| Pennine Bridleway | |
|---|---|
 The Pennine Bridleway signpost near Parsley Hay, where the route on the High Peak Trail is joined by that on the Tissington Trail | |
| Length | 205 mi (330 km) |
| Location | Northern England, United Kingdom |
| Designation | UK National Trail |
| Trailheads | Middleton-by-Wirksworth,Derbyshire Ravenstonedale,Cumbria |
| Use | Hiking,horseback riding,cycling |
| Difficulty | Moderate |
| Season | All year |
| National Trails |
|---|
 Acorn symbol used to guide the route of National Trails |
Cross-border |
ThePennine Bridleway is aNational Trail inNorthern England.
It runs roughly parallel with thePennine Way but provides access for horse riders andcyclists as well aswalkers. The trail is around 205 miles (330 km) long,[1] extending fromDerbyshire toCumbria. It includes the 47-mile (76 km)Mary Towneley Loop and the 10-mile (16 km)Settle Loop.[1] In its southern part, it follows theHigh Peak Trail along the trackbed of the formerCromford and High Peak Railway.
In 1986, Mary Towneley rode on horseback 250 miles (402 km) fromCorbridge,Northumberland, toAshbourne, Derbyshire, to launch the idea of a Pennine Bridleway. This was followed by a feasibility study and route investigation from 1987 to 1990. Finally in 1995 approval was granted for the Pennine Bridleway National Trail fromCarsington Water, Derbyshire, toKirkby Stephen,Cumbria.
In 1999,Sport England awarded and donated £1,841,876 towards the route from Derbyshire toNorth Yorkshire and three feeder routes fromKeighley,Bolton andPenistone. The Pennine Bridleway project team was appointed by the Countryside Agency and work began shortly.
In 2000, there was a proposal for an extension to the Pennine Bridleway fromKirkby Stephen, Cumbria, toByrness, Northumberland. This extension was approved in 2002, but has not yet been funded.
Towneley died in February 2001, and is commemorated by the Mary Towneley Loop, which opened in 2002. The southern section of the trail from Derbyshire followed, and in 2005 theSettle Loop opened. The final sections of the trail were opened byMartin Clunes in June 2012.[1]
The Pennine Bridleway is not to be confused with thePennine Cycleway (part of theNational Cycle Network) or thePennine Way (a separate National Trail).
The Pennine Bridleway has two starting points in Derbyshire. The main starting point is atMiddleton-by-Wirksworth, from where it follows theHigh Peak Trail along a disused railway passing through thelimestone of theWhite Peak. The second starting point, recommended for horse riders, is the site of the formerHartington railway station, and uses a short section of theTissington Trail before joining the High Peak Trail atParsley Hay.[2] At the end of the High Peak Trail, 7 kilometres (4 mi) south east ofBuxton, the route heads north following the line of a packhorse road fromTideswell, viaPeak Forest toHayfield, where it briefly follows the line of another converted railway, theSett Valley Trail.
North of Hayfield, there is a gap of 8 kilometres (5 mi) in the bridleway. There are alternative routes for walkers and cyclists, but no safe route for horse riders until the missing section is completed. The route resumes atBottoms Reservoir nearTintwistle inLongdendale.[3] Spending cuts meant that a 4-kilometre (2.5 mi) gap still existed betweenCharlesworth and Tintwistle in 2017.[4]
Leaving Derbyshire forGreater Manchester, the trail follows the edge of a heather moor and picks up the trackbed of a formerrailway line along theTame valley through the tourist village ofUppermill and to the village ofDiggle. From here the trail heads west across moorland and descends to follow a dismantled railway towardsHollingworth Lake. It then crosses moorland east ofLittleborough before joining the Mary Towneley Loop nearSummit.
The shorter route follows the Mary Towneley Loop counterclockwise, heading north intoWest Yorkshire. The trail passes the villages ofBottomley andMankinholes, then drops down to cross theCalder Valley just west of the town ofHebden Bridge. It then climbs to cross Heptonstall Moor and enters Lancashire south of Widdop.
The longer clockwise route of the Mary Towneley Loop heads west from Summit and climbs to Top of Leach at 474 metres (1,555 ft). The trail passes through the town ofWaterfoot in theRossendale Valley and follows new tracks viaLumb before entering theCliviger Gorge and then climbing up to the Long Causeway. It then heads north to the top of the Loop just east ofWorsthorne.
From the top of the Mary Towneley Loop the trail heads north to the village ofWycoller, then turns west to pass south ofEarby andBarnoldswick. For several miles it follows an old track named Coal Pit Lane to reachGisburne Park on theRiver Ribble. It then heads north across the flatter landscape of the Ribble Valley to enterNorth Yorkshire just north of the village ofPaythorne.
At the southern edge of theYorkshire Dales the route reachesLong Preston on the busyA65 road. The route through Long Preston and across the A65 has not yet been finalised.[3] The trail heads north from Long Preston to the town ofSettle. South of Settle the Settle Loop branches east to rejoin the main route just north of the town.
AtStainforth the route turns west toFeizor,Austwick andClapham on ancient walled lanes. From Clapham the trail turns north east toSelside and crosses to the east side ofRibblesdale. It then joins the Pennine Way for 7 kilometres (4 mi), climbing Cam Fell. A new trail is then followed west over high and exposed terrain to Newby Head. The route briefly entersCumbria over Dent Fell, then reenters North Yorkshire atGarsdale Head.
At the head ofWensleydale the route follows an old track (Lady Anne's Way) to cross into theMallerstang valley in Cumbria. The trail then crossesWild Boar Fell to reach its present terminus near the village ofRavenstonedale.[2]
One feeder route has been opened, and two more are planned:
