START

From the Sankey Valley Heritage Visitor Centre,walk in a northwest direction for 1 mile followingthe old St.Helens Canal and the Black Brook thatflows from Carr Mill Dam. This public footpatheventually becomes a bridleway at a junctionwith a metal bridge over Black Brook, beforegoing under the East Lancashire Road (A580) anda railway bridge on the line between St.Helensand Wigan.

(1.6km) After walking under the railway bridge,bear left up the slope, then left onto GarswoodOld Road and past the bungalow on the left.Continue along the road and tarmac pavement atthe south end of Carr Mill Dam towards theWaterside Inn. This section of the walk providesone of the best views of the Dam looking north.

(1.7km) As you approach the Waterside Inn, turnright onto the paved path, and before the watersedge turn left onto a soiled path that follows theedge of Carr Mill Dam. Follow this path north,eventually passing the Nineteen Arches bridge onyour right.

(2.5km) At the wide vehicle access track, turnright and walk between the north end of the Damon your right and an area of water on the left calledthe “digpits’. Go straight on through the gap nextto the metal gate, past Otter’s Swift Farm.

(3.0km) After a short distance, turn left onto apublic footpath, called Lime Vale Road. Follow thistrack down into a dip and over a stream, passing asewage works on your left. The track continues toBirchley Road where there is a large stonefarmhouse.

(3.6km) Turn right on the pavement and, after ashort distance, carefully cross this busy road andtake the track signposted as a public footpath onthe opposite side of the road. This footpath beginsas a vehicle access track alongside properties beforecrossing a stream in a dip and continuing onthrough fields, passing a group of ponds on theright before eventually joining Rainford Road.

(4.4km) Turn right onto the pavement and walkuphill until you reach a sharp right bend in the road,next to the Eddleston playing fields.

Carr Mill Dam was formed by dammingBlack Brook valley and was used to powerthe industrial mills of the Gerard Estate.It was later enlarged and used as a

headwater for the St.Helens Canal, England’sfirst completely ‘dug-out’ canal of the industrialage, dating from the mid 1700s.

It was not until the early 1960s that the sitebecame the Carr Mill Entertainment Park,attracting thousands of visitors for a fun dayout on and around the water. LancashirePowerboat Racing Club has been based at theDam since 1932 and shares the sporting rightswith the St.Helens Angling Association. Bothhold regular competitions throughout the year.

The Dam is a good place to spot a variety ofinteresting species of birds, including GreatCrested Grebe, Mute Swan, Grey Heron,and Kingfisher.

In the 17th Century, John Eddlestonowned property around Billingecovering 14 acres. His will dated 16thJune 1672 bequethed his house and lands

to charitable purposes for the local communityincluding schools, churches and recreationalplay areas.

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Starting point:

Sankey Valley HeritageVisitor CentreThis leaflet is one of a series describing localwalks recommended and used by theSt.Helens Ranger Service. Others in theseries include Bold Loop, Garswood Loop,Bradlegh Loop and Rainford Loop.

Regrettably, this walk is not suitable forwheelchairs, however the Rangers canrecommend suitable alternatives (seecontact details on the back of this leaflet).

Enjoy your walk!

(4.8km) At this point, takegreat care and cross over theroad and follow Red Barn Road. This isa frequently used access for vehicles, so take care.

(5.3km) Take the first signposted publicfootpath on the right which heads uphill,eventually arriving at the grass verge of theold Billinge Quarry access road.

(5.7km) Turn left and follow the grass verge ofthe road uphill. Just before the road bends to theright, leave the grass verge and take the footpathto the left of the small group of trees and followthe field edge.

Go through the gap between the fence and alarge sandstone block, keeping the trees on yourleft. After a short distance, turn right at the nextT-junction of the paths.

When you arrive at a metal stile and a tarmacfootpath, turn left and follow this route uphill.When the tarmac track ends, continue on takingthe safest route up the steep ascent to theBeacon building at the summit of Billinge Hill.The migrant Painted Lady butterfly may beseen around Billinge Hill during late summer.

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Kingfisher

START/FINISH© Crown copyright and database rights 2012. Ordnance Survey Licence

Number LA100018360. You are not permitted to copy, sub-license,distribute or sell any of this data to third parties in any form.

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Painted Lady butterfly

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(9.4km) Just before the entrance to BlackleyHurst Hall, bear right and head towards thehousing estate. Just before you reach a tree-lined ditch on your right, turn left on to a trackand head south. On reaching the top of a smallrise, you may see St.Helens in the distance andpossibly North Wales on the horizon, weatherpermitting.

