GM Ringway

For the civil parish, see Ringway, Manchester.
GM Ringway
Length200 mi (320 km)
LocationGreater Manchester, England
UseHiking
SeasonAll year
HazardsSevere weather
Websitewww.gmringway.org

The GM Ringway is a long-distance walking trail in Greater Manchester, England. It follows a circular route through all 10 of the city-region's boroughs and extends for approximately 200 miles (320 km).[1] The trail is designed around existing footpaths, parks and areas of open-access land,[2][3] and is divided into 20 stages, each accessible by public transport.

The project is supported by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, the Ramblers, and CPRE, the countryside charity.[4][5][6]

History

In June 2022, the Ramblers and CPRE charities were awarded a £250,000 grant by the National Lottery Heritage Fund to establish the GM Ringway. The grant enabled signposting and an improved app and website to be established. It will also support the organisation of community events across all 10 boroughs of Greater Manchester.[7][8]

In February 2023, it was reported that Tom Ross, the leader of Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council, was one of the first people to complete the walking trail in its entirety, over the course of around one year.[9]

In July 2023, a pilot scheme was announced, with guided walks through the Trafford section of the GM Ringway, in order to obtain feedback from walkers' experience of the route, as well as on the app and website.[10]

Waymarking

In December 2023, the Oldham and Bury stages of the route became the first to be signposted by volunteers.[11] By early March 2024, 10 of the 20 stages had been waymarked, covering 115 miles (185 km).[12] The signage consists of small white roundel discs affixed to existing footpath infrastructure, and the GM Ringway roundels are believed to be the first footpath markers in England to incorporate QR codes, allowing walkers to access stage information and digital maps on mobile devices.[13]

Permanent information boards were also installed in 2024 at 10 locations across Greater Manchester, one in each borough. Each board displays the full 200‑mile route along with a detailed map of one of the 20 stages, including public‑transport access points. Sites include Burrs Country Park in Bury, Smithills Hall in Bolton, Hollingworth Lake in Rochdale, Sale Water Park in Trafford and Pennington Flash in Wigan, among others.[14]

Route

The circular route is split into four broad thematic sections:[15]

  • The Southern Start-up – from Manchester city centre to the Peak District, following waterways and green spaces
  • The Exhilarating East – the hills above Stockport, Tameside and Oldham
  • The Noble North – a more challenging section linking the peaks and valleys of the Pennines with Rochdale, Bury and Bolton
  • The Western Wind-Down – the wetlands, mosslands and canals of Wigan, Trafford and Salford

Each section highlights contrasting landscapes across Greater Manchester, including river valleys, moorland, historic estates, canals and urban green spaces, with all stages designed to be accessible by public transport. Each section is divided into five stages (20 in total), with the beginning and end of every stage accessible by public transport, usually a train or Metrolink station:[1]

Section Stage From To Length[16] Metropolitan Borough(s)
Southern Start-up 1 Manchester Sale Water Park 6.6 mi (10.6 km) Manchester, Trafford
2 Sale Water Park East Didsbury 6.6 mi (10.6 km) Trafford, Manchester
3 East Didsbury Bramhall 7.3 mi (11.7 km) Manchester, Stockport
4 Bramhall Middlewood 7.9 mi (12.7 km) Stockport, Cheshire
5 Middlewood Strines 8.2 mi (13.2 km) Cheshire, Stockport
Exhilarating East 6 Strines Marple 8.3 mi (13.4 km) Stockport
7 Marple Broadbottom 8.2 mi (13.2 km) Stockport, Tameside
8 Broadbottom Greenfield 12.1 mi (19.5 km) Tameside, Oldham
9 Greenfield Newhey 12.8 mi (20.6 km) Oldham, Rochdale
10 Newhey Littleborough 11.3 mi (18.2 km) Rochdale
Noble North 11 Littleborough Norden 12.3 mi (19.8 km) Rochdale
12 Norden Bury 12.7 mi (20.4 km) Rochdale, Bury
13 Bury Bromley Cross 12.6 mi (20.3 km) Bury, Bolton
14 Bromley Cross Blackrod 12.2 mi (19.6 km) Bolton
15 Blackrod Wigan 10.1 mi (16.3 km) Bolton, Wigan
Western Wind-Down 16 Wigan Leigh 10.1 mi (16.3 km) Wigan
17 Leigh Irlam 10.8 mi (17.4 km) Wigan, Salford
18 Irlam Altrincham 10.7 mi (17.2 km) Salford, Trafford
19 Altrincham Stretford 9.1 mi (14.6 km) Trafford
20 Stretford Manchester 8.6 mi (13.8 km) Trafford, Manchester

The GM Ringway passes more than 40 Grade I and II*-listed buildings across Greater Manchester, including Bramall Hall in Stockport and Haigh Hall in Wigan. There are 14 scheduled monuments including Blackstone Edge Roman Road in Rochdale along the route.[2]

There are also future plans to add link routes from the city centre to the west, north and east to connect with the GM Ringway.[17]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "GM Ringway Maps and Overview". Greater Manchester Walking. 20 November 2022.
  2. ^ a b "GM Ringway: new long-distance footpath covering 186 miles of Greater Manchester scenery gets green light". Manchester World. 22 October 2022. Archived from the original on 20 November 2022. Retrieved 20 November 2022.
  3. ^ "GM Ringway – Greater Manchester's walking trail". Visit Manchester. Archived from the original on 4 August 2023. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
  4. ^ "Greater Manchester's new walking trail gets the go-ahead". CPRE Lancashire. 20 November 2022.
  5. ^ "Projects". Walking Projects. 20 November 2022.
  6. ^ "190 mile Greater Manchester long-distance trail announced". Confidentials Manchester. 4 November 2022.
  7. ^ "GM Ringway – Greater Manchester's walking trail". Heritage Fund. 16 June 2022. Archived from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  8. ^ "A New Long-Distance Walking Trail Across Greater Manchester Has Been Given The Go-Ahead". Secret Manchester. 1 November 2022. Archived from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  9. ^ Tooth, Jack (28 February 2023). "Trafford Council leader one of the first to take on GM Ringway". The Messenger. Archived from the original on 4 August 2023. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
  10. ^ Clarke, Liz (4 July 2023). "Greater Manchester's newest walking trail opens up for the first time this month". Manchester Evening News. Archived from the original on 6 July 2023. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
  11. ^ Black, Kaya; Stead, Richard (14 December 2023). "Work begins on city's new 200-mile walking trail". BBC News. Manchester. Archived from the original on 16 January 2024. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
  12. ^ Clyde-Smith, Imogen (6 March 2024). "Greater Manchester's new 200 mile walking trail reaches major milestone". Manchester Evening News. Archived from the original on 8 March 2024. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  13. ^ Milton, Liam (31 August 2024). "Boroughs mark completion of GM Ringway with installations". Bury Times. Retrieved 30 January 2026.
  14. ^ Cornall, Jim (11 September 2024). "New signs and panels mark completion of GM Ringway walking trail". The Walking Post. Retrieved 30 January 2026.
  15. ^ "The GM Ringway – a whopping 300km walking trail around Greater Manchester linking beautiful countryside with local attractions". The Manc. 20 November 2022. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  16. ^ Read, Andrew. "GM Ringway". Plot a Route. Archived from the original on 1 March 2023. Retrieved 7 July 2023.
  17. ^ "GM Ringway". The Long Distance Walkers Association. Archived from the original on 4 August 2023. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
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