Above: Built in the 1840s, Errwood Hall lasted less than 100 years; demolished in the mid 1930s following the death of the last of the Grimshawe family.
Click for a pdf with stage-by-stage details of the route including photos and a map, as well as links to car parks and public transport. A walking app GPX file is also available.
Length: 1.2mls | Av. time: 35mins | Ascent: 220ft
Start: Errwood Hall car park | Google Map
Walk description, map & GPX | Download
A 1.2-mile circular walk from Errwood Hall car park, up through the woods to the ruins of Errwood Hall, then on up the hillside to the Grimshawe family graves. It’s one of the most popular walks in the valley – short, but full of interest.
The Grimshawes bought the Errwood estate in 1832, and work on the hall started around 1845. Its rhododendrons are said to have grown from seed brought here as ballast in the family’s ocean-going yacht, the Mariquita – though most have since been cleared.
The hall lasted less than 100 years. Stockport Corporation bought the estate to build the twin reservoirs, supplying drinking water to Stockport and the surrounding towns and villages, and the hall was demolished in the mid 1930s.
The family graves
Above the hall, a small burial ground holds the graves of the Grimshawes, close friends of the family and some of those who worked for them – including Captain John Butler of the Mariquita and his young wife, Hannah.
On the way back, the route crosses a stream just beyond point 9 on the pdf map. The footbridge has gone, but it’s usually easy to cross on a series of stones – though harder after heavy rain, or in winter when it gets muddy.
If you’d rather avoid the stream, there’s an alternative route, also marked on the map.
Click for a pdf with stage-by-stage details of the route including photos and a map, as well as links to car parks and public transport. A walking app GPX file is also available.
Route photos
Stages 1-6 of the route. Click any to enlarge and scroll through.
Relive video
Click to play and use the expand option to view in full-screen. More Goyt Valley Relives.
