Rossendale Baptists were a hardy lot, for at Gambleside the open-air Baptistry was filled with water from the stream. If it was chilly for the congregation up here on the moor then, at the "dipping", the new members must have been freezing. Now barely a trace of the village remains and open-air bathing is not recommended in December, so instead we climbed the old packhorse tracks to Compston's Cross. But don't forget your woolly hat, you'll need it.
LOCATION: Four miles north of Rawtenstall
START: Clowbridge Reservoir on A682. Car park beside track beneath dam Grid ref: SD823279 Postcode: BB115PF
DISTANCE: 4 miles
GRADE: Moderate
TIME: 2 hours
MAP: Outdoor Leisure - South Pennines Landranger 103
REFRESHMENTS: Pack a flask
EN ROUTE: Meadow Head, Limers Gate, Rossendale Way
This walk was originally published by
The Manchester Evening News