Rochdale is a busy town with excellent transport links including the tram, a bus terminus and also good access to amenities....

DaveHilton

This is an enjoyable route which after relatively steep climbs at either end is surprisingly flat through the central section of the walk which follows the edge of the moor giving great views of the upper Calder Valley and across to Rochdale and Manchester. From there the path is straightforward with a steep but relatively short climb up to Blackstone Edge Moor and the White House pub....

RGW

Note that the point where the cycle route leaves the tow path at the Todmorden end didn't seem to be signposted however this is simply the most direct route to the end point at the station....

RGW

After crossing Befield Lane it passes underneath the railway line and follows Newbold Street, turning left on to Rochdale Road where after a short distance there is an access point for the canal tow path....

RGW

I walked this route, and found that near the start at Littleborough it needs a correction to get access to the canal bridge at Ealees Road. Otherwise you will be walking round in circles, which you don’t really want to be doing. I’ve made Litrip Two, which includes the correction, and also has a couple of other small changes to make it an easier journey overall, but is otherwise the same....

Jane Taylor

There’s a nice contouring section along a levada style ditch before dropping a little to the White House pub on the A58 Halifax Road. The A road (about 600 metres) has a side path, so is safe. It’s about another 600 metres and there is no side path, there is little traffic but it still goes fast! But then I crossed a stile and had to forge my own way across c 500 metres, heading for the top of the hill and a cairn marker. It is quite easy to see where others have gone before, so I’ve made this route option follow the ‘straight through the middle’ path trod by other walkers and runners. It doesn’t really matter how you get there, you need to get through the boggy dip and then up to the top of Collin Hill, where the path ahead becomes a little clearer, and then continue on to the cairn marker, where there is also a bench!. I dropped a star partly because of the road walking section, which seemed a poor payoff for slogging up on the roman road and then finding the pub is shut. I did wonder if there is another route option which stays south of the A58, uses a bit more old roman road/packhorse track, contours round on a permissive path, and eventually drops down to the reservoirs, coming into Ripponden along the river Ryburn...

Jane Taylor

The first half of the route is easy to follow but the Rochdale Way section (Warland to Littleborough) is very tricky - there's no marked route on the ground and so many sheep tracks that it's very difficult to know where to go unless you constantly check the map....

fruitbat