Cycling the Canal Tow Path

Monday 14th March, 2016

A beautiful sunny day, warm for March, at 14C.

We get the folding bicycles out, and, the plan is to have our first cycle outing of 2016, by pedalling along the towpath of the Lancaster Canal, in the direction of Lancaster.

After about a mile of just slightly muddy, and, it has to be said, slippery tow path, we encounter a section which consists of soft mud, and, a very large puddle. Indeed, the puddle stretches for as far as we can see, it is like a mini canal on the tow path!

Even my usual encouraging words of "it is only water, it will dry off", or , "it is only a bit of mud, it will wash off", are not enough to convince Kathleen to go on. To be honest, that is probably a wise decision, slithering along a slippery tow path, less than a metre from the edge of the canal, on a bicycle, is not a recommended course of action for two geriatrics.

We turn around, and head in the opposite direction, towards Preston. 

The Canal wends it's way through Garstang, and, the tow path is generally sound, even tarmac for most of the way, but, as we leave Garstang and head into open countryside, the tarmac disappears, and soon, we are back to slippery mud.

Perhaps, this a route for a dry spell?

The attempt to cycle to Lancaster or Preston, is abandoned, and we instead leave the canal tow path at the next bridge and cycle along a reasonably quiet road, through the village of Bonds, to return to Garstang, for coffee and sandwiches.

We content ourselves with a first outing of just over five miles of (mostly) pleasant cycling in the spring sun shine, and, very enjoyable it was.