A captivating Seventeenth-century bridge in Lancashire’s Ribble Valley has a candy folklore connected to it – and it simply occurs to be subsequent to a postcard-perfect village.
It is the stuff of fairytales (Picture: Chris Heaton/ Gateway to Browsholme Corridor / CC BY-SA 2.0/Wikipedia)
A fascinating “fairy bridge” adjoining to a village “frozen in time” must be firmly pencilled into your UK journey itinerary for 2026. Saddle Bridge, alternatively often called “Fairy Bridge”, is a fabled stone crossing allegedly constructed in a single night time by fairies; legend has it they have been aiding an aged woodcutter escaping from witches, whom he’d angered after felling the tree the place their coven met.
The bridge sits 130 metres northeast of Rugglesmire Farmhouse – a Seventeenth-century Grade II Listed farmhouse – inside Lancashire’s Ribble Valley. Fairy Bridge itself holds Grade II Listed standing from the Seventeenth century, lending an additional contact of surprise and mystique to the folklore that permeates this picturesque panorama, stuffed with pleasant riverside walks and sweeping rural trails.
Bashall Corridor in Lancashire is a serious attraction (Picture: Charles Rawding / Bashall Corridor / CC BY-SA 2.0)
Information point out the bridge underwent restoration in 1938 and contains sandstone rubble development. Its slender profile contains a solitary lofty arch and strong parapets topped with boulder copings, stories Lancs Reside.
On Saddle Bridge’s southern face, a commemorative plaque bears the inscription “rebuilt by public subscription 1938”, enhancing its historic enchantment.
The village frozen in time
Fairy Bridge lies in shut proximity to the picture-perfect village of Bashall Eaves, cradled inside Lancashire’s magnificent Ribble Valley. This charming hamlet resides inside the Forest of Bowland Space of Excellent Pure Magnificence (AONB) and affords unparalleled vistas.
Rolling countryside, a beneficiant sprinkling of picturesque stone cottages, and verdant hedgerows give Bashall Eaves the enchanting high quality of a storybook village.
The settlement’s identify has Outdated English origins, with Bashall which means “hill by the brooks” and “eaves” denoting borders or boundaries – a transparent nod to the village’s geographical place on the sting of the Forest of Bowland. Within the Domesday Ebook of 1086, Bashall Eaves was documented as Baschelf.
Largely comprising a personal nation property, Bashall Eaves has historically belonged to the Worsley-Taylor household.
The village boasts quite a few pleasant buildings and lesser-known treasures, together with Bashall Corridor – a hanging Georgian manor home with roots within the 1600s that underwent substantial modifications through the early 18th century.
The Seventeenth-century “Fairy Bridge” (Picture: Northwest Nature and Historical past)
Masking practically 4,000 acres, Bashall Eaves is house to Browsholme Corridor, considered amongst essentially the most traditionally vital estates within the space. Browsholme Corridor has served because the ancestral seat of the Parker household – former Bow-bearers of Bowland – for greater than 500 years.
Certainly, Amanda Parker, who has been Lord-Lieutenant of Lancashire since 2023, lives in Bashall Eaves and oversees the industrial operations of her Grade I Listed ancestral residence. In keeping with the latest 2021 census, the village’s inhabitants stood at simply 174 residents.
Amongst Bashall Eaves’ principal attracts is The Pink Pump Inn, the village’s highly-rated and best-known pub, situated inside simple strolling distance of the centre. Performing as a neighborhood point of interest for each locals and vacationers, it has garnered rave opinions.
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One enthusiastic Tripadvisor overview of the institution states: “What a bit of gem of a spot that is. Pleasant welcome from the proprietor earlier than being proven to our actually fairly giant bed room with very comfortable mattress. The breakfast the subsequent day was probably one of many nicest lodge breakfasts I’ve had in a very long time. The general public rooms have a quaint old-worldy really feel to them. Completely suggest this place.”
This countryside hamlet, situated roughly 5 miles from Clitheroe, is important viewing for anybody keen to find Britain’s quite a few picturesque settings.
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