Living World with Ron Feethy: A FEW years ago almost all guide books described Lancashire as an area of coal mines, canals and dark, satanic cotton mills.

A few still do but there have always been as many bright spots as dark ones. Over the next few weeks I'm going discover a number of Lancashire's gems, always with that subtle balance between history and natural history.

This week I've been exploring the area around Samlesbury which can best be reached from Bolton via the M61, M6 and turning off at the Tickled Trout.

The origin of the word Samlesbury seems to cause historians heated debate. According to Ekwall's book of place-names, it derives from the Old English 'Sceamol' which means a bench. Samlesbury Lower Hall did indeed stand on a prominent ledge above the River Ribble.

Other researchers have suggested that it has Roman origins and that they called it Minerva Bellisima. Later the word 'Bury' was added which is Anglo-Saxon for a fortified place. Thus we have the word 'Belisamabury' which, over the years, has been shortened to Samlesbury.

Most people visit the half-timbered and now beautifully restored Samlesbury Hall without ever realising that its correct name is actually the New Hall. The Old Hall, or what is left of it, is down by the River Ribble and lying in a sheltered hollow. In the 1320s, the Scots raids devastated the area and the old hall stood on the site of an ancient ford. Once they crossed the Ribble, the Scots attacked and devastated the Old Hall, which was owned by the Southworth family.

The Southworths were determined to rebuild their home in a safer place and built this in the middle of a wood. This is now alongside the busy A677 from Preston to Blackburn but in its heyday it must have been a difficult place for casual travellers (or especially invaders) to spot.

I've visited Samlesbury in all seasons and explored its nature trails which are always of interest. It adds an extra dimension to the hall when the archery club is busy practising in the extensive grounds. The tea shop and cafe are worth travelling miles to enjoy and if you have an antique which intrigues you there are resident experts on hand to help you.

On a bright winter's morning I examined a boundary wall and found ivy-leaved toadflax growing strongly and proving just how tough our wild plants can be because there had been a heavy frost a couple of days before my visit. Close to the footpath a blackheaded gull proved that Spring is not far away because it already had its chocolate-coloured hood which is only present during the breeding season.

In the area around Samlesbury there are many exciting byways where there are small ponds and ditches. Moorhens and willow warblers breed here and last summer I watched a huge diving beetle terrorising the invertebrates in a little pond. This species is called Dytiscus marginalis, the second word indicating that it has a yellow margin to its shell. The creature swims well and always seems to be aggressively hungry.

The area between Samlesbury Old and New Halls is a wonderful place to prove that Lancashire's countryside has more than its share of beautiful places.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.