I wanted to do a long run this weekend in preparation for
the Haworth Hobble in two weeks time so I decided to do the route of the White
Bear Way, albeit starting it near to home rather than at the Scout Hut in
Adlington.
At first, I thought I would start it at the point where it
goes behind Rivington and Blackrod School but, on looking at the route card
again, I changed my mind and instead decided to start at the car park opposite
the school (checkpoint 1). The reason
for this is that after checkpoint 1, the route then heads off to Liverpool
Castle, then loops around for about a mile before ending up behind the
school. I realised that, if I had to do
this at the end of my run, it would be really difficult for me once I was
really tired to run back away from home after reaching the car park, rather
than just going home and it might mean I would cut the run short which I didn’t
want to do. This way, I would be finishing
at the car park and then could just run straight back home again, rather than
having to do the loop in the opposite direction to home. I don’t
know if that makes sense but I know what I mean!
I ran down from home to the car park and then along to
Liverpool Castle (on the event itself, this is actually checkpoint 2, despite it
being only a few hundred metres away from checkpoint 1. It is also the place where the route splits
between the longer distance and the shorter one).
As mentioned earlier, from the castle I then turned right past
the wooden bench, then left, coming out at the crossroads with the road where I
went straight across and then turned right to end up at the back of the school.
I then turned up the concrete road, but turned off at the
gate on the right and made my way through Tiger’s Clough.
By now I had started to feel some pain in one of my toes and
thought it may be that a toenail was digging into it so I sat down on the floor
and had a look. I had no plasters on me
though so there wasn’t really much I could do about it. I tried to decide whether, as I was now
really close to home, I should head back for a plaster and then return to this
spot to continue the run. I really didn’t
want to though so decided to run on and ignore the pain.
I continued on past the back of the stables, coming out on
the path along the side of Wilderswood, and climbing up to George’s Lane.
I then ran along George’s Lane and started to climb up to the
Pike, where I bumped into the Swift brothers.
I had it in my head that if I bumped into them, as I expected I would, I’d
ask if either of them had a plaster I could pinch for my toe as it was still
sore but when I got talking I completely forgot.
After the Pike, it was back down the other side onto George’s
Lane and then all the way along the track to Hordern Stoops, where I went
diagonally across the field, heading for Higher Hempshaws.
The route then took me all the way along into Lead Mines
Clough, climbing up to the Bomber Memorial and then across the field and out
onto the track to Jepson’s Gate. From Jepson’s
Gate, I ran a short way along the road then turned off on the left and down
through a farm field, coming out near to High Bulloch Reservoir. I then ran along the side of Anglezarke
Reservoir, coming out at Watermans Cottage, where I ran along the road a little
to the other side of the dam and up the steps, across the farm field, onto the
bridleway alongside Healey Nab.
I then climbed the short hill up through Healey Nab and
realised on looking at the direction card (which I only looked at to see which
way to go AFTER the cairn) that, when doing the actual event last year, I had
gone wrong here. I had gone the way up
which I always go, i.e. through the gate next to the map of Healey Nab but, on
looking at the directions, you are supposed to go over the stile which you get
to a little bit before the gate and which takes you up through a trod in a
field rather than a proper path. I went
the correct way this time and was quite pleased with it because usually when I run
up to the cairn at Healey Nab, I always run back down again the same way but
now I know I have an alternative (though I think part or all of this route is
the one I went on with Ian during last year’s Coope’s Dozen).
So far on the route I hadn’t really needed the direction
card (although evidentially from the last paragraph I did) but the next bit was
on paths that I have only ever done once before, when I did this event last
year.
I ran down from the cairn and through some very muddy
trails, trying to avoid mountain bikers, eventually coming out into a field
which I went diagonally across down to a lodge (to anyone not from Lancashire,
that’s an expanse of water like a big pond).
After turning off a road after the entrance to a factory, there were a
couple of bits where the directions were a little dubious because the field was
really muddy and there were various faint trods going off in different
directions so it wasn’t too clear which to be on but I managed to stay on the correct
one based on instinct more than anything.
It was really boggy too and I was really hoping I was going the right
way as I didn’t want to turn around and have to go back through it all.
Eventually I crossed over the motorway and came out onto the
canal. I ran along the canal for a short
while then came out onto a road and down into Limbrick. This is where the final checkpoint is on the
day of the event.
I then turned right into Cockers Farm and went along some
muddy tracks, eventually getting back onto the canal by Fredericks. There was a couple sitting on the tables here
eating ice cream and I was overwhelmed by the temptation to join them. If I had cash on me I probably would have
done! I was really flagging by now as
the combination of a very hard spin at altitude session and three quarters of a
bottle of wine had left me feeling pretty dehydrated. When will I ever learn that doing silly
things like that on a Friday night makes my Saturday run very painful? I had a raging thirst but was scared of
glugging down my water in case I ran out.
That’s the problem with drinking from a bladder, you can’t see how much
is left in it. When I got home, it
turned out I still had quite a lot left.
The next part of the run was horrid to be honest. I had to go quite far along the canal. On the day, you don’t have to go this far all
in one go because the run pretty much starts and ends on the canal, with the exception
of running down/up from the Scout Hut, a part which I was missing out because I
had started from home so this mean that I did both canal stretches at
once. Again, I don’t know if that makes
sense, but it does in my head.
I was so tired now that even on the flatness of the canal I was
having short stints of walking.
I came off the canal and then ran along a track which is
apparently an old disused railway, eventually coming out onto a road and running
up to Suzanna’s restaurant. After a
short section of road, I then turned right around a building (where it kinda
feels like you’re trespassing) heading through some farm fields, coming out
onto a road, which then led to some playing fields in Blackrod. I ran along the edge of the playing field,
coming out at a sports/community centre, then running out onto the main road,
crossing this and heading down to the A6.
I then crossed the A6, then the train tracks, then the bridge which is
the access road for the motorway services.
Not far to go now! I ran
along the trail, through the farm, out onto the main road, then it was up
Dryfield Lane which I didn’t even attempt to run.
I then turned off and headed for the car park and was so
glad at this point that I had decided to start there and could now just run
straight home without having to do the loop to the back of the school.
My toe had been hurting throughout the run but didn’t seem
to get any worse. When I got home and
took my sock off, there was a big red blister (disgusting toe pic below)
Note to self – don’t do spin and drink wine the evening
before a long run!!!!
Total distance – 21.5 miles
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