The leaves are starting the turn, conker shells litter the pavements, fires are being lit and Halloween merchandise fills the shops. Allotments and farmers markets are bursting with ripe fruit and vegetables, whilst restaurant menus are filled with game and heartier food. It is officially autumn!
Here’s our top autumnal things to do
1. Find yourself a pub or inn with a log fire and settle in for the afternoon or evening.
Few things can beat the smell and warmth from the real fire and the experience can be enhanced with glass of real ale and a plate of seasonal food. We’re thinking venison, wild duck, squash, aubergines, lamb, plums….we could go on! The following all have real fires and tempting menus; The Millstone at Mellor, The Fleece Inn at Dolphinholme, The Royal in Kirkby Lonsdale, The Clog & Billycock near Blackburn, The Borough in Lancaster and the Shireburn Arms Hotel at Hurst Green in the Ribble Valley.
2. Go for a walk and admire the view
It’s such a beautiful time of year to go for a stroll, especially when you are rewarded with so much natural beauty - the colours of the leaves, natural debris such as nuts and seeds, wildlife busy preparing for winter, morning mists and evening sunsets. Try Gisburn Forest in the heart of the Forest of Bowland AONB, the Leeds-Liverpool Canal straight mile at Burnley, The Ribble Estuary at Longton Brickcroft nature reserve and The Trough of Bowland between Lancaster and the Dunsop Bridge.
3.See a show
Brighten up the dark evenings with a trip to the theatre or an outdoor light show. Both Blackpool’s Grand Theatre and the Opera House & Winter Theatre, have a packed programme including a Tale of Two Cities and Ghost. Or wrap up warm to see a variety of outdoor light shows including the world famous Blackpool Illuminations and Light Up Lancaster (including fireworks over the castle).
4.Go on a ghosts tour or a witches trail
Dark evenings and a flickering fire are the perfect backdrop for a good ghost story, and what better time than over Halloween to familiarise yourself with the infamous Lancashire Witch Trials of 1612. There are exhibitions about the witches at Pendle Heritage Centre in Barrowford and Clitheroe Castle, or follow the Lancashire Witches Driving Trail from Pendle Hill to Lancaster Castle. Lancaster Tours also offer Ghost Getters walking tours around the historic city.
5.Go Star Gazing
Dark, and not so chilly evenings, and clear skies make autumn a great time to look up into space. Rural Lancashire is also free from light pollution so you’ll see far more with the naked eye (and telescope) than you would normally. Check out the Forest of Bowland Dark Sky Discovery Sites and events - at Beacon Fell Country Park near Preston/Garstang, Crook O'Lune Picnic Site in the Lune Valley, Slaidburn and Gisburn Forest Hub. Enjoy the show of the Leonid meteor shower in the dark skies of the Forest of Bowland on 18 November in Gisburn Forest Hub.
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