Silkstone Circular Walk
- Michael Palmer
- Jul 24
- 7 min read
Updated: 5 days ago
Silkstone Circular Walk – 3.63 Easy Miles Near Barnsley
If you're looking for an easy circular walk near Barnsley with countryside, village scenery and some fascinating South Yorkshire history, our 3.63-mile Silkstone Circular Walk is a lovely route.
Lyn and I personally walked, photographed and GPS recorded this walk for The White Shire.
We rate it as easy.
At just over three and a half miles, it's one of our shorter South Yorkshire walks and a good choice when we fancy getting outside without committing ourselves to a longer day.
What makes Silkstone particularly interesting, though, is the history beneath our feet.
This peaceful-looking village and surrounding countryside played an important part in South Yorkshire's coal-mining story, while the remains of the old Silkstone Waggonway provide a fascinating connection with the early development of rail transport.
Silkstone Circular Walk at a Glance
Distance: 3.63 miles
Route type: Circular
Difficulty: Easy – based on our experience
Location: Silkstone
County: South Yorkshire
Nearby: Barnsley, Cawthorne, Dodworth and Penistone
Terrain: Village paths, countryside tracks and field paths
Highlights: Silkstone village, South Yorkshire countryside, All Saints' Church and Silkstone's industrial heritage
Walked and photographed by: Michael and Lyn Palmer, The White Shire
Our 3.63-Mile Silkstone Walk
Lyn and I found this to be a straightforward and enjoyable countryside walk.
At 3.63 miles, the distance is very manageable, and we didn't find anything about the overall route particularly demanding.
That's why we've rated it easy.
But easy doesn't mean uninteresting.
Silkstone is one of those places where the countryside we're walking through contains layer after layer of Yorkshire history.
There's the old village, a medieval church, evidence of early industry, coal mining and one of the most important early transport routes in this part of South Yorkshire.
Starting in Silkstone
Silkstone lies to the west of Barnsley, surrounded by countryside that still gives the village a surprisingly rural feel.
That's one of the things we like about it.
We're only a relatively short distance from Barnsley, yet once we're out walking, we quickly feel as though we've escaped into the countryside.
The village itself is worth taking some time to look around.
Stone buildings and All Saints' Church provide reminders of a much older Silkstone that existed long before coal mining transformed this part of Yorkshire.
All Saints' Church
All Saints' Church is the most obvious historic landmark in Silkstone.
Historic England lists the church at Grade I, and its origins go back to the 12th century.
The building was extensively remodelled during the later 15th century and completed in 1495, with further alterations and restoration during the 19th century. (Historic England)
Some 12th-century features still survive inside, including parts associated with an earlier crossing that once supported a central tower.
That means people have been gathering at this spot for worship for around 900 years.
For us, that's an extraordinary amount of history sitting quietly in a South Yorkshire village.
Out into the Countryside
Once we leave the village behind, the walk becomes more rural.
This is the side of South Yorkshire we particularly enjoy showing through The White Shire.
Barnsley is famous for its industrial heritage, but that can sometimes overshadow the amount of countryside surrounding the town.
Silkstone gives us both.
We've got farmland, paths and open countryside alongside reminders of the industries that once shaped local communities.
It's a landscape that makes much more sense when we explore it slowly on foot.
Why We Rate Silkstone Easy
Our difficulty ratings are based on how Lyn and I actually experienced each route.
We rate the Silkstone Circular Walk as easy.
At 3.63 miles, it's relatively short, and we didn't encounter anything that made us consider moving it into our moderate category.
As always, countryside conditions can change.
Field paths and tracks can become muddy following prolonged rain, so we'd still wear footwear suitable for the weather.
But in terms of the overall walk, we found this to be one of our more approachable South Yorkshire routes.
The Silkstone Waggonway
One of the most interesting parts of Silkstone's industrial story is its old waggonway.
The Silkstone Waggonway operated from 1809 until around 1860 and carried coal and coke towards the canal at Cawthorne. It also transported materials and equipment in the opposite direction for the area's industries. (Heritage Silkstone)
Heritage Silkstone says it is one of only eleven historic waggonways in England where original stone blocks remain in place. (Heritage Silkstone)
These early waggonways were an important stage between horse-drawn transport and the railways that would eventually transform Britain.
Today, it's difficult to imagine just how important a route like this would have been to the local economy.
Silkstone and Coal Mining
Coal mining eventually became a defining part of Silkstone's story.
