The Walk

This walk starts at Park Road in Warburton. It’s a remote spot with no parking nearby but there are usually places to park along the main road.

Be sure to look out for the pathway on your right before you reach the housing estate in Partington – as it’s a bit of a maze and you’ll easily get lost!

A walk from Warburton to Partington

Alongside the Manchester Ship Canal

Here’s a little-known walk via the Bollin Valley Way and a bridleway found at the end of Park Road in Warburton. This will take you through farmland, underneath the Warburton Toll bridge and right by the side of the Manchester Ship Canal.

It’s probably around 4 miles (or a little more) this walk, so you may not want to do it all in one go – or plan on catching the bus back to Lymm from Partington.

Parts of the walk may be a bit overgrown in the summer, so best not to wear shorts!

Warburton Bridge

Not long after you pass a United Utilities pumping station, you’ll see a well-trodden path to the left. If you fancy a closer look at the Warburton Bridge, take this short diversion – and you’ll be directly under the bridge.

The Warburton Bridge is a high-level cantilever bridge and one of the few remaining pre-motorway toll bridges in the UK and the only one in Greater Manchester.

After a quick look, retrace your steps and continue along a short distance and you’ll come to the Manchester Ship Canal.

The Secret Beach

Actually, first you’ll come to a body of water which feeds into the canal and a “secret” beach, known locally as “Blackie Beach” – so named due to the engine oil that collected here from passing ships. This is the remains of an original section of the River Mersey before it got diverted.

As you continue along, the pathway becomes less overgrown and even paved in places.

You’ll know you have arrived at Partington as you’ll emerge from a pleasant wooded area to seeing houses in the distance. It’s at this point you want to look out for a footpath to the right, before you reach Lock Lane – take this and you’ll eventually come to a playing field.

It’s easy to go wrong here…so probably best you have google maps on your phone to help you identify the correct footpath. If you miss this, you’ll still arrive in Partington, but you’ll end up in a bit of a maze of residential roads and it will take you ages to find your way back to the main road!

Walk through the playing field to the other side and you’ll be on Oak Road – there’s a small parade of shops here.

You can walk back towards Lymm from this point – with the shops on your left, keep walking straight back up to the main road and then take a right.

This is quite a moderately challenging walk, but well worth doing!