WALKABOUTSVERSE 134 OF 230

Poem 134 of 230:  RAWTENSTALL - SPRING 2001

A whistle’s “we are off” scream,
    Plus the sight and sound of steam
Against a stone tunnel-wall,
    On the track to Rawtenstall.

High up from where I now dwell,
    A much narrower Irwell
Flows past Rawtenstall’s station -
    Making its own Bury run.

Turning to view a wide ridge,
    I walked to Weavers’ Cottage,
Whose staff enlightened me on
    How wool was spun and woven.

Climbing past strong stone-houses,
    I found the slope for skiers,
And the place for which I’d come -
    Rossendale Museum.

Set within Whitaker Park,
    This museum holds fine-art,
Old furniture and fashion,
    Plus a species collection.

Again with stops for the sights,
    I stepped down Rawtenstall’s heights
To where track and river wed -
    The train ready with a head…

(C) David Franks 2003

Along the Bury E.L.R. St., and toward the 
tunnel 'on the track to Rawtenstall'; 27/5/22

Verdant scene & steam on E.L.R.; 27/5/22

1 of 9 E.L.R. crossings of the Irwell; 27/5/22

Irwell flowing by Rawtenstall St.; 27/5/22

On the way to Weavers' Cottage; 27/5/22

Weavers' Cottage, Rawtenstall; 27/5/2022

Row of houses in Rawtenstall; 27/5/2022

Rawtenstall's "slope for skiers"; 27/5/2022

Whitaker Park and museum; 27/5/2022

Station from 'Rawtenstall's heights'; 27/5/22

At Rawtenstall Train Station, the E.L.R.
steam "train ready with a head..."; 27/5/22 

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