Autumn and winter in Saddleworth

Summer gets the crowds, but I think Saddleworth is at its best once the clocks go back. The moors turn copper and brown, the towpaths are quiet, the pubs light their fires, and there’s nothing better after a day walking in the hills than coming back to the cottage, lighting the stove and putting the kettle on.

Here’s what I’d do on an autumn or winter break, and what’s on in and around the villages this year.

Get out on the hills

Dove Stone. The reservoir above Greenfield is the easiest big walk from the cottage: about two and a half miles round the water, mostly flat, with the moors rising on every side. It’s an RSPB reserve, and in winter you may spot mountain hares in their white coats sitting out on the rocks.

Pots and Pans. The huge stone on the hill above Uppermill gave the cottage its name, and on a clear winter day the view from the top is worth every step. You can read more in the story of the Pots and Pans Stone.

The canal. For a gentler day, stroll up the towpath in Uppermill and follow the Huddersfield Narrow Canal through Dobcross and Diggle to the mouth of Standedge Tunnel, the longest canal tunnel in the country. There are plenty of stopping-off points along the way if you need a wee or a cup of tea (or both). If you’ve more energy, carry on over the tops to Marsden and catch the train back to Greenfield.

Round the village

Uppermill High Street is a ten-minute walk down the hill from the cottage, and even on a cold afternoon, there’s plenty to do.

• Hot chocolate at Caffè Grande Abaco. In a grand old listed building on the High Street, open from breakfast until late. Sit outside under the hot lamps with a blanket.
• Autumn veg from Alberti’s. Visit Caroline at Alberti’s greengrocer on New Street, with fruit and veg picked for the season, much of it from local growers. Add a joint from Neil Mellor next door, a hunk of cheese from Huw at Tyromancer on the High street and a bottle of something nice from Jules at Garratt’s in the square, and you’ve got Sunday dinner at the cottage sorted. There’s more in my guide to shopping in Uppermill.
• A craft class at Authentic. The gift shop opposite the museum car park sells work by more than 60 local makers, and runs small workshops through the autumn: needle-felted toadstools (21 October), a pottery Highland cow (18 October), watercolour and ink (28 October and 18 November), expressive coastal painting (1 November) and silver jewellery. Most cost £35 to £65, and places are limited, so book ahead on their website.
• Christmas wreath making and wine tasting at Garratt’s, 19 and 26 November and 3 December. Make your own Christmas wreath with Eden Floral Styling while you work through six festive wines: fizz on arrival, two whites, two reds and a Christmas dessert wine. 6.30pm to 8.30pm, £65 per person, and only 16 places a night. Book and pay in full directly with Eden florist in Uppermill.
• New this autumn: the Uppermill Rabbit Hole. Due to open in mid-October in a basement on the High Street. By day, it’s ice cream sundaes, dirty sodas (whatever that means) and a robot that crafts you a candyfloss flower, so one for the children. Though there are plans for film nights with food, dining clubs, make-your-own pizza and many other interesting events.
• Saddleworth Museum. Right beside the canal on the High Street, telling the story of how the weavers, mills and moors made Saddleworth. It’s open every afternoon from 1pm to 4pm, £3 for adults or £6 for a family. The art gallery reopens in November, and on 25 October there’s a painting workshop with local artist Debbie Lord.

What’s on this autumn (2026)

October

• Marsden Jazz Festival, 9 to 11 October. Jazz in the pubs and halls of Marsden, a street parade, and a day of music and stalls at the bandstand in the park on the Saturday. Fifteen minutes over the hill, or one stop on the train from Greenfield.
• Chris Cyprus at Woodend Mill, 10 to 24 October. The Dawn of Summer is a last exhibition from the wonderful Mossley-based painter, whose gallery at Woodend Mill closes in January after 20 years. It’s at the Pennine Gallery, Mill 2, Woodend Studios, Thursday to Saturday, 10am to 5pm. Mossley is a short drive from Uppermill.
• Saddleworth Farmers’ Market, Sunday 11 October. In the Saddleworth Museum car park in Uppermill, 9am to 2pm, on the second Sunday of every month. A good place to pick up something for tea.
• GO! Artists at Gallery Oldham, Saturday 17 October. Nineteen local artists and makers selling paintings, ceramics, glass, jewellery and textiles, 10am to 4pm. £1 entry, children free.
• The Little Blue Boat, weekends until the end of October. The Huddersfield Canal Society’s little boat runs 15-minute trips along the canal from behind Saddleworth Museum, 11am to 4pm. There’s no fare, just a donation to the Canal Society.
• Oldham Halloween Half Marathon, Sunday 25 October. Billed as one of the toughest half marathons around: it climbs to Grains Bar and then runs down through Delph, Dobcross, Uppermill, Grasscroft and Lydgate. Find a spot in the village to cheer, and allow extra time if you’re driving that morning.
• Halloween crafts at Saddleworth Museum, 26 and 28 October. Drop-in afternoon sessions for children during half term.
• Halloween at Standedge, 30 and 31 October. Spooky boat trips into Standedge Tunnel at the Marsden end, run by the Canal & River Trust and the Huddersfield Canal Society, with “Hell’s Kitchen” food and the café by the water.
• Halloween party at Diggle Band Club, Saturday 31 October. Fancy dress and a DJ from 8pm, for grown-ups and children.

