Mersey Valley: Urmston to Carrington

Sketch map: Cob Kiln Wood

These are a couple of sites that can be treated together as one short walk or included in a longer walk with Urmston Meadows, Stretford Meadows and/or Carrington Moss. They're a couple of small patches of young woodland. Cob Kiln Wood lies by stable paddocks on Urmston Meadows, Banky Meadow lies between the Mersey and the sports grounds and water treatment works on the Carrington Spur Road.

Cob Kiln Wood

Cob Kiln Wood

Cob Kiln Wood is a tiny bit of young deciduous woodland with a rough clearing in the middle to accommodate an electricity pylon. It's bound either side by stables, on the South by the river and by houses on the North.

Blue tit

If you're walking the path along the Lancashire bank of the Mersey between Stretford and Urmston Meadows the path into the wood is the right turn after you've passed the bridge (or the left turn before the bridge if you're walking from Urmston). 

Approaching from the North the 18, 23, 245 and 255 buses run along Stretford Road, if heading towards Stretford you want the Lodge Road Stop, towards Urmston you want Torbay Road. Head down Torbay Road, the entrance to the woods is on your right once you're past the houses.

The clearing in Cob Kiln Wood

Most of the paths get muddy. A couple of them get very muddy. Even though most of the walking is dead flat it can be challenging if you're unsteady on your feet.

Stock doves

The bird life is typical of Greater Manchester suburban woodland, you've a fighting chance of seeing most of the usual suspects on a visit. The local buzzards often soar overhead and the occasional raven passes by. A couple of pairs of stock doves nest nearby.

Banky Meadow

Sketch map: Banky Meadow

From the footbridge by the Carrington Spur Road follow the path that runs alongside the road and keep bearing right you'll get to Banky Meadow. The closer you get the wetter the woodland on your left becomes (there's a small pond somewhere over there behind the trees) but the path is pretty reasonable all along. 

Walking down to Banky Meadow

Banky Meadow's on a slight rise by the Mersey. There are a couple of paths you can take through the light woodland and with care you can get a view of the river. The main path passes between a field that's been planted up as an orchard and the sports ground.

Banky Meadow

You can either follow the path back round to the river or go down Banky Road to the Spur Road. When you cross the road you've got the choice of going down Carrington Lane for the 260 bus that runs hourly between Sale or Partington or taking the path over to Carrington Moss.

The bird life's typical suburban woodland. You might bump into a moorhen or a dabchick in the wet woodland on the way in.