9 Miles
We start at the bridge over the canal on the A616 Chapel Hill. This canal was first proposed in 1793 and was to follow the River Colne starting at the Huddersfield Broad Canal linking it to the Aston Canal near Aston-Under-Lyme. There were lots of challenges including Standedge and the height above sea level that meant maintaining water levels would be difficult. However, the amount of woollen, worsted and cotton mills along its route promised ample trade.
The canal was authorised by the Huddersfield to Ashton-under-Lyne Canal Act 1794. Construction began that same year with the marking out of the route. The practice was to set up a line of pegs or stakes about 50 yards (46 m) apart so that their tops would indicate the intended water level. It would then be possible to construct the appropriate embankments and cuttings. The canal operated for approximately 140 years. Although it was moderately successful for a while, its width (limited to boats less than 7 ft (2.1 m) wide), the large number of locks and the long Standedge Tunnel made it much less profitable than its main rival the Rochdale Canal which had a similar number of locks but was twice as wide with no long tunnel.
So, start to follow the towpath and on your right you will see a large building which is Kingfisher House and part of the University of Huddersfield. Keep following the tow path under the Manchester Road. The last time I walked this route, the part of the tow path was shut so a diversion along Longroyd Road, Paddock Foot and Berkhouse Lane was required to rejoin the towpath. Ahead you should see the fantastic Pennistone Viaduct which takes the trains from Huddersfield to Sheffield. It is a Grade II listed building and was designed by Sir John Hawkshaw. It consists of 29 arches and was was formally opened on 1 July 1850. It has a staggered history and worth reading about.
At Birkstone Bridge, opposite you on the other side of the canal was Birkhouse Boiler Works. The works was founded by the company William Arnold & Son Ltd. who were based at the site for over a century. They manufactured steam boilers of various kinds, chiefly of the Lancashire, Cornish and Tubular types. In 1888, William Arnold took his son into partnership, and the name of the firm was altered to William Arnold & Son, as it is to-day, the son, John E. Arnold, being the present proprietor. Next along was the Birkhouse Dye works which probably supplied the dye for the four mills, Millgate, Granville, Paddock and Upper Mill.
Millgate Mill made wool and angola yarn, Granville Mill engine packing, Paddock and Upper Mill woollen cloth. The houses on your left were built for the mill workers. Continuing along the tow path and at Mark Bottom’s Mill Bridge there was another mill, Mark Bottom’s Mill which is another woollen mill and as you continue you should see a large brick building on the right. This is Brittania Mills which was originally a woolen mill in 1851 but change to weaving cotton in 1890.
Carry on walking until you reach Armitage Bridge and here there was a large collection of woollen mils of which some buildings still exist such as, Union Mills, Stonefield Mills and Old Mills. Associated here was Milnsbridge Iron Works no doubt there to supply and maintain the numerous mills in the vicinity. The large building on your left which is now Bankwell Business Park was another Union Mill. You can see the importance of this place because a little further along the tow path is the Huddersfield Narrow Canal Basin, where boats would moor up to collect goods for delivery. No wonder this place is called Milnsbridge.
Continue to Cuckoo Bridge and along the tow path. On your right, there was the Colne Vale Mill and two Chemical Works. Basically, every building you see until we get to open countryside would have been a mill of some sort. Eventually you will reach a small bridge at Low Westwood Lane. Here we turn left following the road past what is known locally as the Titanic Mills seemly as a reflection of its size. Its official name was Lowestwood but the nickname may reflect the year it was built (1911) or simply the enormous size of the mill. Curiously, during the mill’s construction, 40 iron pillars on the ground floor were damaged by ice in February 1912 when water collected inside them and then froze — in the same way that the ship was fatally damaged by ice, seemingly so was the mill.
Anyway, follow this road and as you walk past the mill the road bends to the right but ahead there is a small path, follow this. Cross over the Manchester Road and up Hoyle Ing where it changes into Royd House Lane and keep climbing, its a steep road to our first pub.
You can download the pubs here – https://www.bar-trek.com/crawl/717
1. The Sair Inn
139 Lane Top, Linthwaite, Huddersfield HD7 5SG
This pub overlooks the Colne Valley and is a multi-roomed stone-built pub of great character. Four rooms, each with a real fire, are served from a central bar. Up to five different beers are available. The three Linfit beers are now brewed at nearby South Crosland. After you have had a couple of beers as you certainly have earnt it walking up that hill.
Now, you need to backtrack to the canal, so head downhill, across the Manchester Road and past the Titanic Mill. At the small bridge, turn left and back along the tow path. Pass by the direclick Low Westward Upper Mill until we reach the outskirts of Slaithwaite and our next pub.
