Ashton and Bryn Circular (Diamond Route)

Overview

This walk is one of a series of fifteen Jubilee Legacy Walks designed to celebrate the richness and diversity of Wigan Borough’s green space, and provide a lasting reminder of the Queen’s Jubilee celebrations of 2012.

This circular route passes through countryside and town, and includes the historic centre of Ashton and part of the Greenheart Regional Park.

Along the way, the route passes various points of interest. For example, Three Sisters Recreation Area is land reclaimed from the mining industry after three colliery spoil heaps, the ‘Three Sisters,’ were levelled. Ashton Heath, meanwhile, is common land and a remnant of old heathland. Finally, Skitters Wood consists of 6.8 hectares of ancient woodland and is a Site of Biological Interest (SBI).

Accessibility and facilities

Paths are a mixture of hard surfaces, pavements, desire lines and lanes. The route is not fully accessible to wheelchair-users, prams and cycles.

According to Wigan Council, toilet facilities are available at Three Sisters Recreation Area. There are also pubs and cafes in Ashton-in-Makerfield town centre.

How to get there

The main start of the walk (at Three Sisters) is only about a 1-mile / 1.6-km walk from Bryn railway station or from Bryn Cross (for buses). Ashton-in Makerfield town centre is also given as an alternative start point.

To work out exactly how to get to and from either of the walk start points, simply click the Google Maps links on this page. Then click ‘Directions’ and enter your postcode or location in the relevant field. For public transport options, click the train icon.

Alternatively, input the postcodes shown on this page into the TfGM journey planner at https://my.tfgm.com/#/planner/