Not Around Preston

I discussed the town centre previously , let us venture slightly further afield. Rickmansworth (Ricky) lies in the Colne Valley - well one of them. There are at least three in England. This one runs from around junction 23 on the M25 to junction 13, where it flows into the Thames.  The canal follows the Colne much of that way, but heads north beside the River Gade just above Ricky. The valley is awash with lakes of various sizes. Many of them, possibly all, were previously gravel pits, but are now used for various leisure activities or as nature reserves. The section from just below Ricky to the Thames is Colne Valley Regional Park, and the part of that closest to Ricky is the "Aquadrome". The Aquadrome The Aquadrome is southwest of the town centre, downriver from Ricky, and comprises Batchworth Lake and Bury Lake. The area is well-known for herons - I saw several - but other birds too, including cormorants, which I would have thought would prefer more coastal sites. The Rive

I recently stayed over night in Rickmansworth, a small town in southwest Hertfordshire, known as Ricky to the locals, of whom I was one until the mid-eighties. A short way out of London, it developed after the arrival of the Grand Union Canal, on its way from London to Birmingham. Water has been a big part of Ricky - it is where the Rivers Gade and Chess join the River Colne. At one time there were several paper mills in the area, and in fact one area is called Mill End. When the railway arrived, water cress was an important crop - the railway allowed water cress to be harvested in the morning and in London on people's tables for dinner. Today, the local council is called Three Rivers. We will start with the church of St Mary, an attractive building with a squat tower, built of flint for the most part. Part of a war memorial stands in the grounds - the plinth, but not the statue. The statue depicts a lion mauling an eagle, and was deemed to violent for the church. I am not sure whe