As the Lancashire Wildlife Trust is gearing up for a project that will look at how wildlife, farming and leisure can be better incorporated on the West Pennine Moors, I decided to venture up to the Great Hill for the first time in years.

Dog walks became less strenuous towards the end of my Lakeland Terrier, Alfie’s life, so we hadn’t been going on our five-mile hike from Brinscall. And yet during 20 years in the village, Great Hill had been a regular destination.

Over the years I have had the pleasure of seeing birds of prey, like the hobby, peregrine falcon, kestrel and magnificent buzzards, floating on the thermals high in the sky.

Kestrels are a common sight on the moors. Kestrels are a common sight on the moors. (Image: Getty) I walked to the soundtrack of skylarks, out of sight above me and met blackcaps and meadow pipits, along with other small birds. I heard a cuckoo and then watched him fly from a single tree on the moor, he would have been looking down upon Lancashire and up to the Lakeland hills.

I have stopped as foxes wandered nonchalantly past me, jumped as a brown hare darted from a field across the road and had to look twice to check that I was watching a red deer, rarely seen in this part of the moor.

Today, the sun is shining and heathers still colour the moor in all shades of blue, purple, violet and lavender. The greens, purples, red and yellow of summer have toned down a little, but the moor above Chorley is a majestic place to visit at any time of year.

The Lancashire Wildlife Trust and partners have plans for the West Pennine Moors, if they reach the “delivery phase” it will mean speaking to people who live, work and play on the moors. Asking them for stories of their experiences and working with them to make things even better. It is exciting to see conservation and farming melding into a force for nature.

The project will look at how people use the West Pennine Moors. The project will look at how people use the West Pennine Moors. (Image: Alan Wright) One part of the plan is to highlight how good the moors are for our mental health. Just getting up into a wild area and breathing in the air is life affirming, it helps to shake off all the troubles that have been pestering us for weeks. It is amazing that this wilderness is surrounded by millions of people, and yet it is so easy to escape here for a day.

I can hear the skylark, high above me as I walk along a flatter section of the path. Its song cascades down and then I hear another one, shouting a greeting to its friend. This is a symphony we will ensure future generations get to hear and it sends a wonderful shiver down my spine.

It is strange not having the dog to guide me, but I carry on past the wood and seating area and on up to the fence around the high point. I look back. The sun is shining on White Coppice and I spot a buzzard silently scanning the ground from just above the trees.

The sun is adding to the joyful colours of heather surrounded by lush green vegetation, I have been walking for just 20 minutes from humanity and this is like a completely different world.

The project will look at how people use the West Pennine Moors. The project will look at how people use the West Pennine Moors. (Image: Alan Wright) Reaching the seats at the top of the Great Hill is a pleasure, with views across Chorley, Blackburn and Bolton. I have seen only five people so far.

I have been up the hill in snow, fog and rain and each experience is different, there is literally excitement around every corner.

Much of this place is classified as important for nature, including our extraordinary Longworth Clough nature reserve, where dippers mix with kingfishers along a former mill stream.

Hopefully the West Pennine Moors project will mean we have wild stories to tell and tales to add for years to come.