Manshead & beyond

Cross the A58 from the lay-by and the route starts at a ladder stile on the north side of the A58, level with the head of Baitings Reservoir. Cross over the ladder stile, through a gap in the wall, down to the footbridge over the stream and up the banking beyond. Turn left at the top and follow the path with the fence and buildings at Manshead on your right. Shortly after the buildings, the path bears left, descending to cross a footbridge over the stream. Pass through the gap in a wall, walk 75 yards up the rough pasture with a ruined wall on the right to a white-capped marker post. Turn right through the wall, over a stile in the fence and continue with the stream to your right. Approaching the moor boundary wall the path drops crossing the stream for the last time. Continue up the slope, through a gap in the wall, over a stile and onto the moor. Follow a well-defined path uphill to Manshead End at point 2.

The path then runs on the west side of the ridge to Great Manshead Hill, where it descends to meet a track parallel to a wall. Turn right following this track, over a stile at the side of a gate, to a second stile and gate by a track junction close to Slate Delphs Hill at point 3. Cross the stile, turn immediately left crossing a third stile in 20 metres and continue along a lane as it descends. Bear left at a fork and continue down to the public road. Cross the road over a stile and follow the left-hand edge of the field. Just before the bottom of this field bear left over a stile and follow the side of an old walled lane, past two houses to the B6138 at point 4.

Turn right and walk down the right-hand side of the road to the houses on the left.  A signpost on the right-hand side of the road points to a path running in front of the gable end of the first house.  Walk down a flight of stone steps, turn left and then immediately right down the hillside. Go through a pair of stone gate posts and turn immediately left down a flight of stone steps to a bridge over the river. Cross the bridge, go straight up the bank through a wicket gate and up the hillside with the wall on your right. Climb for about 250 metres passing a ruined building on the left to where the path meets a wider track. Farm buildings (Higher House) can be seen to the right beyond a metal gate, turn left along the track ascending the hill to a stile at the top. Cross the stile through a gap in the wall and follow the path to the moor to a sign post 15 yards away at point 5.

Turn right onto a path alongside a drainage ditch to a wall and Hove Yard Wood on the right.  At the end of this section point 6, there is one of the most striking views in Calderdale, including the lower part of Withen’s Clough and the hills beyond mid-Cragg Vale. Now turn left and follow the catchwater path along Turley Holes Edge to the dam at Withens Clough Reservoir at point 7.

Cross the dam and walk through a gate at the far end.  Turn left along the broad, hard track passing a house on the right. Continue on the track as it bears left following the waterside (ignore the first sign posted footpath on the right).  After about 600 metres, turn right at the Calderdale Way signpost point 8. The path leads up a gentle slope to the corner of a wall on the left, and just beyond, turn left over a wooden stile through the wall, again marked ‘Calderdale Way’. This stone flagged path continues along the edge of several old fields, before crossing the wall through a gap and continuing parallel to the wall on your left. Keep going straight ahead until you reach a wall with a gate across a gap. Turn right uphill along a wider track to another gate (Withens Gate).  Cross the path in the wall corner at point 9.

Go through the gate onto Langfield Common to a path marked by stone ‘stoops’. In about 300 metres a sign post indicates where the Calderdale Way crosses the Pennine Way, with another superb view down into the Calder Valley point 10. Turn left onto the Pennine Way up Bald Scout Hill to the higher part of the moor. Follow the Pennine Way south to meet a concrete-lined catchwater at point 11. Turn left (sign posted Reservoir Circuit to White Holme) and for the next 2 1/2 miles follow the contouring catchwater system. The middle section point 12 is piped and for a short distance only marked by a series of cisterns; however, the path is obvious.

Arriving at White Holme Reservoir turn left following the path along the embankment, keeping the reservoir on your right, to the most southern corner of the reservoir at point 13. Turn left along a track until you reach the B6138 road. Turn right, walking along the right-hand side of the road passing Blackstone Edge Reservoir to the A58 junction at point 14. Turn left and go along the A58 for 200 metres, then turn right (sign posted Green Withens and Baitings) on to the moor with Rishworth Drain on your right. Where the track ramps down into the catchwater, take a narrower path on the left (approximately 10 metres from the edge of the catchwater) and parallel to it at point 15. After a third of a mile there is another ramp out of the catchwater with a bridge and a hard surfaced area close by. At the sign post turn left downhill onto the Roman Road at point 16.

From here, the route ahead is reasonably well defined, but can be a little wet in places.  After half a mile cross the footbridge over the River Ryburn and climb steeply to the A58. Turn right and walk down the right-hand side of the road back to the lay-by car park.

OS Map: Explorer OL21

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