Longsight Park

Overview

Longsight Park in Bolton is a large informal park and has a play area with a variety of play equipment suitable for all ages, a football pitch, and is really good for walking, with links to the Bradshaw Valley and beyond.

The Lancashire Wildlife Trust provides the following information: “Home to a wonderful arboretum, this site is the perfect place to brush up on your tree identification or simply marvel at the beauty of the international collection. Thirty-nine species of tree were planted back in the 1980s by the Croal-Irwell Valley Ranger Service in a spot that was once home to a sewage works and rifle range. Amongst the collection are star species like the mighty Coastal Redwood and Wellingtonia, the majestic Maidenhair and the extraordinary Snakebark Maple. Spring is the time to see the Great White Cherry is at its ephemeral best.”

On the Wildlife Trust’s web page, you can download the Friends of Longsight Park’s Arboretum Guide. The Friends of Longsight Park have also created a sketch map of the arboretum that complements the guide.

We have also provided a downloadable PDF map showing main paths in Longsight Park.

Accessibility and facilities

According to Lancashire Wildlife Trust, “Please note that the Kingfisher Trail footpath between the arboretum and the main area of Longsight Park is not suitable for those with limited mobility.” Regarding the arboretum, they add that this “is on level ground but does not have footpath access to the majority of the trees.” Furthermore, images on the Woodland Trust website indicate that most paths within the park are not hard-surfaced.

We have therefore not rated walking in Longsight Park as accessible to wheelchair-users and those with pushchairs. There appears to be no café or toilet facilities within the park.

How to get there

The Arboretum car park is located off Bradshaw Brow (and given as the main start point below). The Longsight Lane car park (providing access to the main area of the park) is given as the alternative access point.

Note that Hall i’th’ Wood train station (without step-free access) is only a short distance from Longsight Park.

To work out how to get to and from the walk start points, simply click the Google Maps links shown 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 into the TFGM journey planner at https://my.tfgm.com/#/planner/