Entwistle Reservoir

This little beauty is just 6 miles from Blackburn just off the A666 towards Bolton. There is 2 large car parks, BL7 0LU. This could be classed as the next chapter in my "Don't forget whats on your doorstop" series but this one is a little far out for that.

At 2.5miles long this circular walk follows the waterside footpath around the res that is suitable for all ages and abilities. The footpath is well maintained but is rather narrow in some points so I couldn't say if it was fit for wheelchair users. We parked in the top car park and there was some steps to get down , with the lower one giving you a flatter access to the reservoir. As you walk down the stairs you are greeted with gorgeous views.

We turned left and walked around with the occasional stop to admire the view, skim some stones and of course take some pictures. We even ventured off into the woods as the light coming from through the trees looked amazing.

I challenged myself only to use my 50mm prime lens since I rarely use it and much prefer the kit lens that came with my camera. I wasn't over impressed and neither was my 9 year old boy who has started to share my interest in photography. We stayed with it until the half way point.

After about a mile or so you reach the western point of the reservoir. Here we diverted for a small while to walk through the woods again where there is lots of photo opportunities.

It was at this point my boy was getting frustrated with the 50mm lens and so swapped. Although once I got home and checked on the laptop, I was quite pleased with the photos overall.

There is a small footbridge that you need to cross to carry on the circuit. Although there is a footpath that carries on, we are yet to follow this path but maybe next time. As we carried on the path becomes narrow and is rather close to the waters edge so make sure children are kept near at all times.

As autumn draws to a close there is still plenty of autumn colors about as some leaves cling on to life. My favorite autumn saying is " Autumn shows us how beautiful it is to let things go".

Continuing on, you come across a steel statue of a heron. The steel structure, which was erected at the water’s edge in 2008, was commissioned by United Utilities and produced by Darwen-based artist Marjan Wouda. Marjan approached United Utilities with an idea for extending a sculpture trail that she had recently completed. A series of sculptures for Roe Lee Park, Blackburn is meant to be among this, although I have not seen them as yet so maybe Roe Lee Park will be next on my list.

Coming to the end , you head towards the dam's bridge. If you turn left up the hill a short while, you come to the Strawberry Duck pub which we didn't visit this time but have on previous occasions and is a lovely little pub. We turned right heading over the dam and back to the car park. With all our little diversions the walk took 2 hours. As I said it is a lovely easy walk and is quite busy with amazing views and we all now by now that I am a sucker for a good view!

As always, thank you for reading.

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