The surrounding landscape contained pits and workings employing local families for generations.
But the mining story here isn't simply one of industrial growth.
It also contains one of the saddest events in Yorkshire's mining history.
The Huskar Pit disaster occurred close to Silkstone in 1838.
It's a story that deserves to be remembered.
The Huskar Pit Disaster
On 4 July 1838, a violent summer thunderstorm struck while children were working underground at the Huskar and Moorend pits.
Heavy rainfall affected the machinery used to bring workers to the surface.
A group of children attempted to escape through the Huskar Day-Hole instead.
Floodwater overwhelmed the route.
Twenty-six children lost their lives. (Heritage Silkstone)
It's difficult to comprehend today that children were working underground in these conditions.
But that's part of the reality of Yorkshire's industrial history.
Heritage Silkstone records that the victims were aged between seven and seventeen. The disaster attracted national attention and became part of the wider debate surrounding the employment of children underground. (Heritage Silkstone)
More Than a Mining Village
One thing we don't want to do is reduce Silkstone's entire history to coal mining.
There's considerably more here.
Historic England has designated the remains of a 17th-century glassworks and an 18th-century pottery just east of All Saints' Church as a Scheduled Monument. (Historic England)
Heritage Silkstone also records the village's connection with Joseph Bramah, born in the parish in 1748.
Bramah went on to become an important engineer and inventor and is particularly associated with the development of hydraulic engineering. (Heritage Silkstone)
So within a relatively small Yorkshire village, we've got medieval, industrial and engineering history sitting remarkably close together.
Walking Through a Working Landscape
Much of the countryside around Silkstone remains agricultural.
We're walking through fields and along paths that form part of somebody else's working environment.
We always try to remember that.
We stick to recognised public rights of way, respect crops and livestock and leave gates as we find them.
If we're encouraging people to discover Yorkshire through The White Shire, we also want everyone to help look after the places they're exploring.
Is the Silkstone Circular Walk Suitable for Beginners?
Based on our experience, we'd consider this one of our more approachable South Yorkshire walks.
The distance is only 3.63 miles, and we've rated it easy.
If you're reasonably comfortable walking a few miles through normal countryside, we think Silkstone is a good option.
Weather remains the main consideration.
Natural paths can become muddy following rain, and conditions will always vary through the seasons.
But compared with some of our longer, hillier or more challenging routes, Silkstone is relatively gentle.
More South Yorkshire Walks
Silkstone adds another interesting route to our growing South Yorkshire collection.
We've explored villages, reservoirs, former mining landscapes and countryside across the Barnsley, Doncaster and Sheffield areas.
And that's exactly what we want The White Shire to become.
Not simply a page containing individual walks, but a resource people can use to discover parts of Yorkshire they might never previously have considered visiting.
Or explore somewhere completely different next time.
Discovering the Real Yorkshire
Silkstone fits perfectly with the Yorkshire we want to show through The White Shire.
At first glance, this is simply an attractive village surrounded by countryside.
Then we start looking closer.
We discover a Grade I listed church with origins in the 12th century.
We find the remains of an early 19th-century waggonway.
We uncover the village's glassmaking and pottery history.
And we learn about the 26 children whose lives were lost in the Huskar Pit disaster.
These aren't stories added to make a walk sound more interesting.
They're part of the landscape we're actually walking through.
That's the real Yorkshire for us.
The villages, paths and stories sitting between the famous attractions.
About Michael and Lyn
Michael and Lyn Palmer explore Yorkshire together on foot, personally walking, photographing and GPS recording the routes featured on The White Shire.
We're not professional hikers or historians.
We're simply a husband and wife who enjoy getting outside together, discovering interesting places and learning more about Yorkshire as we go.
Our difficulty ratings reflect how we personally experienced each route.
Silkstone Circular Walk – Our Verdict
Our Silkstone Circular Walk measures 3.63 miles.
Lyn and I rate it as easy.
It's a manageable countryside route that gives us an enjoyable few miles without anything particularly strenuous.
But what makes Silkstone stand out is its history.
Within a relatively small area we've got a medieval church, an early waggonway, evidence of historic glassmaking and pottery, and the powerful story of the Huskar Pit disaster.
That combination makes Silkstone much more than simply somewhere to clock up another 3.63 miles.
It's a walk through a landscape shaped by generations of Yorkshire people.
And that's exactly the sort of place we want people to discover through The White Shire.
Silkstone Circular Walk
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