The best running trails around Cuerdale

Easy cycling and a Morrisons to stock up at

Whithy Grove Park has a new amazing mega slide for the kids. They redone the area and spent 110.000 just on the kids playground.

Neolithic to Saxon finds from along the River Ribble during the creation of the Preston Docks and others revealed man has been in the area for a long time. The River Ribble looked completely different then and the coastline is likely to have been much further inland than it is at present where land has been reclaimed and the marsh extended out into the River Ribble due to sedimentation. The Ribble would appear to have been known in Roman times as the Belisama,possibly giving its name to Samlesbury. Ptolemy's "Belisama aest." seems to represent the estuary of the Ribble. Bremetennacum was a Roman fort that guarded a crossing-point of the river at Ribchester. Remains of another Roman site were discovered at Walton-le-Dale in the mid-19th century.

The Continental is a Preston pub and restaurant serving British cuisine and real ales, as well as hosting live music gigs, films, cultural events and the now-legendary Continental Beer Festival. Situated in an idyllic riverside location, just out of the town centre, there can be no more perfect place, winter or summer than to relax in The Continental garden by the river or catch a gig in the event space – The Boatyard.

Preston Dock opened in 1892 and, at the time, was the largest single dock in the country. The basin was named after Queen Victoria's first son, Albert Edward the Prince of Wales, due to the Prince laying the dock foundation stone in 1885.

The Ribble Way is a 116km long distance trail following the course of the river Ribble. It starts at Gayle Moor near Ribblehead and ends at Longton near Preston. The whole trail would be a tough challenge to run although it's waymarked, well surfaced and fairly flat. It does make really good sections and worth looking out for wherever you are based. Here in south Preston the trail runs along the river through the south of the city. The section through Avingham Park is very pretty with the bridges and viaducts over the river and the ornamental park to the north. You can make a nice loop using it and the parks on both sides of the river if you fancy it.

Backing onto the River Ribble, Avenham Park is a classic example of traditional Victorian Parkland in the North West. Edward Milner designed the park to form a natural amphitheatre notably with a Japanese Rock Garden that includes a wide variety of unusual ornamental plants and water features. The park has a popular cafe for a warming beverage in the winter or a cooling ice cream on those hot and sunny days! It is definitely worth jumping off the bike and having a walk around this varied park.

Preston Marina Website: http://prestonmarina.co.uk/index.php/the-beach-hut-coffee-shop/ Check cafe opening times on above link. If you see only 3 photos, open: https://www.komoot.com/highlight/4011081 1st photo from outside the Beach Hut Cafe - a view of the boat moorings and the Marina. 2nd photo - on a fine day sit outside. 3rd photo courtesy of Mark Horrocks - taken just outside the Beach Hut. 4th photo - the Marina Control Tower - operates the opening of the swing bridge and the lock gates. 5th photo - the Beach Hut - from the road/rail swing bridge across the entrance to the Marina - photo courtesy of the Preston Marina Beach Hut. The cafe welcomes cyclists - cycle rack - you should give way to pedestrians. Great to sit outside on a sunny day and maybe take a break from cycling the Guild Wheel. Over the weekend you may even get to see and hear a steam train crossing bridge. Note: there is parking at the back of the cafe (the main entrance) if you are visiting the cafe. Also free parking at the nearby Marina carpark just south of Mariners Way. The Marina Carpark Global Position, Latitude and Longitude in decimal, is: 53.761540,-2.738572 Paste the above line into the Google Maps app "Search here" box and then search or the Google Maps website "Search Google Maps" box then click the magnifying glass symbol.