Sunday, 25 January 2026

Pennine Way/Kirklees Way: Wessenden Head to Marsden

 4.5 miles, 1.5 hours (downhill to Marsden) 4.5 miles, 2 hours (uphill to Wessenden Head)



For those who have reached the high-altitude junction of the A635 and Wessenden Head Road, the return to civilisation via the Kirklees Way offers a more nuanced, intimate encounter with the South Pennines than the high-octane Pennine Way. This stretch, roughly five miles of steady descent, swaps the brutal gritstone plateaux for a gentle valley masterclass. It is a journey through a "staircase" of water, where the industrial heritage of the Colne Valley meets the wild, unkempt beauty of the Marsden Moor Estate.


The walk begins on the eastern side of the valley, initially sharing the wide, stony track of the Wessenden Valley road. The terrain here is delightfully "standard class"—a firm, manageable surface that allows you to lift your eyes from your boots and soak in the views. As you pass Wessenden Head Reservoir, the first of four, look out for the "Framing the Landscape" installation. This giant metal picture frame, designed by local artist Ashley Jackson, perfectly captures the brooding, cinematic sweep of the valley, ensuring even the most amateur photographer leaves with a masterpiece.

As you descend further, the path hugs the shoreline of Wessenden Reservoir. Keep a sharp eye on the cloughs—the narrow, steep-sided ravines—that feed into the valley; Blakeley Clough features a charming waterfall that provides a refreshing soundtrack to your trek. The terrain remains largely hospitable, though the Kirklees Way occasionally tests your resolve with uneven, muddy patches where the moorland tries to reclaim the path. The transition from the high, bleak peat to the encroaching bracken and hardy grasses signals your gradual return to the shelter of the lower valley.

The visual crescendo of the walk arrives at Butterley Reservoir. Here, you’ll encounter the Butterley Spillway, a spectacular piece of Victorian engineering. This Grade II-listed masonry overflow, with its elegant curves designed to handle the ferocious Pennine run-off, is the only one of its kind in the country. It serves as a stark reminder that this "wild" landscape was meticulously tamed to quench the thirst of the textile mills that once hummed in the valley below.


The final leg into Marsden is a gentle transition from moor to mill town. After descending the 210 stone steps beside the Butterley dam, the path meanders past the old cricket ground and under the railway bridge, depositing you directly into the heart of the village. Your journey concludes at Marsden railway station, a Victorian gem perched above the Huddersfield Narrow Canal. After five miles of Pennine air, the sight of the station—and perhaps the promise of a pint at the Riverhead Brewery Tap nearby—is the perfect "arrival gate" for any weary traveller.


As a rule of thumb, and especially because of the restricted bus service to Wessenden Head, we recommend parking where you intend to end the walk and then catching the bus to the start. This allows you to take your time on the walk, without having to worry about possibly missing the last bus.

If you're travelling without a car, then start the walk from Wessenden Head, so that you can take your time getting to Marsden, safe in the knowledge that trains and buses from there run late into the evening.



If you're just getting the bus between the start and end points, or if you're travelling in from elsewhere in Greater Manchester, then you'll be connecting with the 352/357 Wessenden Head services at Greenfield Railway Station. From there the Bee Network 184 bus runs over the hills to Marsden.



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Monday, 19 January 2026

Pennine Way: Torside for Hadfield to Wessenden Head

10.5 miles, 4.5 hours. 


Having survived the inaugural trek from Edale, the second stage of the Pennine Way offers a dramatic transition from the Peak District’s heart to the wilder fringes of West Yorkshire. Stretching roughly 11 miles from Hadfield Station, via the Torside reservoir complex to the windswept A635 at Wessenden Head, this leg is a masterclass in moorland restoration and solitude. While the previous day’s climb of Kinder Scout felt like a bustling gateway, today is about the raw, high-altitude grit that gives the "Backbone of England" its formidable reputation.


The journey begins at Hadfield railway station with a flat easy stroll along the Trans-Pennine Trail to Torside, where you meet the Pennine Way. Continue North with a steep, sharp intake of breath as you ascend from the valley floor toward Laddow Rocks. This gritstone edge provides one of the most spectacular balcony views in the North; on a clear day, the silver ribbons of the Longdendale reservoirs glint far below, framed by the dark, brooding mass of Bleaklow. The path here is rugged but exhilarating, hugging the cliff edge as it winds northwards. It is a terrain of weathered stone and resilient heather, where the only terminal announcements you'll hear are the piercing calls of the golden plover or the occasional bleat of a stray sheep.

Next comes the legendary Black Hill, once described by the great Alfred Wainwright as a "desolate and hopeless quagmire." Historically, this summit was a place where a walker’s dignity—and occasionally their footwear—went to die in deep, boot-sucking peat bogs. Today, however, the experience is significantly more "business class" thanks to a mile of reclaimed stone flagstones. These slabs, airlifted by helicopter from demolished Lancashire mills, allow you to glide over the morass toward the summit trig point, known as Soldier's Lump. The name pays homage to the 18th-century Royal Engineers who used the peak for the original Ordnance Survey, and reaching it marks the highest point in West Yorkshire at 582m.

Descending from the summit, the landscape begins to soften as you enter the Wessenden Valley. The transition from the high, black peat to the lush, green cloughs is a welcome sight for any traveller. You’ll navigate a series of "cloughs"—deep, narrow ravines—including Dean Clough, which can be a lively water feature after a typical Pennine downpour. As the path levels out, the skyline is dominated by the towering Holme Moss and Emley Moor masts, those giant needles of the north that serve as useful, if somewhat industrial, navigational beacons.

