Strenuous Leader : Martin Distance : 9 miles
Leaving town we climb on road, cobbled road and path towards Harcles Hill. A level track with views of the valley below takes us North. We then climb again on un-even surface to Holcombe Moor passing the Pilgrims Cross, this stretch borders Ministry of Defence danger area. A grassy boggy section has to be negotiated before a decent along an un-even track. The last of the climbs takes us up to Peel Tower, erected in memory of Prime Minister and founder of the Police force Robert Peel in 1852.
Then its down hill along track and un-even cobbled road crossing the main road. A series of road and public footpaths takes us down through woodland to the River Irwell. United Utilities major improvement works are worth a brief stop viewing their information boards. We cross the river passing Nuttall Park and walk back into Ramsbottom and cross the railway line. This challenging walk is 9 miles long and 1500 feet of climbing.
Leisurely Leader: Laura Distance : 7 miles
We head off on our steady, forty-minute ascent to Peel Monument via Carr, Tanners and Holcombe and Tagg Wood. We join the bridleway up to the monument and pause to admire the view. This particular area is popular with the local dog walking fraternity and mountain bikers who, who transverse the many tracks, nearby. We proceed north, along quieter farm tracks, with little additional gradient via Hardes Hill and White Hill on Holcombe Moor.
We began a steep descent over farm pastures to Lumb, go under the viaduct and subway and pick up tracks alongside the heritage railway and the banks of the River Irwell. We carry on through Chatterton village and pick up the Irwell Sculpture Trial over further pastures back to Ramsbottom.
It is muddy in parts along the River Irwell, so gaiters and walking poles would be useful, if you have them. Thankfully there are no cattle encountered but expect to walk through grazing sheep. Total ascent 291 metres/964 feet.
Easy Leader: Evelyn Distance: 4.5 miles
We head out of town into, and through, Nuttall Park. We then head south on roads, footpaths and tracks following the river and signs for Brooksbottom. Turning west we head towards Holcombe Brook, there is some uphill through the woods but the paths are mostly cobbled and was good going underfoot.
After crossing the busy B6214 as the traffic lights, with view of Peel Tower to the left, we take a cobbled bridleway towards Holcombe. This section, although gradual, is fairly steep – however we can take it as slowly as needed. Then back into Ramsbottom for refreshments of your choice or an amble round the shops.
NOTES ON THE AREA
Ramsbottom is a small town in the Irwell Valley, north of Bury and south of the area known as Rossendale. Colloquially it was often known as “Tupp’s Arse” (tupp being a dialect word for a male sheep). The age of the town is not known but there is evidence of settlements in the area dating from about 4000 BC. Ancient burial sites and artefacts have been discovered on the hills surrounding the valley in which Ramsbottom nestles. The name is also thought to be a derivation of wild garlic valley. The valley would have been woodland in those times and eventually during the 11th century it became a Royal Forest. During the 16th century, deforestation of the valleys was commonplace to meet the growing need for timber. The Industrial Revolution brought with it factories for the spinning and weaving of wool and later cotton. The processes of bleaching, dyeing, printing and engraving also played a part in the regional growth.
Standing 112 ft high on the edge of Holcombe Moor, the Peel Tower is the most identifiable landmark of the West Pennines and from almost any part of the northern half of Greater Manchester it can be seen standing guard on a steep-sided spur overlooking the middle reaches of the Irwell Valley. There are spectacular views from the Tower. The Tower was opened in 1852 and celebrates the Repeal of the Corn Laws by the then prime minister Robert Peel, who was born in nearby Bury to the son of a textile manufacturer. This most famous son also founded the police force. The tower was built from local millstone grit, hence the quarried holes surrounding it, and has now apparently reopened to the public on some days.
The Peel Tower is a relative newcomer to Holcombe Moor, which takes its name from the old village which nestles beneath its stark shoulder. The moor is a southern spur of the Rossendale Uplands and in ancient times pilgrims travelling to and from Whalley Abbey in Lancashire crossed the moor and prayed and rested by a cross that is known to have existed here at least as early as 1176. The site of the cross is recorded by the present day square stone which stands on the flat plateau and was erected in 1902 by the Lord of the manor. The base of the original cross was removed in 1901 by some Edwardian vandals – even in those days you couldn’t keep anything unless it was nailed down!
Pilgrims were replaced by textile merchants, and Moor Road, running north-south along the edge of the moor was once an important highway between Bury, Haslingden and Clitheroe. Such routes kept high to avoid boggy valleys and also, in this case, to avoid the restricted access to the Forest of Rossendale which extended down to Holcombe. Not far from this highway is the resting place of Ellen Strange, a local girl and “hapless maid” who was murdered on the moor and is remembered by a stone pillar and cross.
The National Trust has had an interest in this area since 1943 when it acquired the Stubbins Estate It acquired Holcombe Moor in 1994 from the Ministry of Defence and this was definitely good news for ramblers. But military ranges are still to be found around Bull Hill and the Red Brook Valley, and a good view can be had of the army assault course which was once the star of ITV’s “The Krypton Factor”.
For the tourist there is Egg Rolling on Good Friday, a Game Fare on New Year’s Day, a Rhythem and Blues Festival and a Black Pudding Throwing World Competition. After all it is only just over 3 miles from Bury, the home of black pudding.