2. The Commercial
1 Carr Ln, Slaithwaite, Huddersfield HD7 5AN
This is popular a freehouse and it enjoys deserved success. Eight handpumps serve a variety of beer styles – the keenly priced house beers are supplied by Empire Brewery and include a permanent mild. A ninth pump serves a real cider. The open-plan interior retains the feel of separate drinking areas, one featuring a real fire. As you are resting your legs for a while, I’ll explain more about Slaithwaite.
Slaithwaite is old Norse for Timber Fell thwaite (Clearing). In the early 19th century, a local spring was discovered to contain sulphurous properties and minerals, similar to those found in Harrogate. Sometime after 1820 a bathing facility was built, along with a gardens and pleasure ground, with some visitor cottages. A free school was founded in 1721 and rebuilt twice: first in 1744, and again in 1842. In 1848, the majority of the town was involved in woollen manufacture, in the spinning of cotton and silk, and in silk-weaving. There is another pub called the ‘Silent Woman’ which came to the attention of the world media on 23 September 2007, when Christopher Hawkins walked into the pub and ordered a pint of beer a few minutes after he had murdered his son and attacked his daughter with a knife.
When you decide it’s time to leave this fantastic pub and town, head back to the canal and continue along it until West Slaithwaite Road. At the bridge, turn left, across the River Colne then turn right into School Lane and our next pub.
3. Zapato Brewing
Unit 1, Holme Mills, W Slaithwaite Rd, Marsden, Huddersfield HD7 6LS
Brewery tap for Zapato brewery with two changing cask beers available and lots of bottles, cans and keg beer. They started in 2017 but before then they were brewing in Leeds working with the likes of Northern Monk in Marshalls Mill, Holbeck. Right next door is an excellent coffee roasters, so if they are open it is worth grabbing a cup before you go. Passing the coffee roasters will take you back to the tow path. Now turning left, continue the walk.
Shortly, you will walk between two reservoirs, Sparth and Cellars Clough. Sparth Reservoir was built to maintain consistent water levels in the canal and Cellars Clough was a mill pond for the Cellars Clough woollen mill was opened in 1888. Keep your eye out for the Blue Peter Lock along this section. Blue Peter presenter Barney Harwood rolled up his sleeves and got stuck into making a new lock gate and then fitting it during two full-days of filming. We keep walking until we reach Marsden and from here it is a short walk along the tow path to Standedge Tunnel.
Standedge Tunnel is an engineering marvel and construction began in 1794 and was completed in 1811. The tunnel was the longest, deepest, and highest canal tunnel in Britain at the time. It was 5,445 yards long, 636 feet underground at its deepest point, and 643 feet above sea level. The last commercial boat passed through in 1921, and the tunnel was officially closed to boats in 1943. In 2001, it was reopened to boat traffic and you can take a ride through the tunnel at the visitors center.
In order to save money the tunnel was only wide enough for one direction traffic and this caused delays due to the volume of boats that wanted to get through. The development of the railway was its downfall and in 1846 work began on a train tunnel. Two years later in 1948, this soon became a bottleneck and another parallel tunnel was constructed. In 1871, a second train tunnel was opened. Even two tunnels could not provide sufficient capacity to satisfy demand and in 1890, the L&NWR embarked on providing four tracks on most of the line which required constructing a new twin-track tunnel.
On 1 August 1894, the new tunnel was passed for use by inspector Major Yorke. The opening of the double-track tunnel provided additional capacity for the L&NWR, allowing them to temporarily close the single bores for maintenance. As of 2018, excluding the London Underground, the double-track bore is the fifth-longest UK rail tunnel, after the High Speed 1 tunnels for the Thames Estuary and English Channel, the Severn Tunnel on the Great Western Main Line, and the Totley Tunnel on the Sheffield to Manchester route.
Only the 1894 rail tunnel is in use but all three rail tunnels are maintained. In 1966, the 1848 single-track rail tunnel was closed followed by the 1871 single-track tunnel in 1970. The 1848 tunnel provides an emergency escape route for the other tunnels and has been made accessible to road vehicles such as fire engines and ambulances. Both the 1848 and 1871 tunnel are used by maintenance personnel for access. After a rest at the Visitors Center, follow the tow path back to Marsden. But rather than backtracking, take the small path on your right up through the woods. This will take you to High Lee and Station Road.
Follow Station Road turning right into Peel Street and our final pub.
4. The Riverhead Brewery Tap
2 Peel St, Marsden, Huddersfield HD7 6BR
This is a modern brewpub owned by the Ossett Brewery. The microbrewery is visible from the main bar, beer doesn’t get more locale than this. A refurbishment in February 2024 has seen the pub decorated throughout and extended into adjacent buildings to create more seating areas including the new Bank Room, complete with wood burning stove. Nine beers are served: four Riverhead beers, three from Ossett as well as guests. A dark beer is usually available.
