The Dane Valley Way is a long-distance

footpath A footpath (also pedestrian way, walking trail, nature trail) is a type of thoroughfare that is intended for use only by pedestrians and not other forms of traffic such as Motor vehicle, motorized vehicles, bicycles and horseback, horses. They ...

through

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, ...

and

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

, England. It runs from the Pavilion Gardens in

Buxton Buxton is a spa town in the High Peak, Derbyshire, Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, in the East Midlands region of England. It is England's highest market town, sited at some above sea level.Alston, Cumbria also claims this, but lacks a regu ...

to the end of the

River Dane The River Dane is a tributary of the River Weaver that originates in the Peak District area of England. The name of the river (earlier ''Daven'') is probably from the Old Welsh ''dafn'', meaning a "drop or trickle", implying a slow-moving river. ...

, where it enters the

River Weaver The River Weaver is a river, navigable in its lower reaches, running in a curving route anti-clockwise across west Cheshire, northern England. Improvements to the river to make it navigable were authorised in 1721 and the work, which included ...

in Northwich.

The route

The route is largely downhill after the first 3 miles of ascent and it follows rights of way along or near the course of the

, past its source at Dane Head in Derbyshire and down to its end at its confluence with the

in Cheshire. The River Dane is the longest, cleanest and thought to be the fastest flowing river through Cheshire. The initial section from Buxton climbs through Grinlow Woods to

Solomon's Temple Solomon's Temple, also known as the First Temple (), was a biblical Temple in Jerusalem believed to have existed between the 10th and 6th centuries Common Era, BCE. Its description is largely based on narratives in the Hebrew Bible, in which it ...

at the summit of Grin Hill, providing superb views across the Dark Peak. The trail crosses Axe Edge Moor (over 500m high and the watershed between the

Irish Sea The Irish Sea is a body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel and to the Inner Seas off the West Coast of Scotland in the north by the North Ch ...

and the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

), where the River Dane originates at Dane Head. It passes the scenic Three Shires Head (where Derbyshire, Staffordshire and Cheshire boundaries meet) with its stone footbridge and cascades. During the eighteenth century, fugitives used Three Shires Head to cross into a neighbouring county, in order to flee from police who could only operate within their own county. The path continues along the wooded Dane Valley through the hamlets of Gradbach, Danebridge and Wincle. It leaves the

Peak District The Peak District is an Highland, upland area in central-northern England, at the southern end of the Pennines. Mostly in Derbyshire, it extends into Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Staffordshire, West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire. It is subdivi ...

and goes on through Eaton,

Congleton Congleton is a market town and civil parish in Cheshire East, Cheshire, England. It is on the River Dane, south of Manchester and north of Stoke on Trent. At the 2021 census, the parish had a population of 28,497 and the built-up area ha ...

Swettenham Swettenham is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. According to the 2001 Official UK Census, the population of the entire civil parish was 248,

, Brereton Heath Nature Reserve,

Holmes Chapel Holmes Chapel is a village and civil parish in Cheshire, England, north of Crewe and south of Manchester; Swettenham Meadows Nature Reserve lies east of the village and Goostrey lies to the north. The population of the village was 6,700 a ...

and

Middlewich Middlewich is a town and civil parish in Cheshire East, Cheshire, England. It is located east of Chester, east of Winsford, south-east of Northwich and north-west of Sandbach. The population of the parish at the United Kingdom 2021 census, ...

, where the River Dane joins the River Wheelock. The second half of the route includes considerable walking on roads.

History

The Dane Valley Way was proposed in 1970 by Congleton Regional District Council (RDC). In 2013 the second half of the route was modified to avoid major roads and extended from its original finish in Middlewich to Northwich. The route is marked on OS Explorer Maps OL24 and 268 and is waymarked with the initials DVW.{{Cite web, url=https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/shop/explorer-map-wilmslow-macclesfield-congleton.html, title=Map of Wilmslow, Macclesfield & Congleton - OS Explorer Map 268 (Altrincham, Knutsford & Sandbach) {{! Ordnance Survey Shop, website=www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk, access-date=2020-03-18 There are links with the Midshires Way, the Staffordshire Way the Gritstone Trail, the South Cheshire Way, the Cheshire Ring Canal Walk and

Trent and Mersey Canal The Trent and Mersey Canal is a canal in Derbyshire, Staffordshire and Cheshire in north-central England. It is a "narrow canal" for the vast majority of its length, but at the extremities to the east of Burton upon Trent and north of Middl ...

Walk. Details of connecting routes may be found on the Dane Valley Way page of the Long Distance Walkers' Association website.

References

Long-distance footpaths in England Footpaths in Derbyshire Footpaths in Cheshire Peak District Buxton