Ashton Canal - Stockport Branch part 2

This post picks up from Ashton Canal - Stockport Branch part 1 at the point where the canal route passes under the Fallowfield Loop and ends where the canal used to cross Longford Road West, which is a fairly horrible on-road section of NCN route 6.



After the bridge the path passes over the dam which holds back the water in the Gorton Lower Reservoir.



To the left is the reservoir, whilst to the right the dam falls away making this area quite open.



Here you can find some stone artworks made with cut stone.



There are a variety of markings on these stones, and I'll post more of the photographs separately.



Beyond the dam the Debdale Outdoor Centre sits on the line of the canal



and the path is forced into this narrow gap.



The path then emerges into a car park. At this point you have to cross Wall Way, rather than entering Debdale Park. The photo below is taken from the opposite side of the road and the route is by no means obvious.



On the other side of the road you can pick up the path and the route of the canal reappears, passing under the two parts of Hyde Road.



The canal route passes under the Thirlmere Aqueduct in this box structure between the two parts of the road.



Just south of Hyde Road there was a basin on the left.



The path then narrows & some gardens have been extended out across the canal, as Gorton Cemetary appears on the right.



The path surface degrades to a muddy surface as it runs alongside the cemetary, and the covers suggest that there are water pipes of some sort here.



However, before the canal reaches the end of the cemetary the route is blocked by gardens which have been extended. At this point you are forced out onto Broadfield Grove.



To pick up the canal route again you have to go out onto the main Gorton Road, then right down Furnival Street to get into North Reddish Park.

At about this point the canal enters Stockport, and there seems to have been no effort from here on to preserve the route.



Here the route of the canal runs down the west side of the park.



In the southern end it is marked out by this line of trees.



A narrow finger of the park marks out the canal route down to Longford Road West where the last traces of the canal disappear.



To the south of here the route is again obliterated by gardens & housing development. It can be seen in the landscape running along the east side of Houldsworth Golf Course and some traces near Broadstone Mill and the junction with the Beat Bank Branch Canal, but there is not enough to make a viable walking or cycling route.

CityLink - Manchester City to Piccadilly

I've meen meaning to have a look at this route for ages. It was the missing part of The River Medlock route that was closed for the construction of the tram route. It has now been reopened and links the Manchester City football ground to Piccadilly Station.

The route begins in the north west corner of the site. This is the view in the opposite direction,



because the opposite view is very bland with no signposting on the site.



The entrance to the path is through a set of gates which suggests that the route may be closed from time to time. It is quite wide, but is probably packed at the end of a match...



Once on the route there is a clear signpost showing the way.



There are also these signs stuck to lampposts and the like.



The route descends quite rapidly



It has to get down to the level of the tram tracks to get under the railway bridge.



The path levels out once it gets down to the level of the rails. By the look of the tracks in these leaves the path is frequently used by motor vehicles.

At this point the path goes over the River Medlock, and the next bridge takes the route under Cambrian Street.



The viaduct is quite spectacular from the other side.



At this point the land opens out to the left with the river Medlock along the far edge.



This is Holt Lane tram stop. Here you have to cross the tracks,



at which point the route takes a turn for the worse...



The signage doesn't tell you to stay on the pavement, but that is probably the intention



because you have to squeeze through the maze of signposts



and out onto the pavement on Merrill Street.



This is a horrible pavement cycle route which includes give way lines for every side road.



At the junction with Caruthers Street this all comes to an end



with a nasty road crossing



before being dumped onto Pollard Street with a poor road surface with these pointless green squares.



At the end of Pollard Street the route is signed right



straight onto the inner ring road! The route is confirmed by the stickers on the lamp post, but there is nothing to say you can legally cycle on the pavement here.



At the next junction there is nothing to tell you that the route now goes left down Store Street.



Here there is no provision for cycling.



The route just runs out once it gets near Piccadilly Station, or it turns left round here somewhere...



This is a very odd route. It feels like cycling was added as an afterthought to the walking route to cope with football fans traveling by train. The section from Holt Lane to Sports City is fine, but the rest is pretty crap.

