Sandscale Park to Furness Abbey

Date/Time of Walk	Wednesday 6th February 2008
Start Time/Location	11:30 (11:30) Entrance to Sandscale Park on A590 (Barrow)
Finish Time/Location	2:35pm (14:35) Ormsgill (Barrow)
Weather	Cold, Pleasant, Sunny, Clear, Few Clouds, Wet underfoot, about 5°C

This walk was a spur-of-the-moment event. My grandfather phoned me to ask if I wanted to go with him for a short walk and I took my camera along!

The walk started off from my home in Ormsgill, Barrow-in-Furness, and continued the way up along the A590 to Sandscale Park - this is marked with a car park surrounded with a limestone wall. Just to the northern side of this car park is a kissing gate which is the entrance to the new Sandscale Park Forest Development which is reclaimed forest land which is being landscaped to create more walk-ways for public enjoyment. The views from this forest walk of the Duddon Estuary and beyond Lakeland Fells is fantastic in my opinion.

We followed the remainder of the marked route through the forest development and exited the forest on "Oak Lea Road" at the A590 roundabout. Crossing over the road we followed "Park Road" which is the eastern road marked on the round-about with the site of "Honeypot Stables". Following this road all the way to the next round-about, cross the road and proceed directly ahead ( facing compass south) following "Abbey Road" After continuing up the road for a short while you will see what appears to be a red sandstone gateway - follow the road under this gate (taking good care for the traffic as this is a road!), eventually this road will bring you to Furness Abbey. Built in 1127 by the Cistercian monks in the valley which is known as "the vale of nightshade" enjoyed a relative peace, that is, until 1313 when William Wallace and his Scots Barbarians held the Abbott to ransom or face the consequences!! Peace again reigned until the "Dissolution of the Monasteries" in 1537 under King Henry VIII, the Abbey was sadly dismantled with a lot of the materials being either sold for profit or used for other local buildings. The walk then ended at my home a short walk away.

Views of Black Combe from the walk-way The boggy track through Forest Development

Ascending the track up on to Oak Lea Road View towards High Haume from Park Road

I take no responsibility for the welfare of any person who undertakes any walks described on this site. Any person wishing to undertake any walk from this site is to be reminded that their own personal planning, navigation and safety while walking is paramount.