Our Guided Walk for the Bradford Pennine Gateway Trail Launch

We’re delighted to be playing a part in one of the biggest events on the Bradford walking calendar this year: the official launch of the brand-new Bradford Pennine Gateway Trail, and Bingley Walkers are Welcome has been asked to lead one of the guided sections on the day itself.

1. Where to meet?
2. Register Now!
3. What do you need?
4. Disclaimer
5. Public Transport & Car Park
6. What’s being launched?

Bingley Walkerss are Welcome leaders will be guiding walkers along the middle section of the Trail, a gentle-to-moderate walk of around 3.5 miles starting at Victoria Hall in Saltaire and finishing at Bingley North Bog. Along the way the route takes in two of the Reserve’s quieter gems: Trench Meadows, a rare surviving patch of species-rich lowland meadow tucked below Shipley Glen, and Bingley North Bog, a wetland hidden between the Leeds & Liverpool Canal and the Bingley Relief Road, home to dragonflies, herons and kingfishers.

It’s a walk many of our regulars will know well, but this is a lovely chance to share it with people joining us for the first time as part of a much bigger district-wide celebration – and to show off a little of what makes this corner of Bingley special.

We will be setting off at 10.30am, and the walk will  take around two hours including a break. The route finishes at Bingley North Bog, close to Five Rise Locks and a short walk from Bingley town centre, where there’s plenty of choice for lunch, plus train and bus connections back to Saltaire.

What: Saltaire to Bingley Bog Guided Walk

When: 19th September 2026 – 10:30 AM

How long? About 2 hours including break / 3.5 miles walk

Where:
Outside Victoria Hall
Victoria Road
Saltaire
BD18 3JS

Grid Reference: SE 139 378
What3Words: ///kicked.debate.piper

Price: £0.00 – It’s free! Registration required

This is a moderate walk with some uneven ground and a short ascent, set at a pace appropriate to the distance and time available – please make sure you’re comfortable with this before joining.

Bring the following with you:

• weather-appropriate clothing and waterproofs;
• any medication you might need, including plasters;
• hand sanitiser;
• water bottle, flask and any snacks.
• sun cream (if the forecast calls for it);
• a fully charged mobile phone;

Footwear note: many paths will be stony or muddy so please wear walking shoes or boots with non-slip soles. You may want to bring walking poles with you if you usually feel more comfortable with them.

Please read our disclaimer for further information about our dos and don’ts

• Whilst leaders take every care, your comfort and safety are your own responsibility.
• Leaders will not be able to give you any personal assistance which would involve close proximity or touch during the walk (except in an emergency), e.g. to cross stiles, or manage slippery slopes, so if you think you might need assistance please bring along a family member.
• Photos may be taken during the walk for use on our website and social media. Please let a leader know if you’d rather not be included.
• Under-18 year old people to be accompanied by a responsible adult
• Unfortunately, no dogs are allowed on this walk due to livestock in fields.

Bingley Walkers are Welcome encourage everyone to travel to this walk by public transport where possible. Saltaire station is just a 3-minute walk from the start at Victoria Hall, with direct trains from Bradford Forster Square every half hour. The 622, 626 and 662 buses also run from Bradford into Saltaire. If you’re driving, pay-and-display parking is available at Caroline Street (BD18 3JZ), though spaces are limited. After the walk, regular trains run from Bingley back to Saltaire in just 5 minutes, or you can follow the canal back on foot in about an hour. Visit our page about travelling to Bingley to find out more.

In May 2025, eight council-owned sites across the district – Ilkley Moor, Baildon Moor, Shipley Glen, Trench Meadows, Bingley North Bog, St Ives Estate, Harden Moor and Penistone Hill – were brought together and formally designated by Natural England as the Bradford Pennine Gateway National Nature Reserve. It’s the first National Nature Reserve in West Yorkshire, part of the King’s Series of NNRs, and covers well over a thousand hectares of moorland, wetland, woodland and meadow.

The new Trail links all eight of those sites into a single 18-mile route running from Ilkley in the north down to Haworth in the south, crossing some of the most varied countryside in the district along the way – from the open moorland above Ilkley and Baildon, through the wooded valley of Shipley Glen, past the wetlands of Bingley North Bog, and on towards the Brontë moors above Haworth.

To mark the launch, Bradford Culture Company are inviting walkers to experience the route on 19 September, either by tackling the full 18 miles in one go (registration required, £5) or by joining one of four shorter guided sections that make up the whole trail:

• Ilkley to Shipley Glen (7 miles) – led by Baildon Walkers are Welcome
• Saltaire to Bingley Bog (two departures) – one led by our own Bingley WaW volunteers, the other by Bradford CHA Rambling and Social Club
• Bingley to Haworth (7 miles) – led by West Yorkshire LDWA

All of the shorter walks are free, though everyone taking part still needs to register in advance.