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Outwood Trail

4.35 miles (7 km)

Ordnance Survey Map Open Streetmap This cycling and walking trail runs along a disused railway line from Radcliffe to Prestwich. The route starts in Outwood Country Park in Radcliffe, next to the River Irwell. You then follow the surfaced path through Giant's Seat Wood and Hurst Wood passing Clifton Country Park on the way. You can continue along the traffic free path on National Cycle Route 6 through Prestwich Forest Park to Pendlebury. It's an easy, traffic free ride through pleasant woodland and parkland.
To extend your outing you could visit Clifton Country Park. The park contains a pretty lake, woodland, meadows and an arboretum.
Our circular walk around Bury visits Elton Reservoir and the Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal near Radcliffe.
The Irwell Sculpture Trail also runs past the park so this is another good option.

Postcode

M26 1LP - Please note: Postcode may be approximate for some rural locations

Outwood Trail OS Map Ordnance survey map - Mobile GPS OS Map with Location tracking

Outwood Trail Open Street Map Open Streetmap - Mobile GPS Map with Location tracking

Photos

Outwood Trail - geograph.org.uk - 115250

A section of the Outwood Trail, in the Irwell Valley, by the M60 Motorway at Clifton.

Standing stones, Outwood

Standing stones next to the trail

Outwood Trail, Ringley Road Station (geograph 6475688)

Ringley Road Station. Some History:
Ringley Road station opened on 31st May 1847. It was on the East Lancashire Railway’s Clifton Junction to Accrington line, located in a deep cutting on the north side of Ringley Road. The line here was double-track so the station was provided with two platforms. Although there was little residential development nearby, Outwood Colliery was just to the east of the line and had a rail connection, north of the station. In 1931 Outwood Colliery, which in its heyday had employed 2000 men, closed following a fire which destroyed its winding gear. The station survived until 1953 when it was closed although trains continued to pass through the station site until December 1966 when the line was closed. The track was lifted shortly afterwards. The station’s northbound platform survived and can be seen in this photograph. The route of the line through to Radcliffe has been converted into a footpath and cycleway known as the Outwood Trail.

The Outwood Trail - geograph.org.uk - 2415644

A spring view of the trail.

Fat Hurst Wood, The Outwood Trail - geograph.org.uk - 2415635

Fat Hurst Wood

Irwell Valley Way (Outwood Trail), Waterdale - geograph.org.uk - 2415548

Irwell Valley Way (Outwood Trail), Waterdale

Video

GPS Files

GPX File

Outwood Trail.gpx (On Desktop:Right Click>Save As. On Ipad/Iphone:Click and hold>Download Linked File)

Memory Map Route

Outwood Trail.mmo (On Desktop:Right Click>Save As. On Ipad/Iphone:Click and hold >Download Linked File)