Mucky Mountains and Stinking Brook don't sound very promising for a pleasant country walk, but things have changed. The transformation began in the 1960s when the Sankey Canal was abandoned. Soon flowers sprang up beside the water and covered the old spoil tips and now the valley is an area of natural beauty. Painted lady and peacock butterflies danced before us as we walked along the towpath, while stately swans glided slowly by and, to everyone's amazement, a 6lb salmon has been caught in the Sankey Brook.
LOCATION: Newton-le-Willows
START: Bradley Lock car park. Sankey Valley Park signed from Wargrave, half mile north of Vulcan Village
Grid ref: SJ575944 Postcode: WA128QS
DISTANCE: 4 miles
GRADE: Easy
TIME: 2 hours
MAP: Explorer - Bolton, Wigan & Warrington or
REFRESHMENTS: Fiddle i'th Bag
EN ROUTE: Newton Brook
This walk was originally published by
The Manchester Evening News