Blackburn to Rishton and Great Harwood Cycle Route

Now you can cycle all the way from Great Harwood and Rishton to the centre of Blackburn without going on the road. The canal towpath now has a sealed surface, meaning that you can use it all year round without getting muddy. The route also allows you to continue on the canal towpath to Feniscowles on the West side of Blackburn if you wish.

So  instead of taking the roads, why not say goodbye to those long queues and get on your bikeusing the towpath instead.

The Leeds and Liverpool Canal

Opened in 1816 the 127 mile long canal is one of the longest in Britain.The canal played a major part in the development of East Lancashire with mills springing up along its banks much like industry congregates around motorway junctions today. An early use of bicycles on the canal was for the bargemans mate to cycle ahead of the boat to set up the locks ready for the boat to go through.

Great Harwood Line Loop

Now used by the cycle path from Rishton to Great Harwood, the railway was built to avoid station congestion at Accrington.

For more information, please see the linked PDF at the bottom of the page.