Liverpool & Leeds Canal

OVERVIEW

The Liverpool & Leeds Canal runs for 126 miles spanning the difficult to navigate expanse between the Irish Sea and Leeds. 

It is not the only trans-Pennine canal, with the Huddersfield Narrow Canal and the Rochdale Canal also taking on this difficult terrain - but it is the one that takes the gentles routes - with a longer navigation, but fewer locks along the way.

This was a very successful canal, and it was designed to accommodate 'short boats', which can each carry 45 tons of goods - twice that of a standard narrowboat.

The canal mostly moved coal, but would carry a lot more besides - and remained operational as a key transport route until the 1950s, with large loads continuing until the early 1980s - delivering it's last barge of coal to Wigan Power Station in 1972.

This was despite the competition provided by the nearby railway - which the canal was unusually able to compete with. 

These days the canal is mostly used for pleasure boating, cycling and walking, and it is will maintained by the Canal Trust who do great work along these canals to make them enjoyable places to be.

As a walking trail, there are few canals that can compete - and I have so far enjoyed every bit of walking I have done along this canal.

PRACTICALITIES

Much of the canal runs parallel to railway lines and so there is both easy public transport and plenty of accommodation along the route.

From west to east, the canal comes to an end near Liverpool Lime Street station - and runs close to numerous train stations until Maghull on the outskirts of Liverpool.

From here the canal heads out into open countryside, but picks up a train line at Burscough and then these two run together until Wigan (with numerous stations along the way). 

After Wigan the canal heads north, but passes by another train station at Adlington, and then again at Chorley, before having a section away from train lines until Blackburn, from which the train and canal largely run together until Colne.

Here the canal runs parallel to the now disused (but likely to reopen) Colne-Skipton trail line - and the next train station along the canal is found at Gargrave. From here the train and canal run together all the way into Leeds, with numerous stops on the train line along the way.

STAGES

Liverpool to Aintree 

Yet to be walked...

Aintree to Appley Bridge

Yet to be walked...

Appley Bridge to Chorley

Yet to be walked...

Chorley to Blackburn

Yet to be walked...

Blackburn to Burnley

Planned to walk in 2026...

Bunrley to Gargrave

Planned to walk in 2026...

Gargrave to Keighley (★★★★☆)

From Gargrave the canal meanders round to Skipton, which is a popular market town with a Norman-era Castle. From here the canal heads down past Low Bradley to the pretty village of Kildwick.

From here the canal passes through the town of Silsden, and then on down into Riddlesden - and from here I cut down into Keighley to stay the night.

Doing the same walk again, I would have walked on to Crossflats (next little village on the canal) and stayed there.

The walking totaled 16.5 miles (of which 15.1 miles was on the canal) with less than five hundred feet of ascent in total.

Keighley to Leeds (★★★★☆)

From Keighley I joined back up with the canal, and then headed through Crossflats (an alternate place to stay over) to pass Bingley Five Rises (the steepest lock flight in the UK) and then Bingley Three Rises to Bingley.

Form Bingley the canal heads through the Victorian model town of Saltaire (a UNESCO World Heritage Site), before passing between Baildon and Shipley. From here it is back into countryside, before passing through Apperley Bridge.

The countryside then resumes heading past Horsforth and on into the centre of Leeds.

This walk totaled 19.5 miles of walking (18.7 miles on the canal) with around five hundred thousand feet of ascent.