Oct 14, 20222 min read

Easy walks in & around Manchester

One of my favourite things to do with any free time I have is exploring anywhere local to me. I'm a huge sucker for cloughs, country parks & nature reserves so whenever I have a free day, getting outside and exploring is first on my to-do list.

I'm not a very experienced hiker - so my go-to tends to be nice, easy walks in & around where I live, which is especially helpful seeing as I don't currently drive.

I've always been really drawn to the water (which is shocking considering I'm a very poor swimmer), & I definitely gravitate toward lakes, rivers, canals & waterfalls when out exploring.

So, if you're looking for where to go for walks in Manchester, I've listed 3 of my favourite spots lately:

Clayton Vale

This local nature reserve is perfect for a chilled weekend walk, it's not too big of a walk but there are so many places to stop and just take in the sights around you. The area was redeveloped in 1986 and now is home to a whole host of wildlife surrounding the River Medlock.

Personally, I love finding these escapes into nature in the middle of an urban area - if you can't get too far out of Manchester, or don't drive (like me) these green areas provide a perfect day out.

Castlefield Canals

This one might seem like a bit of an outlier in comparison to the other two spots, but being beside the canals has always felt so peaceful to me despite being surrounded by the tallest buildings in the city...

It's not just Castlefield though, the Manchester Ship Canal spans 36 miles and part of this is the River Irwell, which is even longer at 39 miles. Being beside the canals and the River Irwell has always felt like I'm in a completely different place. Don't get me wrong, Manchester is huge and even though I've lived here for 23 out of my 26 years, I definitely haven't seen it all.

Daisy Nook Country Park

Daisy Nook actually runs along the same river as Clayton Vale, both being in the Medlock Valley area, despite being around 3 miles apart. This nearly 100-acre park is quite popular, especially at the weekend.

There's a main path around the area, or you can do what we like to do and follow the dirt paths through the trees, which makes for a much more quiet and private day of exploring. At one point we found ourselves beside fields with horses and spotted quite a few people riding throughout the park, which makes sense as there is an Equestrian school right beside it.