Brockholes Trail

Our next stop on the Penistone Line is the small but scenic village of Brockholes, which is located on the banks of the River Holme and not far from the more famous town of Holmfirth. The village was once home to several textile mills, although all of these have been demolished. This walk takes in the village centre and riverside, before looping out into the countryside above the village for some splendid views of the surrounding area.

Brockholes Trail Google Map

Brockholes Railway Station was originally the junction for the defunct Holmfirth Branch Line. The station opened in 1850 and became single track in 1989; the former station building survives on the disused southbound platform and has been converted into a private house, which retains the original station signage. Leave the station and turn left along Ridings Fields. When this ends at Brockholes Lane, turn right and follow it downhill to a junction, where the Grade II-listed village War Memorial can be seen on the corner with Oakes Lane. Just past the War Memorial, the former Brockholes Methodist Church can be seen on the right. Bear right and then take a detour along a drive to the right, passing Brockholes Village Hall to reach the Church of St. George. The Village Hall and the Church of St. George are both also Grade II-listed, with the former originally a Church of England School built in 1837 and the latter dating from 1861.

Church of St. George.

Return to the junction and turn sharp right along Brockholes Lane, passing Brockholes Park on the left to reach New Mill Road. Cross over at the pelican crossing, looking out for an old mile post (also Grade II-listed) at the edge of the pavement to the right. Turn left and follow New Mill Road, passing the Rock Inn on the right. Just after the junction with Rockmill Road on the right, bear right along Lancaster Lane, a metalled track that runs gently downhill. Continue to follow this, ignore any turn offs, until it reaches a bridge over the River Holmes. Cross this, then turn right along a riverside footpath running through Hagg Wood.

Stay on the riverside path until it reaches a junction, then turn right, continuing to follow the river to a bridge. Do not cross the bridge, but stay on the path and follow it until it ends at Smithy Place Lane. Cross this and turn right to reach New Mill Road, looking out for a monument that marks the site of Smith Place Bar on the left. Cross New Mill Road and turn right, then almost immediately turn left along Rightox Road. When this ends, continue straight ahead along a footpath to Ridings Fields, then turn left and follow this uphill. When the road turns sharp right, turn left along a signed public footpath through the edge a wood, shortly crossing a bridge over the railway track.

Continue to follow the path through the edge of the wood and along a field edge, until it ends at a farm drive. Just after this bends right, bear left over a stile to follow a path along the edge of another field to reach Hall Ing Road. Turn left, then very shortly right over a stile and follow another public footpath across two fields to a farm. Just before reaching the farm, the path turns left; follow this through a gap in a wall and continue to follow it along field edges, enjoying the expansive views over the Holme Valley on the left. At a junction of paths, turn left and follow a path downhill through a wood, eventually reaching Ludhill Lane.

Turn right and follow Ludhill Lane uphill, staying on it as it changes from a muddy track to a properly surfaced lane and bends left and then right, eventually ending at Brockholes Road. Turn left and follow this to a crossroads, then continue straight ahead along Moor Lane. Take the next signed public footpath on the right and follow this across fields, looking out for views of Emley Moor Mast on the left, a prominent local landmark, which will be visible on the next few walks. More formally known as the Emley Moor transmitting station (or, currently, the Arqiva Tower), this Grade II-listed telecommunications and broadcasting facility is a 1,047 ft tall concrete tower and apparatus that began transmitting in 1971. It is the tallest freestanding structure in the United Kingdom and the twenty-fifth tallest tower in the world. Random Tower – which we saw on the Stocksmoor walk – is also visible again, a short distance from the path.

Random tower and Elmley Moor mast.

When the path eventually ends at Green Side Road, turn right and follow it to the junction with Thurstonland Road, looking out for an old milestone on the corner. The milestone is Grade II*-listed, dates from 1738, and is surrounded by a railing fence to protect it. Turn left and then immediately right along Hall Ing Road and follow this to a farm track on the left.

Turn left down the farm track and continue along a signed public footpath that follows field edges right and left before reaching a junction. Here, turn right and follow the path downhill along the edge of a wood and through a meadow, eventually reaching a bridge over the railway line. Cross this and immediately turn right to follow a path next to the railway line. After a short distance, this passes through a tunnel under the railway track; on the other side, turn left and continue beside the railway line to Brockholes Lane. Finally, turn left and then right to return to the railway station.

From Brockholes, we again have only a short journey further along the line to our next stop, another village in the Holme Valley.