A lord’s lost world

Three years ago I watched a programme called Secret Britain which featured terraced gardens created by Lord Leverhulme at Rivington in Lancashire. I was intrigued and had wanted to visit ever since. It was a bit far for a day trip from York but, but when I saw that Rivington also had a Go Ape course, suddenly the idea of a weekend near Wigan started to take shape ­– and no longer presented such a hard sell to the kids.

We started at the three-hour treetop trail beside a reservoir involving a total of 35 bridges, Tarzan swings and zip wires. We went round with a hen party. “There’s nothing dignified about this: swinging around by your crotch,” said one.

While following the golden rule and staying attached at all times we, like most gorillas and baboons (as participants are called), were still prone to tree hugging. Go Ape is like going on a rollercoaster: you know you’re safe but there’s still a small part of your brain that refuses to believe it especially on the zipwires. We always knew when a hen was in the air: a shriek during travel was followed by a cackle on landing. I wasn’t much quieter.

The hens headed off in a minibus while we checked in at the four-star Wrightington Hotel and Country Club, a modern, spacious hotel in pastoral setting near Wigan. Despite being a stone’s throw from the M6 and our stay coinciding with a wedding it was very quiet. At breakfast, sheep grazed through the picture window. The hotel’s crowning glory for us, though, was the pool, all 18 metres of it. Bennett’s restaurant was first-rate too.

We were up early the following morning to be first on the canoe safari at the Martin Mere Wetland Centre in Burscough. Our boat doubled up as an ice breaker as we bashed and splashed our way around the channels. Martin Mere is a sort of Slimbridge of the north and its layout of footpaths looping around different enclosures reminded us of Chester Zoo. For birdwatchers this place is paradise, with no end of hides including the longest in Europe and one designed like a giant hen harrier. There are otters and beavers too. The reserve was created in 1975 but the wetlands tradition dates back to the late 1600s when there was a lake here three times the size of Windermere.

With time to spare we pootled down Tootle Lane (so said the sat nav) to nearby Rufford Old Hall.

Owned by the National Trust, this 
is a hotch-potch of a family house, the grand hall dating back to Tudor times and with Jacobean-style and Victorian extensions. My favourite feature was a squint hole in the drawing room from which, in Tudor times, the menfolk kept an eye on their ladies dancing below.

On our last day we returned to Rivington to explore the terraced gardens. These, along with a country residence, were created by Boltonian and soap entrepreneur Lord Leverhulme from 1900.

He was not one to do things by halves. Way up here on a 45-acre plot he had a Japanese garden, tennis court with pavillion, swimming pool, ballroom, croquet lawn and tower for his wife to sew in with pigeons on the lower floors. The air of mystery about the place adds to its intrigue. Amid such grandeur the name of the lord’s house is strangely plain: just “The Bungalow”. All that remains of the property are two small patches of floor tiles, tantalising glimpses of a lost world.

It’s not quite “secret” Britain though. There was a steady flow of walkers tramping up to the folly tower on Rivington Pike, one of the few features not actually built by Leverhulme but by John Andrews in 1733. As we emerged from the trees the view across the reservoirs and Bolton was breathtaking.

We had lunch at Rivington Hall Barn, a stunning early 18th-century construction with colossal cruck beams that was restored by… guess who? The snug interior with low lighting and scores of tables made us feel like we were joining a function rather than entering a café. Weddings are often held here.

We completed our tour of Leverhulme’s kingdom by visiting his scale replica of the ruins of Liverpool Castle beside Rivington Reservoir. His Port Sunlight soapworks was located near to Liverpool and the geography 
of the reservoir at this point reminded him of the castle’s site. Obvious, 
really. Well, perhaps, not but that’s 
the appeal of this curious 
destination that proved to have something for everybody, modern and historic, for young and old alike.

Getting there

Wrightington Hotel and Country Club (wrightingtonhotel.co.uk) offers double rooms, including breakfast, from £105.

Go Ape, Rivington, (goape.co.uk/days-out/rivington), adults £30 and children £24.

Martin Mere Wetland Centre (wwt.org.uk/visit/martin-mere), family ticket £29.80, canoe safari £5 per canoe (each seats up to three people).

Rufford Old Hall (nationaltrust.org.uk/rufford-old-hall), family ticket £17.

Rivington terraced gardens. Leaflets and trail guides available from information centre at the Great House Barn next to Go Ape. Free.

For more ideas and inspiration for your short break or holiday in Lancashire go to visitlancashire.com.