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.


Tuesday, 24 July 2018

Congleton to Burslem. Trent and Mersey Canal.

The first photograph, is taken looking east along the Trent and Mersey Canal. What looks like a bridge, in the background, is actually the Aqueduct carrying the Macclesfield Canal.


We walked east past another set of locks and joined a basin where the Macclesfield Canal joined the Trent and Mersey from the right.


Note the orange colour of the water. Ten minutes further on and we were at the highlight of our day, the Harecastle Tunnel. Boats were queueing to go through.



We had no boat so we headed for Boathorse Road the path on which they took the draught horses as they couldn't go through the tunnel. We were warned the path would take us through gipsy/traveller camp and advised against the road. In the event a home owner in Boathorse Road put us onto an approved alternative via Bathpool Park. It was largely rural. We had to ask the way a few times. There was no sineage. When we got to the southern portal we found a map on display board.



We then headed on to our accommodation for the day, The George Hotel,  Burslem passing Wesport Lake, on our right. Just before our turn off to Burslem we passed a beautiful old bottle kiln.  At 20.5 km the day was a bit too long for the warm and humid conditions





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