Killamarsh.
29 January 2010 - 8:16pm — PW
The new trail stucture appears to be a good idea, but exactly where is the trail going to be cut?
I currently join the TPT on my homeward commute at the bridge where it passes over the road from Killamarsh to the Halfway tramstop. If that is to be blocked it means either a dodgy bit of road from Eckington past the golf course to Renishaw station or the hilly route into Staveley via the old Renishaw Park colliery site and up Slittingmills hill.
If anyone knows I'd be grateful for the information.
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Maps?
Are there any maps available online (or where offline) to show what is joining up with what? Am particularly interested in going through to Arkwright, and then ultimately Grassmoor/Five Pits Trail as a commute from Eckington. Might join up nicely to avoid middle of Stavely.
Maps Contnd
The trail from either Killamarsh or Renishaw Station continues past Staveley. I haven't ridden that stretch but it is surfaced, the trail is visible off the Bolsover road at Arkwright. Unfortunately there's no route through the old pit yard onto Sutton Lane.
For the present you'll have to come off the trail at Arkwright Village & cross the A632 at the roundabout, continue down Sutton Lane past the old collliery, then there's a long but not too steep haul up to Sutton Scarsdale. (I used to ride that way to Shirebrook years ago). Follow the lane across to Heath, when you hit the T junction of what used to be the Chesterfield - Mansfield road (quiet and bypassed) turn R and immediate L. After maybe 250 yards the entrance to the 5 Pits Trail is by a bus stop on your right. If in a hurry you could stay on the old Mansfield Road towards Chesterfield, down to the junction by the garage at Temple Normanton. Turn L towards Holmewood and immediate R onto Birkin Lane, This comes out in Grassmoor opposite the Boot & Shoe. Beware of steep downhill with occasional flooding at the bottom in heavy weather.
Happy exploring.
Edit to add map number. Pathfinder 762, Staveley and Worksop (South) scale 1/25000. Continues on Pathfinder 779, Mansfield (North) and part of Sherwood Forest.
Maps
Have a look at the area around Chesterfield on Open Cycle Map:
http://www.opencyclemap.org/?zoom=13&lat=53.22785&lon=-1.39865&layers=B000
Red indicates National Cycle Network (NCN) and blue is Local Cycle Network (LCN). The dashed lines indicate proposed routes, but be aware that they may sometimes be a long way from actual implementation, if they happen at all!
I believe that a potential route from Arkwright to the Five Pits Trail is on DCC's radar but I don't know whether it has progressed any further than that. Even where public rights of way already exist, getting a change of use pushed through can often be tricky with landowners.
Maps Contnd
The offroad route from Arkwright to the 5 Pits was looked at years ago. Problems are that the railway line disappears under Arkwright tip, then there's a blocked off tunnel, also under the tip, which re-emerges at Postmans Lane on the far side of Sutton Springwood, then the line is blocked by the modern A617 dual carriageway. It may be possible to run a route over the top of the tip onto Rock Lane and then to Postmans Lane that way, then onto the new shared pavement at Temple Normanton, personally I think that's a lot more hassle than it's worth and I would avoid the route if it existed. The sensible thing would be to extend the existing route into Arkwright pit yard then run it out onto Sutton Lane through the old pit entrance. The surface is already there for the sake of removing some earth so it would cost very little and cut out the crossing of the A632 at the roundabout. The rest of the route would be as I posted above.
Killamarsh
I'm not familiar with the details myself, but this information is available on Rotherham Council's website:
http://www.rotherham.gov.uk/info/613/rights_of_way-information_and_advice/111/sustrans_connect2_project/1
If you follow the link for the Core Route, then it looks like the same area where DCC will be beginning their work soon.
Looks like a diversion
Thanks, I'll have to go the long way round by the look of it.
Rethink...
After another look at the Rotherham website and a little exploring it looks as though it should be possible to go under the bridge towards Killamarsh, turn right up Station Lane, then after about 200 yards (just after the station building ruins) turn right. That leads onto the old station overbridge, a left turn comes back to the trail just beyond the S end of the station platforms. This appears to be beyond the extent of the earthworks. Fingers crossed!
Work started
Machinery on the path and the embankment side this lunchtime. I got onto the trail OK southbound using the Forge Lane route, the other one via Station Lane looks accessible too.