WAGFINDER
Walk · South Yorkshire

Manvers Lake

Wath upon Dearne · S63 7DG
N 176 YD
1.3MILES
45mON FOOT
15mCLIMB
CircularSHAPE
Off-road 95% 5% shares tarmac with cars
Field & moor path 75%Lane & track 20%Road with traffic 5%

Our drawing of the route — the shape of the walk, not a navigation aid. Carry OS Explorer on the hill. Off-lead information here is what walkers reported or what signage allows — never our advice. Whether and when a dog is off the lead is the owner’s decision and legal responsibility; keep dogs under control near livestock and follow signs on the day.

Starts at
The Boathouse, Station Road, Wath upon Dearne, Rotherham S63 7DG (sat nav S63 7BU) S63 7DG
Parking
Main car park at the Boathouse, open daily from 7am to 8pm with seasonal variation, on suggested donations of £2 up to two hours, £3 for two to four hours and £4 all day; free for Manvers Waterfront B
Directions to the start →

A flooded former colliery and coal preparation site at Manvers, now a lake with a made circuit of about a mile and a quarter run by the Manvers Lake and Dearne Valley Trust from the Boathouse on Station Road. The path is flat enough for a wheelchair or a buggy, though the surface turns to dirt track in places and there are one or two slight inclines. Two longer circular routes of three and five kilometres link the lake to the Trans Pennine Trail, and the Dearne Way runs along the northern side towards Old Moor. The site itself is open on foot at all times, with most of the footpaths permissive rather than public rights of way.

THE SMALL PRINTThe Manvers Lake and Dearne Valley Trust lists the site as dog friendly, including the cafe and its indoor seating area, and publishes no lead requirement for the lakeside path. Wath upon Dearne is in Rotherham borough, where there is no borough-wide dogs-on-leads order; the borough-wide Dog Fouling PSPO 2020 applies, in operation from 29 January 2025 for three years, with a fixed penalty up to £100 or a fine up to £1,000 on conviction. Most of the paths here are permissive access rather than rights of way, so the landowner's rules stand.

House rules, decoded

Off-lead allowed
REGION · SOUTH YORKSHIRE
GRID · 53.5093, -1.3378
SOURCE · HTTPS://WWW.MANVERSLAKETRUST.CO.UK/PLAN-YOUR-VISIT
Also in Wath upon Dearne
WAGFINDER No photo yet
N 440 YD 2.4 MI · OUT & BACK
SOME LIMITS

Bolton Ings and the Trans Pennine Trail

Wath upon Dearne · S63 7FY
No reviews yet
2.4MILES
1:10TIME
15mCLIMB
95%OFF-ROAD
Off-lead allowed

A flat run east along the Trans Pennine Trail on the old Dearne Valley railway embankment, with the flooded subsidence flashes of Bolton Ings opening out to the south. The RSPB states "Under control dogs welcome" here, which makes it the natural dog walk of the Dearne Valley given that the main Old Moor reserve a few hundred yards west takes assistance dogs only. The trail surface is hard and level the whole way, so it works in winter and with a barrow, and the public hides on the embankment let you stop without stepping off the path. Park at Old Moor and walk out; there is no car park at Bolton Ings itself.

VERIFIED 30 JUL 2026 VIEW WALK ›
WAGFINDER No photo yet
Restaurant DOGS WELCOME

Coffee Street

S63 7FN
No reviews yet

An independent coffee shop in Unit 8 of the Onyx Retail Park on Harris Hawk Way, on the Manvers side of Wath upon Dearne, so it is the nearest proper coffee to the Manvers Lake circuit and the Trans Pennine Trail as it runs round the water. It is a modern unit with hard floors and plenty of room between tables rather than a cramped high street shop, and the parking outside is free and level. Their own website says it is great if you are passing while out walking the dog and that the dog can take on some fresh water while you have your own drink, so a bowl is offered without asking.

Water bowls
VERIFIED 30 JUL 2026 VIEW ›
WAGFINDER No photo yet
N 440 YD 1.2 MI · OUT & BACK
SOME LIMITS

Gypsy Marsh

Wath upon Dearne · S73 0UP
No reviews yet
1.2MILES
40mTIME
8mCLIMB
95%OFF-ROAD
Livestock — leads on

A five minute walk west of Old Moor and the short option in the Dearne Valley, Gypsy Marsh is a strip of wet grassland and reedbed with a surfaced right of way through it that is flat enough for a pushchair or a wheelchair. The RSPB is unambiguous: "Dogs are welcome on the designated rights of way. Please keep your dog on a lead at all times", because of the sensitive habitat and the cattle that graze it. It is open at all times, unlike the Old Moor reserve, so it is the site to know if you arrive early or late. Park at Old Moor and walk out; there is no car park at the marsh.

VERIFIED 30 JUL 2026 VIEW WALK ›
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