The Singing Ringing Tree sculpture. Listen really hard and you may hear something. Today we were blessed with bright sunshine and no breeze.
Ian Mabon recently led a long walk commencing from Towneley Hall located on the south eastern edge of Burnley. Set in a park of 284 acres the hall is grade I listed and the present building dates from the 14th century and was owned by the Towneley family for many centuries. Today it is owned and managed by Burnley Borough Council.
Consisting of a party of twelve, the group set out by following a section of the Burnley Way to Clow Bridge. The Burnley Way is a forty mile long signposted recreational path which loops to the west and to the east of the town and crosses several moorland areas.
With sunny skies and virtually no breeze there was only one yacht out on Clowbridge Reservoir as we skirted the southern and eastern shores. A gradual ascent took the group to the lunch stop overlooking Burnley and the hills beyond including Pendle Hill, Ingleborough and Pen-y-ghent, the latter two still snow clad.
A short walk took the group to the Singing Ringing Tree which was the highlight of the walk. This modern sculpture consists of a series of galvanised steel pipes of varying lengths and set at angles in a shape of a tree. The wind blowing through these pipes emits a low ringing sound but today we had picked one of those rare days when there was no breeze and hence no sound.
The return walk was via a long gradual descent to Cliviger Bridge, historic Barcroft Hall famous for its folklore and Newfield Farm. The day was rounded off with afternoon tea and scones at the busy cafe in the grounds of Towneley Hall.