The Colne Valley runs westward from Huddersfield towards the Pennines and has historically been a significant route between the towns of West Yorkshire and of south-eastern Lancashire and north eastern Cheshire, with trans-Pennine routes originally via packhorse tracks being joined subsequently by canal, railway, and road. With several small but vibrant towns and villages, sweeping views of the rugged hills, and beautiful canal side walking, there is plenty of interest for local and visitor alike....
The last time I had visited the Colne Valley was August last year when I visited Empire Brewery who were having a very convivial open day at their canal side brewery in Slaithwaite. My plan this time was to catch the train to the village and then walk up the canal towpath to Marsden, with the odd stop for refreshment on the way. Like that particular day, it was bright and sunny, and probably the warmest day of the current spell of weather we'd been enjoying. And so I set off, phone charger and totally surplus to requirements jacket in my rucksack, but completely bereft of three items that I really should have taken on this hot day; hat, sunscreen, and bottle of water!
The train from Huddersfield to Slaithwaite (I'll leave it to you guys to pronounce it how you wish, but I go for 'Slough-it') took 7 minutes. I set off walking down Station Road into the village, and got talking to a group from Stockport who were doing the Ale Trail, of which the valley is an integral part, and had just been to the two pubs at Huddersfield station and were now working their way back to Stalybridge. At one time the Trail would bring mayhem to some of the pubs and places on the route on a Saturday particularly in summer, although after a few crackdowns on bad behaviour and changing habits post-pandemic, it seemed relatively sedate today. The guys were heading to the Commercial, which was my intended destination, but as we approached the bottom of the hill, I spotted an open door and a sign saying craft beer. So I decided to go in and investigate. The attractively decorated room was empty save for a lady sat at a table with a laptop, who got up and went behind the bar as I approached it.
I was in the Hideaway Craft House, which backs on to the Commercial, and has been open since just after the pandemic, although I had hitherto not been aware of it. It has no cask ale, but had an impressive range of craft beers, which were listed on a board behind the bar. They always have a couple on from local guys Magic Rock, but the list also featured beers from Deya, Cloudwater, Brew York, Pressure Drop, and Schofferhofer, whose Grapefruit was tempting on this hot day (and reasonably priced for once, too!), but in the end I went for a half of the 4.2% Magazine Cover from Deya. This hoppy session pale just hit the spot nicely. A lovely little bar, which has a tucked away beer garden, definitely is well worth calling in.
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| An excellent little Hideaway in Slaithwaite |
And then it was around the corner to the Commercial, which is a place I have been to regularly over the years. This busy free house situated on the roundabout in the heart of the village is a de facto tap for Empire Brewery and as usual there were a couple of their beers on the bar. I went however for a Citra Pale from North Riding, which I took to an empty table in the room to the left of the bar. It was fairly quiet inside the pub, although there were plenty outside, but that quickly changed a few minutes later as a large group walked in, another train having presumably arrived at the station, but they were efficiently dealt with by the friendly team behind the bar. The Citra was very good, this 4.5% pale in excellent condition, at just the right temperature, and provided a refreshing citrus hit (NBSS 4).
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| The Commercial, Slaithwaite |
I finished my drink, and crossed over the road, and turned on to the towpath of the Huddersfield Narrow Canal, which runs from Aspley Basin near the University in the town to Ashton-under-Lyne, a distance of about 20 miles. Along the way there are 74 locks, and the Pennines are traversed via the 5 mile long Standedge Tunnel to the west of Marsden. It was proposed by Act of Parliament in 1793, opened in 1811, and played a significant role in the trans-Pennine movement of goods before the railways gradually took over. Slaithwaite is the only village in the country where a canal flows alongside its main street, and so it has always played a big part in the life of the village. Its residents are nicknamed 'Moonrakers' after a group were spotted by an excise man one night trying to fish out some stolen brandy from the canal but allegedly covered up their actions by saying they were trying to rake the reflection of the moon out of the canal. Cafes, bars, and restaurants have sprung up along its side, whilst former mills have been converted into apartments. As I set off, the finials on the railings beside the lock were each topped with a knitted woolly hat.
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| The canal at Slaithwaite; woolly hats on display |
I passed the award-winning Handmade Bakery, where from outside the cafe I heard someone say hello, and it was a couple of people I know. Pleasantries exchanged, I continued on my way, passing the afore-mentioned Empire Brewery. The first stretch of the walk on the towpath was in the shade, the waters of the canal a deep chocolate brown, but it wasn't long before it opened out and we were back out in the sun, with pleasant views over the meadows beside the canal. One of those woolly hats would have provided some respite from the sun, I thought. After about half an hour's walk, I spotted a sign to a brewery taproom that had opened up since I had last walked this stretch of the canal.
