Autumn in Greater Manchester offers the perfect excuse for a scenic walk followed by a cosy pub meal, and one route near Rochdale delivers both. The Cheesden Valley circular walk starts and ends at the traditional Owd Betts country pub, taking in industrial ruins, the Ashworth Moor Reservoir, wooded gorges and moorland paths.
A hidden valley with a rich history
Some call Cheesden Valley Greater Manchester's "Forgotten Valley". The secluded, wooded river valley on the border with Lancashire is surrounded by rolling hills, babbling brooks and a waterfall. A number of short and long routes can be taken around the area.
Once home to more than a dozen mills employing roughly 2,000 workers, the valley's mills could not compete with rivals in nearby towns and cities, and had all but vanished by the late 19th century. Decades later, Rochdale-based musicians and hippies discovered the valley and its natural amphitheatre, leading to the legendary Deeply Vale music festival, which started in 1976 with 300 people gathering on farmland. It ran for four consecutive years.
The historic Owd Betts pub
Access to the valley is from Ashworth Moor Reservoir, whose car park sits opposite the Owd Betts pub. The pub on Edenfield Road in Norden, Rochdale, began life in 1796 as a farmhouse. By the 1820s it became a coaching inn known as the Hare and Hounds, offering food, ale, shelter and stabling to travellers crossing the moors.
Betty Ramsbottom married John Ashworth in 1839, and by the 1840s the couple were running the inn. After John died in 1866 aged 49, Betty carried on raising the family and running the inn, with locals calling it 'Owd Betts'. She handed it to her daughter and son-in-law, but when she passed in 1893, her name remained above the door.
Cosy fires and a renowned Sunday roast
The pub features log fires, exposed brick walls and a cosy feel, ideal for shorter autumn days. Alongside a wide selection of beers and ciders, it sells Wainwright beer and guest beers from local microbrewers. Its culinary highlights include a renowned Sunday roast and traditional British dishes such as Cheese and Onion Pie, Lancashire Hotpot and Rag Pudding. Sunday roast options include sirloin of beef, roast leg of lamb, roast chicken with pork, sage and onion stuffing, mixed roast, nut roast and Quorn chicken, with all the trimmings.
