Top Waterfalls Day Trips from Manchester
Written by UK Hidden Gems Editorial
Updated 5 August 2026
The top Waterfalls Day Trips from Manchester include Pingot Quarry Waterfall, Wessenden Head, Waulkmill Waterfall, Kinder Downfall, Roddlesworth Waterfall, Folly Dolly Falls, Hatch Brook Waterfall and Lumb Hole Falls.
Ringed by the Pennines and the Peak District, Manchester is one of the best-placed cities in England for a waterfall day out, with good ones scattered in every direction. Closest of all is Pingot Quarry, where a stream pours over an old quarry face on Crompton Moor above Oldham.
Head east into the Peak and you reach Wessenden Head above Marsden and, higher still, Kinder Downfall, the tallest fall in the district, blown back in a plume of spray on a windy day. Turn southeast for Waulkmill in Ingersley Vale near Bollington, a mill weir set in woodland below Kerridge Hill.
To the north lie the Lancashire falls of Roddlesworth, in its plantation south of Blackburn, and Hatch Brook near Chorley, while over the tops toward Calderdale you will find Folly Dolly Falls near Meltham and the pretty packhorse bridge at Lumb Hole Falls above Hebden Bridge. Whether you fancy a gentle woodland stroll or a climb onto open moor, take your pick.
Here are eight waterfalls for a day trip from Manchester.
Pingot Quarry Waterfall
Photo: Bill Boaden via Geograph.org.uk
Pingot Quarry Waterfall tumbles over the cut face of a disused sandstone quarry on Crompton Moor, above Shaw near Oldham, on the Pennine edge of Greater Manchester. A moorland stream drops into the old workings, an informal beauty spot on open-access moor that pulls in photographers, above all after heavy rain or during a hard winter freeze.
Quarrying finished here in the 1970s, and the ground is now rough moorland with wide views and walking trails running across it. There are no facilities, and the going underfoot can be boggy and uneven, so wear boots for this short but atmospheric outing.
Wessenden Head
Photo: George Tod via Geograph.org.uk
Wessenden Head marks the moorland head of the Wessenden valley, on the A635 above Marsden in West Yorkshire, right at the edge of the Peak District. It is a well-used starting point for walks, with a track dropping down the valley past a chain of four reservoirs toward Marsden, and the Pennine Way running along the tops.
A small waterfall on the brook below the reservoirs is one of the features along the way. The land belongs to the National Trust's Marsden Moor estate, making this a fine focus for a bracing day out east of Manchester.
Waulkmill Waterfall
Photo: Hal Westhead via Geograph.org.uk
Waulkmill Waterfall Half natural drop, half handiwork: a mill weir sits on top of this small fall, built to serve the textile mill at Ingersley Clough. It stands on the River Dean in Ingersley Vale, on the northeastern edge of Bollington in Cheshire, below Kerridge Hill where the county meets the Peak District.
Woodland of beech, oak and sycamore closes in around it, reached on a circular walk of a few miles out of Bollington. Time it for spring, when bluebells and red campion light the ground, and the old working setting softens into something quietly lovely.
Kinder Downfall
Photo: John Bennett via Geograph.org.uk
Kinder Downfall is the tallest waterfall in the Peak District, where the River Kinder drops around thirty metres over the edge of the Kinder Scout plateau. In a strong west wind the falling water is blown back up over the edge in a plume of spray, sometimes carried for miles.
The flow can shrink to a trickle in dry summers and swell to a torrent after rain, and in winter it can freeze hard enough for ice climbing. The Pennine Way crosses the river just above the fall, so it fits neatly into a bracing hill walk on a day out from Manchester.
Roddlesworth Waterfall
Photo: Mr T via Geograph.org.uk
Roddlesworth Waterfall In a dry spell it barely more than trickles; after heavy rain it comes down with a roar. This small cascade drops through the River Roddlesworth in the Roddlesworth and Tockholes plantation south of Blackburn in Lancashire, a mixed woodland threaded around a chain of reservoirs.
A short walk from the road on riverside and woodland paths brings you to it, past the crumbling ruins of an old house standing quietly among the trees. Families and dog-walkers know these woods well.
Nothing waits at the fall in the way of facilities, so pack what the day needs and take the wider plantation at your own pace.
Folly Dolly Falls
Photo: habiloid via Geograph.org.uk
Folly Dolly Falls Trees have grown up thickly around this small fall over the years, screening it from the old railway line that once ran past, so it hides half a mile out from Meltham in West Yorkshire on the path now known as the Meltham Greenway. The water drops down a sandstone fault, tumbling over joints and ledges where softer shale gives way to harder rock, the stone stained red by iron running through the fault.
It lies on private ground, and the way to it is down steep steps and a short scramble up the stream, so a little care pays off.
Hatch Brook Waterfall
Photo: Alan Chadwick via Geograph.org.uk
Hatch Brook Waterfall is a small woodland fall on Hatch Brook above the village of Brinscall, in the West Pennine Moors near Chorley in Lancashire. It drops through a wooded ravine, its flow changing hugely with the weather, from a decent fall after rain to little more than a trickle in dry spells.
Reaching it is awkward, whether seen from above the track or by a steep scramble down to the base. A little-known corner of the Brinscall woods, it rewards anyone happy to leave the main paths behind on a day trip north of Manchester.
Lumb Hole Falls
Photo: Humphrey Bolton via Geograph.org.uk
Lumb Hole Falls An old stone packhorse bridge arches over the beck just above the drop, and that gentle curve of stone above falling water is the picture everyone comes for. Crimsworth Dean Beck spills into a plunge pool here, deep in woodland a few miles north of Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire.
Wild swimmers take to the pool, though the land around it is private and access has come and gone, so tread lightly. Getting to the base means a scramble down, or you can look on from above.
In spring the woods flush with bluebells and wild garlic, with lanes and paths leading in from Hebden Bridge or Hardcastle Crags.
FAQs
Which waterfall is closest to Manchester?
Pingot Quarry Waterfall on Crompton Moor above Oldham is the nearest, only about 16 kilometres from the city on the Pennine edge of Greater Manchester. It is an informal spot on open moor, at its most dramatic after heavy rain or during a hard winter freeze.
Are any of these falls suitable for a proper hill walk?
Yes. Kinder Downfall, the tallest fall in the Peak District, sits high on Kinder Scout with the Pennine Way passing just above it. Wessenden Head, above Marsden, is another fine base for a moorland walk on the National Trust's Marsden Moor estate.
When do the waterfalls look their best?
Most falls near Manchester, from Hatch Brook near Chorley to Roddlesworth south of Blackburn, run hardest after rain. Kinder Downfall can even freeze for ice climbing in winter, while Waulkmill near Bollington is at its prettiest amid spring bluebells.
Conclusion
Few cities can match Manchester for waterfalls within an easy drive. In half a day you can watch a moorland stream pour into the old workings at Pingot Quarry above Oldham, feel the spray blow back off Kinder Downfall high on Kinder Scout, or wander the woodland pool below Lumb Hole Falls near Hebden Bridge.
Some of these outings are the gentlest of strolls, while others, like Wessenden Head above Marsden or the climb to Kinder, call for boots and a map. Nearly all of the becks run at their liveliest after rain, so keep an eye on the forecast.
Whether you head into the Peak, north into Lancashire or over the tops toward Calderdale, these are the waterfalls for a day trip from Manchester.
