Walks you can reach from Accrington by train

Circular round the village of Huncoat, near Accrington, level then climbing to viewpoints over the Calder valley, past the pit-top nature reserve and remnants of the old brickworks and Perseverance Mill.

Walk details: Community Rail Lancashire (PDF).

Recommended: A largely urban route that is mostly along the canal towpath, avoiding a nasty motorway roundabout. The towpath is gravel or degraded tarmac with a couple of uneven patches; there are some interesting old mills and but a lot of pylons and nearby roads. Some interesting old mills along the towpath. Dragonflies and a weasel were seen.

Lunch: A cafe at Home Bargains in the retail park near the midpoint (accessed via steps).

Warnings: There are cycle barriers and a couple of uneven patches on the towpath. Leaving the towpath in Blackburn involves an unavoidable kerb and a cobblestone roadway.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Recommended: A very enjoyable, direct and straightforward canal walk, almost entirely along the Rochdale Canal towpath following national cycle route 66. The terrain is nearly all level with a mostly gravel surface, though bridges and slopes past locks have cobbles and canal overflows run over cobbles across the towpath in several places. Tree cover gives a green-tunnel feel. Follows national cycle route 66 along the Rochdale Canal. Canalside interest: locks, houseboats, mileposts and stone bridges.

Waterway: almost all along the Rochdale Canal.

Time: 2h–4h

Lunch: Refreshment opportunities along the canalside towards Hebden Bridge.

Warnings: Canal overflows run over cobbles across the towpath in several places, with a raised plank alongside to keep feet dry.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Recommended: A pleasant route out of Blackpool on suburban roads and through Stanley Park, then a cycle-and-walkway and a choice of hard-surfaced track or gravelled woodland path beside a stream and before housing estates and paved roads into Poulton. Largely flat and easy underfoot. Passes Blackpool Zoo. Stanley Park has an Art Deco cafe, gardens and a boating lake (occasionally affected by avian flu restrictions).

Time: 2h–4h

Lunch: An Art Deco cafe in Stanley Park, plus facilities in Normoss and at the Poulton end.

Warnings: Follows a busy road for a fifth of the walk.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

A wheel-friendly route on good surfaces through the centre and suburbs of Blackburn, where cars often park partly on the pavement and opening into more interesting countryside with improving views after Ramsgreave & Wilpshire. Passes Ramsgreave & Wilpshire and Langho stations, useful for doing only part of the walk; also served by several buses.

Time: 3h–6h

Warnings: Follows a busy road for a third of the walk. Take care crossing Ribchester Road near the Wilpshire Hotel, where a sweeping filter lane carries traffic at speed.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

A long route with a very enjoyable, good-surfaced opening section to Bamber Bridge and with a minor road to cross and a narrow 62 cm gap. Avenham Park near the start has free toilets.

Time: 5h30–10h30

Walk details: Slow Ways.

The scenery was very pretty. Almost entirely along the Rochdale Canal towpath, crossing the Pennine summit, on pretty Millstone Grit bridges and lock walls. The towpath has puddles and a few cobbled, cambered or planked sections, plus a wooded and muddy final stretch to Todmorden station. Follows the Rochdale Canal (including its summit) and is part of the National Cycle Network. Waterfalls tumble down the hills either side of the canal; an air vent for the railway Summit Tunnel can be spotted.

Waterway: almost all along the Rochdale Canal.

Time: 2h30–5h

1 lunch spot: the Summit Inn

Warnings: One tricky stretch of towpath under the A58 Halifax Road and up the side of Durn Lock is cambered, sloping and cobbled. The wooded final section to Todmorden station can be muddy with planks across it.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

This is a gorgeous experience. A largely flat, easy-to-follow route predominantly along an off-road shared-use cycle path (national cycle route 66), with sections of canal towpath and woodland alongside the railway and quiet roads. Mostly step-free with only slight inclines; one short stretch on narrower busy-road pavements in Mytholmroyd. Some bridleway diversions are overgrown. Follows national cycle route 66 along the Rochdale Canal.

Waterway: nine tenths along the River Calder.

Woodland: a quarter under tree cover.

Time: 2h30–5h

Warnings: A short section of narrow pavement on a busier road in Mytholmroyd. A couple of tricksy points joining the canal and railside paths.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Time: 4h30–9h30

Walk details: Slow Ways.

A route using quiet roads (with pavements until past Treales) for the first third and the Lancaster Canal towpath for most of the rest and generally very pleasant though the first canal section can be very muddy after rain. A flight of shallow steps down to the towpath; the canal becomes more urban approaching Preston. Passes the entrance to the Millennium Ribble Link, a canalised river opened in 2002 connecting the Lancaster Canal to the River Ribble; detour possible at Haslam Park.

Time: 3h30–7h30

2 lunch spots: the Hand and Dagger, or the Final Whistle cafe

Warnings: The first stretch of the canal path can be very muddy after rain. The first half of the canal is within the emergency zone for the Westinghouse nuclear fuel works (test siren on the first Tuesday of certain months).

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Time: 4h–8h

Walk details: Slow Ways.

A varied route through parks and woods between Blackpool and Staining, then farm tracks and field paths parallel to the railway, with some long grass and parallel cycle paths that can confuse. Avoids a fast and narrow pavement-less road between Weeton and Wesham. Passes through Stanley Park, with its Art Deco cafe building; woods carpeted with wild garlic in spring; Staining lies about a third of the way along.

Time: 4h–8h30

Lunch: Staining, about a third of the way, has a pub and a convenience shop.

Walk details: Slow Ways.