Map - bit crap thanks to Google having changed stuff around

Roe Green Loopline 3, M61 to Bolton

This route is largely traffic free and runs for just over two miles, mostly along or alongside what is left of the disused trackbed of the Roe Green Loopline in Bolton. The Roe Green Loopline was opened in 1870 from Roe Green to Bolton, via Walkden Low Level. A key function of the lines was to support the surrounding collieries in conjunction with the Bridgewater canal, the largest of which was at Mosley Common, one of the biggest pits in the UK at its prime.

This post covers the section from the boundary between Salford and Bolton at the crossing of the M61 to Haywood Park in Bolton where the route simply stops. It is a continuation of a previous post Roe Green Loopline 2, Walkden to the M61.

However, after crossing the M61 the route first has to turn east to get back to the route of the Roe Green Loopline along the route of another mineral line to the south of the housing estate in Highfeld. This line linked Brackley Colliery to the west and Ashton's Field Colliery to the east. As you cycle north along Anchor Lane after crossing the motorway the path is on your right, just before the houses start.



Initially path is very narrow, muddy and strewn with rubbish



and there is this dreadful set of barriers to add to the grim nature of the area.



However, within a few yards, the path improves



and after about 300yds turn sharp left, and climb up to rejoin the Roe Green Loopline.

The mineral line went under the Roe Green Loopline at this point and turned gradually south, with a short branch line turning off, just past this point into the centre of Farnworth.



The top of the embankment is intact here and the path well surfaced.



However, the path becomes the pavement on the left of Medow Walk, once a curving siding,



and runs straight into this set of steps where the bridge under Highfield Road has been filled in. You can tell this is supposed to be the cycle route, because of the grove on the left for you to wheel your bike up... The easier answer is to turn left along Meadow Walk and right onto Highfield Road



On Highfield Road this is the left hand entrance to the next part of the path, and the easiest to negotiate.



The path drops down into the cutting again



Before climbing the left side of the cutting at the site of Plodder Lane railway station.



Across Plodder Lane the cutting has been filled in and at this point the markings for NCN55 disappear on the TfGM map.



However, a fairly broad path continues to follow the route of the railway down to Colchester Drive.



Past Colchester Drive it narrows somewhat, but is still navigable on a bike



However, the path starts to twist and turn to the left of the old railway, which by this point is covered in houses.



After several sharp bends the path straightens out again



and drops down with the Royal Bolton hospital to the left and the old railway, now on an embankment to the right. At this barrier the route returns to the TfGM map, which is complete nonsense.



At the end of this section the path crosses Minerva Road and goes down this track to the left of the railway embankment



and past the farm on the left.



The path continues past the farm



and then dips steeply down to Will Hill Brook where the TfGM map stops making the cycle route.



Here the embankment rises steeply on the right



As the path climbs back up to the end of Freshfield Avenue, on the left, it returns to the trackbed and the TfGM map marks this as a cycle route shortly after



Now the path changes character, becoming a wide tarmaced railway path passing under Lever Edge Lane.



The path even has lighting,



but the surface is uneven in places and a bit wet towards Settle Street.



Past Settle Street, the path changes again, and here a school has been built on the trackbed and the location of sidings. Here the path takes the less obvious route to the left of the school



and runs along the left side of the old cutting.



after the school the cutting has been filled in as it reaches Lever Street.



At the entrance to Heywood Park the railway line went underground,



possibly as a cut and cover tunnel under the path, though I've not been able to find any information on it.



At Bridgeman Street the cycle route just stops. There is nothing more marked on the TfGM map and nothing on the road. The path of the railway is marked here by the trees beyond the car park which were in front of the old school, which is in the process of being demolished. At this point the line was joined by the LMSR from the west.



From Shaw Street you can still see the line of trees in the cutting, but beyond Fletcher Street the railway and the site of the station has been obliterated by Sainsburies Supermarket and other retail developments. From here on the road network is dreadful, reflecting the car-dominated retail developments.




View Roe Green Loopline 3, M61 to Bolton in a larger map