3. Discover one of the Moorlands’ Best Kept Secrets at Consall Nature Park
Take time out to visit Consall Nature Park this summer and discover one of the Staffordshire Moorland’s best kept secrets.
Far off the beaten track, yet within a stone’s throw from Leek and an easy drive from Stoke-on-Trent, the nature park offers woodland walks teeming with wildlife.
Nestled alongside the River Churnet and the Caldon Canal, this once industrial valley has been reclaimed by nature, offering its visitors (human and otherwise) a heady mix of mature woodland, flower-filled pastures and deep pools – all brimming with life.
For nature lovers who like to explore, there’s 479 acres waiting to be discovered at Consall Wood. As you take a stroll along one of the many trails, the only sounds you’ll hear are birdsong and the occasional chuff-chuff of the nearby Churnet Valley Railway. Be sure to listen out for the drum of great spotted woodpeckers and early risers will be rewarded to hear blackbirds and wrens lend their distinctive calls to the dawn chorus.
In autumn, stop at one of the many benches dotted around the river and watch the dippers and grey wagtails as you take a break and have a snack. And in winter, keep your eyes peeled for willow tits and marsh tits by the pools.
Today, the canal and the railway are the only relics of the valley’s heavy industrial past. Once, thirty barges a day chugged ironstone down to Froghall and 1,500 men worked the area, covered in the bright red dust of the local stone that coined the nickname The Redmen.
Where once the valley was filled with the sounds of ironstone hammers and saws, felling the trees for the iron ore smelting processes, now the only hammering comes from the three species of woodpeckers that call this home.
There are a number of waymarked routes, from a leisurely 30-minute circuit of the ponds to longer walks with steep gradients, bordering rocky outcrops and cliff faces. Everywhere you turn, you’ll see bubbling streams straddled with charming little bridges. Spectacular views of the Churnet Valley and beyond await at the top and make the climb more than worthwhile. Stout footwear is recommended as the paths can be wet even in summertime.
The site also makes an excellent base for exploring the Churnet Valley further afield. There are ample public footpaths and charming, canal side trails, north towards Cheddleton and Froghall in the south. Here, hungry travellers can take a welcome break at Hetty’s Tea Shop, set in a delightful 200-year-old Grade II listed building just out of the shadows of the old lime kilns.
If a pint of real ale is more your cup of tea, stop off at the Black Lion pub at Consall Forge and wave at the passengers on the Churnet Valley Railway steam trains as they meander through this beautiful part of the Moorlands. Tickets for this heritage train ride can be booked departing from either Froghall or Cheddleton. Tearooms are available at both stations.
Ample car parking including disabled blue badge spaces are available at Consall Nature Park as well as accessible toilets and baby changing facilities. There is a picnic area on the grass in front of the old Visitor Centre.