The final stretch leads you toward the Wessenden Head road, skirting the edges of the high moor where the Wessenden reservoirs begin to appear like a staircase of blue. This is a land of wide horizons and big skies, providing a sense of space that’s hard to find in the crowded Southeast. As you reach the A635, you might be lucky enough to find the local snack van—the moorland equivalent of an airport lounge—offering a hot brew to celebrate your arrival at the threshold of Marsden Moor.




Due to the restricted bus service at Wessenden Head, we recommend doing this walk as follows:

  • Park car at Wessenden Head, then on Saturdays get the 352 bus at 1005 to Chew Valley Road/Wellington Road (opposite Tesco Greenfield), then the 356 bus at 1045 to Stalybridge Station, then the 237 bus at 1135 to Hadfield Station, arriving at 1203. 
  • On Tuesdays, park at Wessenden Head and take the 357 bus at 1005 to Crickets Lane in Ashton, then the 237 bus at 1043 to Hadfield Station, arriving at 1117. From there, ramble back to your car at Wessenden Head. 
  • Or, if not using a car: Get the first bus up to Wessenden Head and ramble south to Hadfield, from where buses and trains run late into the evening. The 1000 train from Piccadilly will get to Greenfield in time to meet the bus, but remember the bus only runs on Tuesdays and Saturdays.





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Saturday, 17 January 2026

Pennine Way: Edale to Torside for Hadfield

18.5 miles, 7.5 hours. 

This section can be split in two at Snake Pass Summit, which just about has a mobile signal, so you can call for a taxi to Glossop, which has trains to Manchester. 


For the intrepid traveller looking to swap the terminal lounge for the open moor, there is no more iconic departure gate than the village of Edale. Nestled in the Vale of Edale and easily reached via a scenic rail link from Sheffield or Manchester, this is where the Pennine Way—Britain’s first National Trail—begins its 268-mile trek to the Scottish Borders. The first leg to Hadfield via Torside is an 18-mile introduction that proves Northern England can be every bit as dramatic as the Alps, provided you’ve packed a sturdy pair of boots and a decent waterproof.

For the day-tripper or the weary hiker, Edale railway station is a delightful gateway to the Great Outdoors, arguably one of the most scenic arrival points in the North. Situated on the Hope Valley Line, it’s served primarily by Northern, with occasional appearances by East Midlands Railway. On weekdays and Saturdays, services to Manchester Piccadilly are remarkably frequent for a rural outpost, typically departing once an hour. On Sundays, the pace slows down slightly, but you can still rely on a steady flow of trains, ensuring that those who have spent the afternoon conquering Kinder Scout aren't stranded in the heather.


Leaving the comfort of the Old Nag’s Head, the path meanders through lush Derbyshire sheep pastures before the real work begins at Jacob’s Ladder. Named after an 18th-century farmer rather than the biblical vision, this steep stone staircase is the price of admission to the Kinder Scout plateau. At the summit, you are rewarded with the wind-whipped grandeur of the Dark Peak. The terrain here is a mix of gritstone outcrops and the famous "peat groughs"—deep, boggy channels that once swallowed walkers whole but are now largely conquered by a motorway of weathered flagstones.

The highlights come thick and fast as you skirt the western edge of the plateau. Keep a sharp eye out for Kinder Downfall, the Peak District’s tallest waterfall; on a particularly gusty day, the wind has a habit of blowing the water vertically back up the cliff, a natural spectacle that beats any airport fountain. To your left, the Kinder Low trig point marks your proximity to the highest ground in the county, offering panoramic views that, on a clear day, stretch across the Cheshire Plain to the Welsh mountains.

The second half of the day brings a shift in atmosphere as you cross the Snake Pass—a road more famous for winter closures than summer strolls—and head onto the wild expanse of Bleaklow. This is perhaps the most atmospheric stretch of the entire trail, a remote moorland that feels a world away from the 21st century. Navigational caution is required here, though the presence of the B-29 "Overexposed" air crash site, where wreckage still litters the heather, serves as a poignant reminder of the plateau's unforgiving nature in poor visibility.

The final descent into the Longdendale Valley offers a stunning visual payoff, with the deep blue waters of the Torside and Woodhead reservoirs appearing like a mirage against the dark heather. The path drops steadily through Torside Clough, trading the rugged peat for the welcome shelter of woodland. As you reach the shoreline of Torside Reservoir, you’ve completed what many consider the toughest opening day of any British trail. There may be no duty-free shop at the end, but the sense of achievement is a far better souvenir.


For the traveller who finds themselves at the end of the line—literally—Hadfield railway station serves as a vital jumping-off point for the Longdendale Trail and the rugged northern reaches of the Peak District. This modest terminus on the Glossop Line is a bastion of reliability, with Northern operating a robust service that usually sees trains departing for Manchester Piccadilly every 30 minutes during the day. It’s a classic commuter-to-country link where the journey time is a predictable 40 minutes, taking you from the urban sprawl of the city to the crisp air of the Derbyshire hills with remarkably little fuss.


To get between Edale and Hadfield by train, you'll need to change at Manchester Piccadilly. Plan your journey at nationalrail.co.uk



The best train ticket for getting between Hadfield and Edale is the TfGM Wayfarer at £17.40 for an adult. It's valid all day after 0930 weekdays (no restriction on weekends) on all buses, trams and trains in Greater Manchester and beyond, including to both Edale and Hadfield. If you need to travel before 0930 on a weekday, then an Anytime Day Single between the two stations is currently £19.50. Look out for Advance Single fares too, which can get the cost down below the price of a Wayfarer.


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Pennine Way/Kirklees Way: Wessenden Head to Marsden

  4.5 miles, 1.5 hours (downhill to Marsden) 4.5 miles, 2 hours (uphill to Wessenden Head) For those who have reached the high-altitude jun...