Hutton: Walking Trails, Natural Areas and Local History

Hutton is a rewarding destination for travellers who want to combine walking with landscapes and local history. Highlights include routes to the River Ribble, the Hutton Marsh natural area and historical traces that tell of transport routes, buildings and former occupations. This makes it possible to tailor your stay to different interests: focusing on activity and the riverside landscape on one occasion, and allowing more time for the history of the village on another.

Walking trails with different focuses

The Hutton & Longton Coastal Walk begins at the car park of Hutton Village Hall and reaches the River Ribble. One section of this trail is signposted as the Ribble Way. This provides useful guidance for planning if you are looking for a walk with a clear starting point and a connection to the river.

Another perspective is offered by the Hutton Ribble Way Circular route. An approximately 4-kilometre section of it runs parallel to the River Ribble and along the Ribble Way. You should take the approximate length into account when planning your day. Those who prefer a more strongly history-focused route can instead plan the South Ribble Heritage Trail Howick & Hutton. It is a guided walking trail that conveys the history and significance of longstanding local landmarks, and is listed as a 3-mile walking trail.

Hutton Marsh and the River Ribble

Hutton Marsh lies to the north-west of the village. The marsh offers landscape, sensory and recreational value, providing a distinct focus alongside the historic trails. The area is also interesting from a natural-history perspective: the first monitoring report of the Hutton Marsh project, from summer 2023, recorded successful breeding by avocets, redshanks, oystercatchers and little ringed plovers. This observation, placed in its temporal context, is part of the project's history and makes Hutton Marsh a notable subject for visitors interested in nature.

The River Ribble also plays a role in the history of the village. A ford near Dungeon Farm on Skip Lane connected Hutton with Lea and the Fylde coast from the 16th century until the 19th century. Fishing on the Ribble was a small but flourishing source of employment. Historical connections such as these broaden the view of the landscape beyond today's walking trail.

Buildings and stories along the way

Hutton has several concrete points of reference for exploring its history. Hutton Grammar School moved from Longton to its present location in Hutton in 1746. In 1774, the first regular direct stagecoach service between Preston and Liverpool began operating via Hutton. The village's name is also linked to railway history: the station on Chapel Lane in New Longton was called Hutton and Howick Station from 1897 to 1934.

Rawstorne House bears an inscription plaque about a workhouse built in 1827 at the expense of the ratepayers of the township of Hutton. The plaque also mentions the endowment of Law Rawstorne Esq. At 150 Ratten Lane, an open fireplace with a smoke hood and an exposed historic roof structure with side purlins and rafters have been preserved. The interiors of houses nos. 138 and 140 on Ratten Lane also contain original timber-frame elements with curved posts and purlins; a complete timber-frame truss has also been preserved.

Choose a suitable base for your trip

When looking for a holiday rental in Hutton, it is worth deciding in advance how you would like to structure your days. If walking is your main priority, you can take the starting point at Hutton Village Hall and the sections along the River Ribble into consideration. For a more culture- and history-focused trip, the Heritage Trail, Rawstorne House, the buildings on Ratten Lane and the historic transport links offer different themes for individual excursions.

For further comparisons with nearby places, you can also consider Lea, Scarisbrick, Ribchester, Wrea Green, Winewall, Calder Vale, Nelson and Hornby.

For the broader travel overview: Lancashire.