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Local Life - Wigan - May 2019

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68 Leisure<br />

Carr Mill<br />

by Jess Phillips<br />

On a glorious spring day masquerading as midsummer,<br />

we headed out on our latest 4 ½ mile Jack’s Tracks<br />

around Sankey Valley Country Park and the beautiful<br />

Carr Mill Dam near St. Helens. Begin at the Sankey<br />

Valley Visitor Centre (postcode WA11 0AB), where<br />

you’ll find a convenient free car park just behind the<br />

Ship Inn off Blackbrook Road/Stanley Bank Way (A58).<br />

The visitor centre is also a good place to learn a bit<br />

more about the flora and fauna of the park before you<br />

head off along the trail.<br />

First, walk onto the old canal tow path, then turn<br />

right to make your way up through the country park<br />

along the main trail. There are plenty of birds to spot<br />

along the way, plus a few monuments to the Sankey<br />

Canal’s long and lustrous history by the waterside.<br />

As you reach the northern end of the park, pass<br />

under the East Lancashire Road and then the railway<br />

viaduct, with Carr Mill Dam in front of you. If you’re<br />

lucky, a train might pass by overhead. Continue to<br />

follow the path as it slopes gently upwards and to<br />

the right, then to the left onto Garswood Road. This<br />

is where you’ll find the Toby Carvery pub – walk<br />

towards the water’s edge and follow the path around<br />

the western side of the reservoir.<br />

If you live locally, it’s easy to forget what a feat of<br />

engineering Carr Mill Dam actually is. It was formed<br />

by damming Blackbrook Valley, and used to power<br />

industrial mills before being enlarged for use as<br />

a headwater for the St. Helens Canal in the mideighteenth<br />

century. Many species of birds make their<br />

home at the dam, including Grey Heron, Mute Swan<br />

and Kingfisher.

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