November

• Saddleworth Marina Market, Sunday 1 November. More than 30 stalls from local makers, bakers and artists, with street food and live music, at the canal marina in Greenfield behind the Kingfisher pub, 11am to 4pm. Check times online, but it’s usually on the first Sunday of every month, though this may increase in the run-up to Christmas. It’s a ten-minute walk along the towpath from Uppermill.
• Grotton Bonfire and Fireworks, Saturday 7 November. Saddleworth’s bonfire night, at The Pavilion on Station Road, Grotton, 6pm to 10pm, with hot food and a bar. Tickets are £6 for adults and £4 for children, and it has sold out before, so get them early.
• Concert of Remembrance, Saturday 7 November. Saddleworth Male Voice Choir with Dobcross Youth Band at Uppermill Civic Hall, 7.30pm. Tickets are £12 from Alberti’s or the Post Office in Uppermill, or online.
• Remembrance Sunday at Pots and Pans, 8 November. Hundreds of people walk up to the memorial on the hill for the service. In recent years it has started just before 11am, with the Dobcross Brass Monkeys playing and hot drinks at the top. Wrap up warm. The farmers’ market is on the same morning.
• Saddleworth Historical Society talks. Evening talks at Saddleworth Museum: the Oldham coal mines on 14 October, and the Roman fort at Castleshaw on 11 November.
• The Wind in the Willows at Millgate Arts Centre, 14 to 21 November. A family show at Delph’s little theatre. The panto follows in December.
• Christmas wreath making and wine tasting at Garratt’s, 19 and 26 November and 3 December. Make your own Christmas wreath with Eden Floral Styling while you work through six festive wines: fizz on arrival, two whites, two reds and a Christmas dessert wine. 6.30pm to 8.30pm, £65 per person, and only 16 places a night. Book and pay in full directly with Eden florist in Uppermill.

Looking ahead to Christmas

From late November the villages switch on their Christmas lights, usually with a brass band, carols and mulled wine. Greenfield, Delph and Dobcross normally switch on the last weekend of November. Uppermill has its Santa Dash, Winter Wonderland and fireworks on Saturday 5 December. The same day, Boarshurst Band Club in Greenfield holds a Christmas Festive Market from 10am to 3pm, with local stalls and a Santa’s grotto (£3 per child, book ahead). Entry is free. The Saddleworth Independent publishes the dates nearer the time.

Pubs with a real fire

The lounge at the cottage has a wood-burning stove, but if you’d rather be by someone else’s fire, these are my picks.

• Church Inn, Uppermill. Next to St Chad’s church, up the hill from the village, with the We Are Wolf brewery in the old stone outbuilding. A real fire, and the fish and chips are famous.
• Cross Keys, Uppermill. A proper moorland pub with an old Yorkshire range and home-made pies. It’s in CAMRA’s Good Beer Guide. A perfect stop-off if you’re doing a circular route up and down Pots and Pans.
• Swan Inn, Dobcross. Open fires in three rooms, in the middle of one of Saddleworth’s prettiest villages.
• Diggle Hotel, Diggle. Reopened in July, with a Yorkshire range and open fires, and muddy boots are welcome. Handy at the end of the canal walk.
• Railway Inn and Wellington Inn, Greenfield. Both have real fires and are in the Good Beer Guide. The Railway has a good range of real ales and regular live music.
• Farrars Arms, Grasscroft. An 18th-century pub at the crossroads, known for its pies, with a real fire.
• Rams Head, Denshaw. A 450-year-old inn up on the moor road, with log fires and game on the menu in season. Good for a long Sunday lunch.
• Old Bell Inn, Delph. Not a fireside pub so much as a gin lover’s one: it holds the world record for the biggest gin collection, well over a thousand.

All of these welcome dogs. There’s more in my guide to eating and drinking in Uppermill.