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| Oooh look, it's a taproom.... |
Zapato started brewing back in 2016, but initially they cuckoo-brewed at sites in Leeds and Manchester, and it was a while before they managed to find a permanent site at Holme Mills, about midway between Slaithwaite and Marsden. This low building is set back from the canal behind some trees and houses a number of other businesses, including the popular award-winning coffee roasters, Dark Woods. I could hear the sound of chatter and background music as I approached, and there were a lot of people sat out at a series of tables set up beside a large grassed area at the front of the mill. Smells of Asian food were wafting through the air, coming from a van parked nearby. I walked in to the taproom which was at the end of the building and immediately joined a queue. I looked around. This was not a set of picnic tables set up beside a cathedral of gleaming tanks with a loud soundtrack that you get at some taprooms, but a polite, homely, family-friendly cafe-style bar with flowers and bookshelves where everyone queued in turn, and quietly placed their order, "after you", "you were before me". The service was friendly and efficient, and from a choice of two beers on cask I went for Tent, a 4.5% hazy NEIPA style pale, and having decided to have a break from the sun, I took it to one of the several tables within the bar. Unfortunately, my beer was rather disappointing, thin and lacking any character, and I can't honestly credit it with a higher NBSS rating than 2.5. I was looking at my phone as someone approached me and said hello, it was a former work colleague and we had a good catch up about the old days and talked about the upcoming Manchester City v Inter Milan Champions League final with his mate, during which time I finished my beer. I then went for a half of the keg: my original choice of Thwock had run off, so I had a half of their Pinto Pico 3.3% table beer, which was disappointing to say the least. I know not every one can hit the heights of The Kernel's version, or Northern Monk's Striding Edge, but it takes real skill to brew a full-flavoured low ABV beer, and on this showing Zapato aren't there yet. Now I am not saying don't visit Zapato Taproom; in so many ways they do things well and I certainly couldn't fault the service and the ambience, and maybe I was unlucky on the day in just picking a couple of beers that didn't work for me.
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| Zapato Taproom, Colne Valley |
I resumed my journey refreshed, but the afternoon sun was beating down even more. The views along the canal became more open, with attractive scenes around every corner. As I approached Marsden I came to Sparth Reservoir, which is bisected by the canal. The upper part of the reservoir is a popular spot for wild swimming, but the water level was way down and someone had even pitched a tent on an exposed slope of the reservoir floor. On the lower side to my left, the reservoir was completely empty, the parched and cracked floor with an ancient rusty boat marooned in the middle. We hadn't had any serious rain for weeks, and the moors had been ablaze above Marsden in the past few days, so I suppose it shouldn't come as a surprise. The towpath then gradually climbed upwards passing several locks as I passed into another shaded, wooded and lush area, with some big houses with well-watered gardens to match stretching down to the opposing canal bank.
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| The Huddersfield Narrow Canal |
The path went under yet another bridge, and from there it came out beside the railway station and next to a road, with the Railway pub directly opposite. This wasn't on the agenda today, so I set off down the road to the town centre, passing on my right the large St Bartholomew's Church aka The Cathedral of the Colne Valley where last year I'd seen the Poet Laureate and Marsden native Simon Armitage performing a gig with his band LYR.
I was heading towards the Riverhead, which I have visited many times over the years. It is based in a former Co-op building overlooking the confluence of two streams. It became home to the appropriately-named Riverhead Brewery & Tap, set up originally by Phil Holdsworth in 1995. His highly-regarded beers were generally named after local reservoirs, the strength of each beer being graded by the reservoir's height above sea level. Thus the lowest gravity beer was a mild named after the afore-mentioned Sparth Reservoir, with Redbrook Premium Bitter and Black Moss Stout higher in strength because the reservoirs were higher up in the Pennine hills. In 2006, the brewery and tap were bought by Ossett Brewery who to their credit have retained a 2 bbl (brewer's barrel) kit in the small on-site brewery where they still brew some of Phil's original beers alongside a few changing beers, these generally only for sale in the pub. The only one of the original beers that is brewed regularly is Butterley Bitter, the 3.8% bitter, which has made it into the core range (Ossett never having had a regular bitter themselves) but it is now brewed at the main site in Ossett.
The Riverhead was very busy outside, with people sat at tables, or on the wall, or stood up with their drinks. Inside was cooler and more sedate, so I decided I would get my drink and stay in, and plonked myself down on a table at the bottom of the stairs, which take you to an upstairs room where there is additional seating. For some unknown reason I didn't go for one of the local beers, instead opting for the ubiquitous White Rat, which I have to say though was on top form and a welcome refreshing thirst quencher after a hot walk (NBSS 3.5). The pub is attractively decorated with dark wood screens and flooring, with painted walls and areas of exposed stonework to create a slightly rustic look. The large windows and use of mirrors gives the place a light and airy feel. The pub is open every day, with food available Wednesday - Sunday, and is an essential place to visit when in Marsden.
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| The Riverhead, Marsden |
I then popped across the road to Arcade, which I'd not previously visited in its current guise. It is a small cafe bar selling various craft beers, although there is no cask on offer, and is now independent having originally been an outpost of Arcade Beers in Huddersfield. It is pleasantly decorated and has an enclosed riverside balcony. I ordered a half and went and sat at a small table on the pavement outside. With time moving on, I finished my beer and walked up to the nearest bus stop, passing the Marsden Mechanics, with its distinctive cream and red clock tower. The bus took just over 20 minutes to get back to Huddersfield, from where I could catch my train back to Brighouse. It had been a most enjoyable, if hot, afternoon of walking interspersed by the odd beer....
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