Autumn's finally arrived in the village and as you can see the weather today was great for photography. The beeches in particular are stunning at the moment.

The stone below is now set into a wall on Waterside Road but was originally from The Co-Operative shop which I'm told used to stand at the junction near the Liberal Club.

The Co-Operative movement was developed in nearby Rochdale in the 1800's and offered affordable produce, education and loans and saving opportunities for working people.

These roses are still going strong in one of the beautifully tended beds on the ELR station.

Robin Road runs behind the now boarded up Liberal Club on Waterside Road and leads down to an area known locally as Lammy Bank where public footpaths criss cross through the woods. If you take the path which forks to the left you can walk alongside the stream to Holcombe Brook and will emerge close to the Hare and Hounds pub. On your way you'll see some overgrown foundations, all that's now left of Robin Road Mill, and also old dams where water was drawn from the stream to power looms and wash cotton.

In 1826 the mill was visited by around 200 Luddites who destroyed 38 looms before moving on towards Bury. More information on Summerseat's mills along with the history of the village can be found on the excellent Ward family website.

The steep right hand fork in the path will take you up through the woods and provides great views across the village as it passes behind the playing field and brick houses. I found this excellent and highly recommended walking map courtesy Rossendale Council which takes you along this route and around the village taking in many of the best sights Summerseat has to offer.

Jumbles Reservoir is less than 10 minutes by car from Summerseat and is located just off the A676 road to Bolton. The drive takes you out through the villages of Holcombe and Hawkshaw and up across the hills which overlook the reservoir. There are also two great restaurants along this road called Dine and India Gate, both of which are well worth a visit.

Jumbles is a great place to jog, walk dogs or just take in the fresh air and it's also home to sailing and angling clubs. The country park provides some beautiful views and the public footpath also links up to the nearby Wayoh reservoir and Turton village if you fancy a longer walk. If you're heading that way make sure you drop into the Black Bull for a pint and some great pub food.

Bass Lane is the one thing about Summerseat you just have to learn to live with. The single track road (with occasional passing places) drops down towards the village from the nearby M66 junction and regularly snarls up in the rush hour with traffic cutting through.

This part of Waterside Road and the bridge over the river are the other stretches of single track in the village and also get busy at peak times.

These pink flowers look like some kind of orchid and are absolutely everywhere at the moment.

I'm not sure what happened to the summer but these shots were grabbed in between passing clouds. The above sign is on Summerseat train station which is a stop on the East Lancashire Railway line.

Railway Street used to be lined with houses on both sides of the road but the row closest to the river was knocked down 30 or 40 years ago. One of the village's biggest attractions is Summerseat Garden Centre which lies just beyond these houses.

Plantation View overlooks Summerseat Park and is one of a number of three storey terraces originally built for local mill workers.

Work and the weather have been against me of late. I missed the egg rolling on Holcombe Hill, the Summerseat May Queen procession and a few flooded streets. Hopefully I'll catch them next year apart from the last one...

The River Irwell runs from the hills above Ramsbottom through Summerseat and on to Manchester where it eventually joins the Ship Canal. As the river approaches the villlage it enters Gollinrod Gorge, a little known beauty spot enclosed by heavily wooded cliffs.

The river at the mouth of the gorge is spanned by The Waterside pub an old part of the Brooksbottoms Mill complex. The Waterside closed last year and has still not reopened.

The footbridge above was built in 1897 and although there seems to be little purpose to it there's lots of evidence of stonework from old mill buildings adjacent to the river. The bridge is fenced off now as it's apparently unsafe for pedestrians.

The woods which line the gorge are currently carpeted with bluebells and its possible to walk from Summerseat to Ramsbottom following the route of the river.

The Gorge is generally unknown to anyone other than locals and you will often have the whole area to yourself. A word of warning - some of the paths are steep in places.

The above photo shows the rear of The Spinnings apartments which were converted from the former Hoyles Mill which closed down in the Seventies.

I think the cliffs are made of limestone and huge eroded slabs of this line the riverbed. When the water level is low its possible to step across and sit on flat, stone 'islands'. The river's also a great place to keep a bottle of wine chilled in the Summer!

