromwell Bridge

Spent the day with some friends we haven't seen for a while. They used to be great walkers until they had children and then gave up. We have been trying to encourage them to start again so we thought a short 5 miler around the Tolkien trail in the Ribble Valley was ideal. Shame about the weather(notice water spots on lens). Cromwell Bridge dates from 1562 but there has been a bridge here since 1331. It's called Cromwell Bridge as Oliver Cromwell marched his army over it on the way from Skipton to the battle of Preston. He is said to have slept at the nearby Stoneyhurst College on a table in his armour in readiness for the battle. The bridge is a scheduled ancient monument. The links with Tolkien hereabouts are very strong his son trained for the priesthood at the nearby Stoneyhurst College and Tolkien was a regular visitor and a number of the local place names appear in the Lord of the Rings trilogy 'Shire Lane' and the 'River Shirebourn' (local family who built the college) and the Buckleberry ferry is based on the hacking ferry across the River Ribble. It's a really pleasant walk even on a wet day. Give it a try you can download a leaflet herehttp://www.ribblevalley.gov.uk/info/200192/walking_and_cycling/312/walking_in_the_ribble_valley/10