(10.0km) When you reach an old cobbled track,turn left, then right past an old colliery spoilheap, known as the ‘Blue Hills’. Follow this widetrack south towards Chadwick Green. When youreach a T-junction, turn left and then bear leftagain down a narrower path, on the left-handside of a hedgerow.

(11.3km) Once at the Goyt woodland at thebottom of the gentle slope, cross the stream viathe footbridge and turn right. Follow this scenicfootpath south through the woodland, passingover the stream and its tributaries by means ofa series of boardwalks. After the last boardwalk,the footpath rises sharply and continues straighton. Do not take the footpath on the right.Follow this route through the ponds andcontinue parallel with the field and its fenceon your left.

Start/FinishThe walk starts and finishes at Sankey Valley Heritage Visitor Centre onBlackbrook Road (A58), WA11 0AB.

Map grid ref: SJ535 966

Route Distance – 14.3km (approx 9 miles)

Estimated time – 5 hours

Going – Moderate to Hard

Further InformationTo find out more about walks in your localarea, please contact St.Helens Ranger Serviceon 01744 677772, orsankeyvalleyrangers@sthelens.gov.uk

www.sthelens.gov.uk/rangers

Contact Centre,Wesley House, Corporation StreetSt.Helens WA10 1HF

Tel: 01744 676789Minicom: 01744 671671Fax: 01744 676895Email: contactcentre@sthelens.gov.uk www.sthelens.gov.uk

Please contact us to request translation ofCouncil information into Braille, audio tapeor a foreign language.

Welcome toBillinge LoopTrail & Map

At the end of the field on the left, the routeveers right then almost immediately left. Followthis wider footpath down the gentle slopethrough the Hollins Hey woodland, keepingparallel with the railway and its metal fenceover to the left.

(12.1km) After a railway bridge on your left,continue to follow the fence along a wide trackthat is Garswood Old Road.

Upon reaching the cottage, the footpath veersto the right to a metal gate next to theBoathouse wall. Go through this gate andcarefully follow the tarmac vehicle access roadalong the south-east corner of Carr Mill Dam.This road eventually reaches the point that youpassed earlier.

(12.7km) From here, retrace your route back tothe start point. Turn left down the publicbridleway, beneath the railway bridge and EastLancashire Road, along the Sankey ValleyCountry Park to the finish at the HeritageVisitor Centre. Total distance walked isapproximately 14.3km or 9 miles.

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Where the tarmac access road finishes, at thefinal sharp bend, turn right off the road and headdown a small slope and along the narrow tarmacand concrete footpath, still with the quarry fenceon the left. This footpath soon opens out into awide vehicle access track. Continue past ‘The OldVicarage’ on your right. When you reach thehouses at the end of Beacon Road, continue alongthe left-hand pavement until you reach MainStreet opposite Saint Aidan’s Parish Church.

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The summit of Billinge Hill at sunset

(6.7km) From the summit, take care and usethe safest route down the hill, keeping parallelwith the old quarry fence and dry stone wall onthe left.

Once at the bottom of the steep slope, turn leftand retrace the tarmac footpath down the sideof the quarry fence, passing through a series ofmetal stiles along the way. Eventually you willreach the old quarry road at a small gas-poweredelectricity generating station where you turn left.

Standing at 587 feet (179m), Billinge Hill,or ‘Billinge Lump’ as it is also known, is thehighest point in Merseyside, and weatherpermitting, provides panoramic views across

southwest Lancashire, North Wales, the DerbyshirePeak District, plus Winter Hill to the northeast.

The Beacon building was built in 1788 asa landmark for ships, but was also used as asummerhouse by Winstanley Hall.

The hill was used to monitor aircraft duringWorld War II, and then by the Royal ObserverCorps based at the former bunker just below thesummit. This bunker post was opened in January1960 and would have been used to monitor thelocation of blasts and the resulting fallout overLancashire in the event of a nuclear war. Thepost closed in October 1968.

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In the southern section of the churchgraveyard, the somewhat macabre “coffinshaped’ grave of George and Kitty Smithcan be seen. This dates back to 1720 and

the “coffin” lid shows a skull with a wingedserpent. It is rumoured that the couple diedhaving been bitten by snakes on Billinge Hill!

i(8.3km) Carefully cross over Main Street and

turn right, then at the traffic lights turn leftdown the pavement of Newton Road. Continuealong, heading in an easterly direction, passingWindsor Road on the opposite side.

(9.0km) Before reaching Lower Billinge LaneFarm, carefully cross over Newton Road and takethe vehicle track, signposted as a public footpath,south towards Blackley Hurst Hall Farm.

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Fields south of Red Barn Roadthedesignstudio@sthelens.gov.uk 1400066M