WEST PENNINE WAY

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FRIDAY 14th JUNE 2019

Come Walking Series of Walks: Roddlesworth & Darwen Moor

This evening walk started at Roddlesworth Information Centre where twenty-six walkers set off from the car park expecting to enjoy a break from the heavy rain. We turned left, walking past Hollinshead Terrace, an attractive group of millworkers cottages and joined the route of the West Pennine Way (WPW) at the start of a bridleway which climbed gently onto Darwen Moor.

At the top of the first climb we arrived at Stepback Clough, a small area of woodland believed to be associated with Oliver Cromwell, but tonight its main notoriety was a very muddy footpath from where we turned right leaving the WPW and continued to climb up on to the moor. It was here the forecast for a dry evening was proved wrong and we had to quickly put on our waterproofs.

The stony track soon became like a stream and we were surrounded by water as the path followed a fast flowing brook which cascaded over a number of waterfalls.

 

 

 

 

Once at the top of the climb we turned right and headed towards highest point for the evening where we were rewarded with misty views over the Ribble Estuary, Morecombe Bay and the outline of Cartmel Fell.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After spending some time admiring the views we descended down the track to Blackburn Road which we crossed climbing over a stile into Tockholes Plantation where we turned left onto a section of the WPW and walked through the wood to Hollinshead Hall ruins.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By now the rain had eased a little so we were able to spend time exploring what was left of the old hall especially the Well House that was rebuilt by Liverpool Corporation Waterworks in the early 1900s, after they had demolished the hall along with many of the farms in the area in order to reduce pollution entering the reservoirs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From the old hall we retraced our steps through the woods following the waymarked WPW back to Roddlesworth Information Centre having covered an informative 4 miles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MONDAY 10th JUNE 2019

Monthly Short Walk: Greenmount to Grant's Tower

We have been fortunate with the weather on all of the short walks this year and today was no exception as sixteen walkers left Greenmount Old School in bright sunshine. Making our way down Brandlesholme Road we turned left through the first stile and walked through the fields, where the long grass was very wet from the recent rain.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once on Longsight Road we crossed and headed along a footpath directly opposite that took us onto Wood Road Lane and into Summerseat where we crossed the railway line and climbed up the steep steps, turning right once through the stile.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After a short distance we went through another stile, on our left, and joined a footpath that took us onto Rowlands Road and walked to the junction with Walmersley Road which we crossed and walked along a path leading to the junction of Bentley Lane and Walmersley Old Road. It was sad to see the building that once was the popular Mason’s Arms now being redeveloped into a private residence.

 

 

Shortly after crossing the bridge over the M66 we turned left over a steep stile and once again walked through a field of very wet grass.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After climbing over a number of stiles we entered the attractive village of Nangreaves, in the area known as Mount Pleasant, where we turned left onto a footpath that eventually lead us onto Bury Old Road.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once on the road we tuned left and headed up to Bent House Farm making our way along the farm track that eventually lead to Grant’s Tower where we stopped for a coffee break and to admire the work that had been carried out to restore the old building into a usable resource.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Feeling refreshed we headed down the footpath, to the left of the tower, through Park Wood and onto Manchester Road, which we crossed and followed a footpath that took us back over the M66 and down the steep steps, known as Jacob’s Ladder. At the bottom of the steps we walked across a small footbridge and turned left and followed the River Irwell back into Summerseat where we made our various ways home with the ones going back to Greenmount having covered 7.5 sunny miles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FRIDAY 7th JUNE 2019

Come Walking Series of Walks: Clough Head

 

Our meeting point for this walk has normally been the car park at Clough Head Café however, on this occasion Untied Utilities, who usually leave the barrier unlocked for us, had decided to lock the barriers from 5.30pm because of “anti-social behaviour” taking place on the car park. Fortunately, due to the heavy rain during the day, only eleven people turned up for the walk so we were able to park our cars at, the entrance to the car park.

After walking past the barrier we turned right and followed a footpath through the woods until we came to a track overlooking Jamestone Quarry, where there was evidence of stone still being removed from the quarry. Once on the track we turned right and followed a wide green path that skirted around the edge of the quarry eventually descending down onto the access road which leads to the quarries.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We turned right and walked along the road for a short distance before turning left up a steep path which joined the West Pennine Way (WPW) where we turned right and followed the WPW to Leys End Farm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once across Grane Road we walked through the fields, passing the Water Works on our right with Holden Wood Reservoir on our left, which looked like it needed the rain that was still falling steadily. Still following the WPW we climbed over a ladder stile and headed for the tram way that was used to bring stone down from the quarry on Musbury Heights.

At this point we left the WPW, which climbs steeply up the tram way, and walked through the short tunnel, used by the workers of the quarry to avoid the trucks, and continued along the footpath that passes Ogden Reservoir on our right.

 

 

 

 

 

Due to the persistent rain we decided not to go around Calf Hey Reservoir but instead to cross the embankment and head back to Clough Head having covered a distance of 4.5 soggy miles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MONDAY 3rd JUNE 2019

Monthly Long Walk: Owd Betts, Knowl Hill, Naden Valley and Ashworth Valley

On a bright but chilly morning six walkers set off from the lay-by opposite the Old Betts Inn on Edenfield Road. Once safely across the road we started the steep climb up to the trig point, on Knowl Hill (419m) where we had clear views looking over the West Pennine Moors and beyond to the Fylde Coast. Heading past the large wind turbine on Scout Moor we headed in the direction of the Naden Reservoirs.

The three Naden reservoirs were built by the Heywood and Middleton Water Company in the middle of the nineteenth century. The final and largest reservoir, the Greenbooth, was completed in 1961 and it entailed flooding the village of Greenbooth.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The footpath into Norden dropped down through a steep valley and climbed up into a new housing estate from where we crossed Edenfild Road into Wolstenholme Fold passing what was once an owl sanctuary and onto a very overgrown footpath leading to the head of the Naden Valley.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once into the valley we passed the ruins of one of the very many mills which made use of the Naden Brook for their power and cotton production. Further down the valley we made use of one such mill to have our morning coffee break enjoying the views of the water fall and birds skimming over the surface of the water.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Refreshed after our break we continued along the footpath crossing School Lane before turning right walking up to Ashworth Hall where we crossed Ashworth Road. After turning left, we walked a short distance along the road before turning right and headed towards Heywood Farm and a footpath taking us into the start of Cheesden Valley.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Following the path through the valley, which in many parts was overgrown and not evident, also crossed the brook in several places with only once having the luxury of a bridge.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On reaching the ruins, which include a chimney, of Washwheel Mill we decided to have a lunch stop on dry land. The mill was the last of fifteen to close in Cheesden Valley and was used to bleach cotton.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After lunch we continued to walk through the valley up to Deeply Valley, the site of annual free rock festivals in the late 70s and early 80s. At the head of the valley is the last of the ruined mills, Cheesden Close Upper Mill and from here it was a short walk back to the Owd Betts Inn having covered 10 adventures miles.