Seven days a week Northern’s electric trains from Manchester Piccadilly take you from the bustle of the city on to the Glossop Line. Thirty five minutes later you can be amidst Derbyshire hills and peaks! This fourteen mile line, once part of the Woodhead Line, with termini at Glossop and Hadfield offers swift travel for regular travellers and visitors. En route stop off at intermediate stations for the following attractions:

Ashburys the first calling point is an ideal stop for visiting the famous Gorton Monastery designed by Pugin. The building can clearly be seen and is about a 15 minutes walk. Turn right as you leave the station. In the other direction, turning left, you can walk to the Etihad Stadium famous home to Manchester City football club. The next stop is Gorton once an historic home to railway engineering. Alighting here offers nearby walks and cycle routes on the former Fallowfield railway line. (Please note not all trains stop at Gorton). The next station en route is Guide Bridge a busy junction station. Here you can change trains for Hyde, Romiley, Marple and Rose Hill. If you leave the station and and head towards St Stephen’s Church, then cross the road you will find down some steps a signpost marking the Ashton Canal. Turn right and enjoy an industrial heritage walk. After fifteen minutes you reach the junction of the Peak Forest Canal . Ahead on your left is the renowned Portland Basin Museum situated in a renovated former canal side warehouse. Free admission allows access to a wealth of former cotton town artefacts – family friendly with a shop and café too.

The next stop from Guide Bridge is Flowery Field a relatively new station on the line. A ten minute stroll turning left as you leave the station, will take you onto a path paralleling the railway. This leads you to Hyde’s attractive park with a playground for children, bowls and a seasonal café. Newton for Hyde, the next station, offers easy access to the town of Hyde. Godley station is on an embankment and on a hill nearby Werneth Low War Memorial is a prominent landmark. A twenty five minute walk from the station brings you to Werneth Low Country Park and from the top glorious views of Manchester, the Cheshire Plain and nearby Derbyshire hills can be seen. If you alight at Hattersley ensure you take a look at the award winning station gardens situated near the ticket office. As you approach Broadbottom hills become ever nearer. The station is a good point to start local walks with signposted heritage trails nearby and a popular Garden Centre – Lymefield – offers daily refreshments. Leaving Broadbottom the train whisks you high over the River Etherow below into Derbyshire as the train then approaches a highlight of the route – Dinting Viaduct. As you cross enjoy panoramic views of Glossop and surrounding hills. If you leave the train at Dinting you can take a path under the viaduct known locally as Dinting Arches to Dinting Vale. Stop and feel very small as you admire the huge structure from underneath!

Depending on the time of day your train will then arrive at Glossop or Hadfield stations.

Hadfield is an attractive little town known to many as Royston Vasey in the BBC Comedy The League of Gentlemen. There are cafes and small shops to be enjoyed. The station also offers easy access to the Longdendale Trail which is the route of the former railway line to Sheffield. You can walk or cycle to the Woodhead tunnels (now closed).

Glossop, the principal town on the route, is a busy Victorian Market town with a wealth of attractions. These include a variety of independent shops, cafes and some well known retail names. Much of the town centre and surrounding buildings – including the station – have conservation status and many of the buildings can be seen by relaxing in Norfolk Square in the centre of the town. Ten minutes from the centre lies Manor Park with a seasonal miniature railway, lake and café, Rose Gardens, children’s playground and space for everyone! Nearby are the charms of Old Glossop centred around the historic Parish Church. A way marked trail leads you around the village with interpretation boards to explain the past. Especially important are Glossop’s links with the Dukes of Norfolk whose family, the Howards, once owned much land in the town. The 13th Duke of Norfolk built Glossop station and the branch line to Dinting. Look for the iconic lion statue above the station! And a commemorative plaque inside.

Heading left onto Howard Street from the station takes you in the direction of the Victoria Hall and, from here, it’s 5 minutes walk to Howard Park – a charming park built around a stream and small lake housing Glossop’s award winning Victorian Swimming Pool.

The station is a good start point for walks onto the nearby hills and offers access to the Pennine Way. Buses depart from the adjoining Henry Street terminus seven days a week for Hayfield, New Mills, Whaley Bridge and Buxton offering  easy rail connections for the Hope Valley and Buxton Railway lines.

If you are returning to Glossop station give yourself time for a coffee in TWIG the station café. Have a look at the pictures of the current local artist on display in the Waiting Room and the historical displays. If you like poetry then sample the Poetry Platform!

We hope to see you on the Glossop line soon!

For train times and fares

www.nationalrail.co.uk
Telephone: 0345 48 49 50

Glossop Line Guide leaflet
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