Weaving Ways Around Wycoller and Trawden

Everyone associates the Brontës with Yorkshire, but they had strong Lancashire connections too. As children the sisters lived in the north of the county, attending school at Cowan Bridge, only later moving to Haworth, where they wrote their famous books. Haworth is only 9 miles (14.5km) from Wycoller and today you can walk the distance on the Brontë Way.

Another hint of Yorkshire is the tradition of weaving wool, rather than the cotton usually associated with Lancashire. Trawden had several mills. Wycoller was a community of handloom weavers but as the Industrial Revolution developed they were unable to compete with the growth of larger, powered mills and the village became an isolated backwater.

Naturally sheep farming is important here, especially on the higher ground, but the area has a long tradition of cattle rearing too. The distinctive walls of large upright slabs that are seen in places are known as vaccary walls - a vaccary being a cattle farm.

The first half of the walk crosses these pastures, though you'll see more sheep than cattle today. For much of the way you climb gently, with wide views towards Pendle and the Yorkshire Dales, finally emerging on to the open moors. The route now follows an old trackway along the edge of the moor before swinging back down into Turnhole Clough. The path skirts above the woods before dropping into them and crossing the beck. Just below you meet the main Wycoller Beck. About 300yds (274m) below the confluence is the Clam Bridge, believed to be more than 1,000 years old and made of a single massive slab of gritstone. At least, it was a single slab until 1989, when an exceptionally heavy flood swept the bridge away. It was repaired and replaced, but damaged again the following year. Though the repair has been skilfully done, you can clearly see where the slab was broken.

Following the stream, you soon come into Wycoller hamlet. Despite its simple construction of stone slabs, the clapper bridge is a relatively recent affair, at most only 200 years old. The packhorse bridge is certainly more ancient, possibly over 700 years old. The low parapets, which sometimes alarm nervous parents (though usually not their children), are an essential feature for a packhorse bridge as the animals would be heavily burdened with huge bales of wool.

Near by stand the ruins of Wycoller Hall. Originally built in the 16th century, the Hall was considerably enlarged in the 18th century by Henry Cunliffe. Unfortunately the lavish works left him heavily in debt and after his death, in 1818, the estate was broken up. It's thought that the Hall was largely derelict by the time the Brontë sisters knew about it and that it inspired Ferndean Manor in Charlotte's Jane Eyre (1847).

While you're there

Apart from a closer look at Wycoller itself, with its impressive new visitor centre, you could take a look at one of the more impressive sections of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal at Foulridge, just beyond Colne. Narrowboat cruises are available, some of which venture into the Foulridge Mile Tunnel.

Where to eat and drink

There's a fine tea room in Wycoller itself, with a delightful garden. You can find pubs in Trawden and in Laneshaw Bridge on the A6068, where the Emmot Arms has a particularly good reputation for both food and beer.

What to look for

Lively waters like those of Wycoller Beck are an ideal habitat for dippers. These small birds may often be seen perched on stones. The distinctive bobbing motion, which gives them their name, can make them hard to spot against the flickering background of running water. If you're lucky you may also see them 'flying underwater', as they feed largely on stream beds.