Summerseat is awash with blossom just now. These trees are on India Street which is one of the brick house terraces in the village.

The above pictures show the former Hoyles Mill which was redeveloped into The Spinnings apartments in 1987. The overhead shot was taken from the footpath which extends up from Hill Street to the bottom of Bass Lane and skirts the side of Gollinrod Gorge.

Hill Street and Queens Place are built on the hillside to the East of the River Irwell and feature some seriously steep roads and pathways. In both the above photographs you can see Peel Tower atop Holcombe Hill.

Hill Street leads drivers through a series of hairpin bends and stone cottages to the single track bridge besides the still closed Waterside pub and restaurant. We're not sure if they've found a new buyer yet but the village seems almost too quiet without the crowds who would undoubtedly be filling the beer garden on such a warm Sunday afternoon.

As the clocks went forward for British summertime, Spring has finally arrived in the village. Summerseat seems to be awash with daffodils and these were shot on the verges of the ELR railway station with the River Irwell in the background.

Passenger trains are now running every weekend on the line which stretches from Bury to Rawtenstall and you can even take to the footplate and drive an engine yourself under supervision on the quieter weekdays.

Plantation View overlooks Summerseat Park and is the first in a row of terraces known locally as the brick houses. The three storey cottages date back to the late 1800's and were originally built to house workers from the nearby mills.

In the 1980's the council knocked down almost every other row to create gardens and driveways on the previously back to back houses. As a result they're now extremely popular with buyers and seem to sell within days of going on the market.

Summerseat is situated in the Irwell Valley beneath Holcombe Hill which rises an impressive 1100 feet above sea level. The hill is topped by Peel Tower, a monument commemorating Bury born Sir Robert Peel, Prime Minister of Britain between 1841 and 1846 and founder of the modern police force.

The 128 foot high tower which was completed in 1852 can be seen from miles around and provides stunning views across Lancashire, Yorkshire, Greater Manchester, Cheshire and North Wales. It’s claimed you can even see Blackpool Tower on a clear day and a flag is flown on days when the tower is open to the public who can climb the 150 steps to the top.

Holcombe Moor is part of the West Pennine Moors which cover 90 square miles of Lancashire and contain many reservoirs which serve the county and adjacent Greater Manchester. In the summer you can occasionally see wild cotton growing on the moorland which 'escaped' from the area's numerous but long gone mills. Holcombe Moor is also home to an army and TA training camp.

Directly beneath the hill lies Holcombe village, a small parish of nearby town Ramsbottom. The village is dominated by Emmanuel Church where a wedding was taking place this afternoon. The bride and groom must have been overjoyed at the fine but unseasonal weather they had for their big day.

Moor Road is actually just a track which provides access to local farms and leads down from the hill to Holcombe village where many walkers take advantage of the conveniently situated Shoulder of Mutton pub.

Gales and heavy rain have hit the entire UK and Summerseat has been no exception. It seemed to rain constantly throughout the night and is dramatically evident in today's river level.

The Irwell is fed from the streams and moors above Ramsbottom and runs for about 15 miles to Manchester city centre and Salford where it joins the Manchester Ship Canal.

Summerseat is probably best known for being on the route of the East Lancashire Railway and many people's first glimpse of the village tends to have been from a train. In addition to the regular weekend timetable, ELR run occasional Red Rose diner specials which stop at various scenic locations for each course. Starters are often served on this bridge spanning the River Irwell in the village.

Another major attraction until recently was The Waterside pub and restaurant. The pub was always popular at weekends throughout the summer months particularly when the weather was good as there's lots of outdoor space for drinkers. It's currently up for sale after closing down in November of last year. Thankfully there are two other pubs in the village - The Footballers Inn and The Hamers Arms in Higher Summerseat.

This picture was taken off the road bridge on Railway Street and the river is much higher than usual due to what seems like weeks of constant rain. Today was very different and more like a bright late spring day.

The white-washed terrace of houses on Miller Street were originally homes to senior workers from the nearby Hoyles Mill. The main mill building was converted into The Spinnings luxury flats in the late Eighties and sits at the foot of Gollinrod Gorge. Not many people seem to be aware of the gorge and you can walk through it to Ramsbottom often without seeing anyone else.