Walk Leader: Stephen Martin

Number on walk: 5

Distance: 23 miles

Weather: Warm & dry day

Day 5
Newhey to Norden 23 miles (2869ft Ascent)

Leaving a car at the free carpark in Norden (W3W laminated.factory.traded) we travelled the 20 or so minutes to the start at Newhey (The Cedar Tree pub, Haugh Fold W3W vocab.diner.youth). Five of us started the 5 mile, 1000ft ascent to the M62 footbridge, at around 8:30hrs in dry, warm conditions. On the way up we passed Ogden and Piethorne Reservoirs then over Windy Hill to the M62 footbridge and the Pennine Way (PW). From here the PW took us over Blackstone Edge where great views over the surrounding area can be had. We soon picked up the old Roman Road and Rochdale W, then the Pennine Bridleway before dropping down to Hollingworth Lake. Here we took lunch as there is an RSPCA café and W.C.

From Hollingworth Lake we dropped further to the Rochdale Canal and through Littleborough. It was then a short, steep climb up to Watergrove reservoir and back onto the Rochdale Way. This took us towards Healey Dell. Just as you enter Healey, public toilets can be found at the road junction. After a further short break we headed into the Dell only to find the path closed. After a little rerouting we were back on the trail, crossing the viaduct and passing the old station café. It was then a climb out of the Dell to Greenbooth Reservoir before a nice descent back into Norden, finishing around 17:45hrs. Warm, dry day on mainly good paths with the exception of some very short overgrown areas which can be expected in early August. Could be completed in walking shoes. 

Highlights include: 
– Lovely views over the chain of reservoirs in the Piethorne Valley
– A grassy ridge walk along the well-named Windy Hills, offering aerial views of Britain’s
highest motorway
– The dramatic rocks of Blackstone Edge, called the “Andes of England” by Daniel Defoe
– A descent of the “Roman Road”, actually a medieval packhorse trail
– The tree-lined Ealees Valley and the shores of Hollingworth Lake, Greater Manchester’s
largest body of water
– A pretty section of the Rochdale Canal
– Shoreline and woodland paths by the expansive Watergrove Reservoir
– Panoramic views from the Pennine Bridleway as it contours around the hills north of
Rochdale
– A full circuit of the gorge-like Healey Dell, with its lush vegetation, spectacular waterfalls
and dramatic railway viaduct
– Beautiful views over Greenbooth Reservoir in the Naden Valley.