Our Route


In July/August 2018 we walked from Liversedge in Yorkshire to Oxford, where possible, on canal towpaths.

The walk started on greenways in the Spen Valley until Ravensthorpe where we joined our first canal, the Calder and Hebble Navigation to Mirfield. In Mirfield we took a greenway to pick up the Huddersfield Broad Canal, after first getting slightly lost in the Colne Valley. We followed the Huddersfield Broad Canal into Huddersfield.

The next day we joined the Huddersfield Narrow Canal to the Standedge tunnel. As there is no footpath in the tunnel we walked over the Pennines, via the Wessenden Valley, to Diggle and the southern end of the tunnel. We followed the Huddersfield Narrow Canal to Ashton where we joined the Peak Forest Canal.

We followed the Peak Forest Canal to Marple where we turned off onto the Macclesfield Canal. We followed the Macclesfield Canal to Kidsgrove where we joined the Trent and Mersey Canal. Almost immediately we had to leave the Canal, as it entered the Harecastle Tunnel, and follow a modified version of the route taken by draught horses in the early days. We rejoined the towpath at the southern end of the tunnel.

We followed the Trent and Mersey Canal to Fradley where we joined the Coventry Canal which we followed to Fazeley Junction, where we joined the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal.

We should have left the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal where it passes under the M6 and joined the Birmingham and Warwick Junction Canal, as we were going through Warwick. However we missed the junction. Even so I thought we could go into central Birmingham and then head East towards Solihull and our accommodation.

We could have corrected our first mistake at Aston Top Lock and turned East on the Digbeth Branch Canal but missed our turn and headed into Birmingham. We almost reached the centre before we realized this second mistake. However from a canal and engineering aspect, the walk into central Birmingham was really interesting. It was a rewarding, if somewhat tiring mistake.

We walked back to the Aston Top Lock and followed the Digbeth branch for a short way to the Grand Union Canal, which was soon joined by the Birmingham and Warwick Canal, which we should have taken in the first place.

We followed the Grand Union Canal all the way to Napton Junction. At Napton Junction we turned south on our final canal, the Oxford Canal, which we followed to its end in Oxford.

We started on Monday, July 16 and finished on Monday, August 13. We walked 248 miles. We travelled for 29 days, with 5 rest days, thus averaging about 10 miles per day on our walking days.


Sunday 22 July 2018

Marple to Macclesfield. Peak Forest Canal.

When we awoke at 7am it was very overcast but by the time we left our B&B (The Springfield Hotel) at 9:50am we were in bright sunshine. It was a short walk (100m) down Station Road before we made a right turn, uphill,  onto lock 9 of the Peak Forest Canal. The initial walk was all uphill. First  past a lovely old stone mill. I'd promised Shiel canal walks were flat!



It was a beautiful sunny morning and the walkers were out in force.  We were on the Marple Lock Flight. There were so many people about I had to wait quite a while before I could get a clear photograph of the small tunnels on the towpath which were made to accommodate the barge horses in Victorian times. First there was a local history group and then two groups of young girls with backpacks, maps and bed rolls. We guessed they were on a Duke of Edinburgh award course. Later on in the day, a car driver who was coming down the towpath (!) sarcastically enquired if Shiel and I were doing our Duke of Edinburgh. ☺





The climb was short, but steep and the surroundings urban, but not industrial, with a village atmosphere. We were quickly at the top, for us at least, where we found we had a right turn to join the Macclesfield Canal.




The narrow boat just entering the Macclesfield canal was run by a charitable institution to give canal cruises to people with disabilities. They seemed to be having a good time.

It was a long boat and a very tight fit in the canal!!!


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