Today we are heading out on another winter walk - this time to explore the Macclesfield Canal, which I plan to walk the length of over the course of two days. And today I plan to walk between Marple and Macclesfield.
The Macclesfield Canal was quite a late arrival to the canal network, and opened in 1831 at a time when the railways were already starting to overtake canals as the preferred means of transportation - but it remains as a particularly impressive example of a canal.
Although this is a canal that contains 12 locks over a twenty-six mile course, every single one of these can be found in a single flight at Bosley (which we will reach tomorrow).
But although the canal was a late arrival, it continued to carry commercial traffic until 1954 - and now forms part of a popular near-hundred mile ring (the Cheshire Ring), which takes about a week to travel by boat.
This ring is also a walking path, and takes in the length of the Macclesfield Canal, uses the Trent & Mersey Canal to head up to Runcorn, the Bridgewater Canal to Manchester, a very brief stint on the Rochdale Canal, the Aston Canal to Ashton-under-Lyne, and then the Peak Forest Canal to restart the Macclesfield Canal.
On here I will make no reference to that circular walking loop, however - because our canal walking ambitions stretch beyond that loop - and we will look to walk wider stretches of the canal network, focusing on the full spans of individual canals.
But today I arrive by train in Marple - and our first task of the day is to head up the hill, and meet up with the Peak Forest Canal, as it cuts through Marple.
From here we turn to head south - and take on a steep section of canal (and a number of tall locks) that takes on about a hundred feet of ascent - before the Macclesfield Canal appears on the right, while the Peak Forest Canal heads off to the left.
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| The start of the Macclesfield Canal at Marple |
From here we have a short run through Marple itself, before we break out into our first (albeit fairly short) section of countryside.
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| Now passing beyond the edge of Marple |
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| Out into the countryside |
This more rural stretch only lasts so long before we reach a smaller cluster of houses at High Lane (and pass our section train station of the day at Middlewood train station).
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| Passing over a small cut at High Lane |
From here we once again head back into the countryside, but now this will last until we reach Bollington - which lies some miles ahead.
And we also meet up with the Middlewood Way, a disused railway line, which runs parallel to the canal all the way up till Macclesfield - and which operated as a railway line between 1869 and 1970.
This line came into operation 38 years after the opening of the canal, and resulted more from a financial dispute than from anything else.
At the time the North Staffordshire Railway were only permitted by the London and North Western Railway to run between Macclesfield and Manchester via Crewe (which was geographically in entirely the wrong direction).
Their solution was to build this line, which ran far more directly - and which gave a boost to the local industry in the process.
But in response the London and North Western Railway changed course, and decided that they would after all allow the North Staffordshire Railway to run along a more direct route - and this change of course limited the success of the line.
Ultimately it would close in 1971, having been recommended for closure under the Beeching cuts - with Rose Hill Marple remaining as a terminus station for trains running from Manchester - ahead of the line heading east along the pretty Hope Valley Line (past Edale and the start of the
Pennine Way).
Since the line has closed it has been turned into a walk known as the Middlewood Way, which is a shared use path suitable for both walkers and cyclists, and this route will generally follow our path all the way to Macclesfield.
But sticking to our walk along the canal, we head on along an increasingly pleasant section of canal - and with limited amounts of housing around the canal, we can now enjoy a bit of peace and quiet for the next part of our walk.
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| Out in the countryside |
For me this is the most enjoyable stretch of walking of the day - and along this stretch it is only me, and a lot of canal boats, as we all seek to make the most of the canal today.
These canal boats are very numerous, but whilst other canals and rivers often have a high number of abandoned looking boats, the ones on this canal are all in great shape, look to run regularly up and down the canal, and originate from all over the country.
At Lyme View Marina we see the biggest cluster of boats, and shortly after here we also join up with the North Cheshire Way, which sits on my list of intended walks.
And with that marina behind us, we can now just focus on enjoying the walk, as we head on to complete this long stretch round to Bollington.
This peaceful tranquility does not last forever, and although we spend over an hour along this quiet span between High Lane and Bollington, we do slowly start to edge towards this town - which was a cotton-spinning town during the industrial revolution.
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| Evidence of Bollington's past (Clarence Mill) |
On canal walks, towns and cities can be highlights of the entire trail, or they can be areas where you wish you had brought a personal bodyguard - but Bollington offers up something rather special.
And this is because it is here that we encounter one of the more dramatic engineering aspects of the canal, with an embankment that carries that canal above the town below.
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| Running above Bollington |
From our vantage point we can only enjoy the views out across the town, but this impressive structure - which holds the water above the town - was the most troublesome section of the canal construction - and it must be remembered that in those days canals were still being built by hand.
But having enjoyed the views from our elevated position, our path continues - and we head on through Bollington, before beginning the final run into Macclesfield - taking on a slightly less exciting stretch of the canal on this final section of walking.
But upon reaching Macclesfield, this is where I turn off - heading down to get some food to the north of Hurdsfield - and then picking up the Middlewood Way to head into the centre of Macclesfield for my overnight stay.
Here I opted for the very cheap Travelodge near the station, and whilst the rooms are certainly on the small side, it offered very good value for the night.
Total Distance: 12.8 miles (10.3 miles on the Macclesfield Canal, 0.5 miles on the Peak Forest Canal)
Total Ascent: 591 feet (351 feet on the Macclesfield Canal, 95 feet on the Peak Forest Canal)
Enjoyment Rating : ⭐⭐⭐⭐ ★ / 5
Disclaimer: This writeup provides a narrative of what to expect rather than a route guide to follow. The route is covered by the 109 and 118 OS Landranger maps (links redirect to Amazon). The route never deviates from the canal so is very easy to follow.
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