Day 11 Walk up a Hill

This evening for my random act of wildness I took a drive out to Crank, parked up in front of some houses near the Red Cat Pub and walked from there up to the top of Billinge Hill and back.  It was a nice sunny evening for walking and tonight I was joined by my eldest daughter.

Billinge Hill is the highest point in the Metropolitan Borough of St Helens in North West England at 179 metres (587 feet).  It is also the highest point of Merseyside.  

It's always been a favourite hill of mine and when I was a child I used to day dream about one day driving up the hill in my own car with Jean-Michel Jarre playing on the radio.  I've since drove up it countless times and yes I did listen to Jean-Michel Jarre on my first trip.

A few years ago whilst training for a marathon, I did a 22 mile run from my house to the top of the hill and back.  It was hot that day and I remember asking a guy who was watering his lawn to hose me down.

Billinge Hill from the start of our walk

Billinge Hill

Billinge Hill from Red Cat Lane

My compay for this evenings walk

Wildflowers

Billinge Hill in the evening sun

Flowers on the roadside

The junction leading to

Crank Road and Billinge Hill

Billinge Hill from the junction

Looking towards Billinge Hill

The line of trees going up the left

hand side of hill is the route up to the top

Buttercups

Flowers on a stone wall

A barn in a field

(we'll look for this later from the top of the hill)

The hill beyond the trees

The beacon tower is just

visible at the top of the hill

Purple Wildflowers

Crank Road
(Looking back)

The road up the hill

A beehive surrounded by wildflowers

in a garden we passed on the way up

Steep hill climb

The climb begins

Crossing the road to investigate

something in the tree

Very strange blobs

on the side of the tree

Ivy twisting up a tree

Almost at the top

Gorse Bush at the top

The view from the road

at the top of the hill

Looking back towards 

where we started the walk

(row of houses near top right of photo)

Beacon Tower comes into sight again

Runcorn and Widnes Bridge

in the distance

A closer view of the bridge

Fiddlers Ferry Powerstation

Passing the telecommunications masts

on our way towards the Beacon Tower

Getting closer to the summit

Some people sat off enjoying

the evening sun and the view

The path to the tower

Almost there

Running up to the tower

Wildflowers growing near the summit

One of many pathways near the summit

Looking back to the houses

where we started our walk

A Royal Observation Corps

monitoring post

(now cemented over)

These are underground structures which can be found all over the United Kingdom, constructed as a result of the Corps' nuclear reporting role and operated by volunteers during the Cold War between 1955 and 1991. Most of the  posts were built to a standard design consisting of a 14-foot-deep access shaft, a toilet, store and  monitoring room.  You can find out more about these by visiting HERE

Farmers field

On our way back down

The Irish Sea twinkles on the horizon

Smoke from a plastic blaze over 

on the Wirral can be seen in the distance

Remember that barn in the field

we passed earlier on

Looking for the singing bird

Back down the way we came up

Watch out for ducks

on that steep descent

Making our way back down the hill

A Log Pile in a garden

perfect for bugs that!

Note to self, 

next time remember some money.

A lemonade would have

 been lovely after that walk.

At the end of walk just before 

getting back into the car I 

managed to get a few shots of setting sun.