Handforth

UNICORN AT DEAN ROW (HANDFORTH), VICAR FARM, BOLLIN VALLEY WAY, PRESTBURY SEWAGE WORKS, ADMIRAL RODNEY AT PRESTBURY, LOWER GADHOLE FARM, LEGH OLD HALL, MOTTRAM ST ANDREWS, MILL HILL FARM (AS TRESPASSERS), BOLLIN VALLEY WAY, HOLLIES FARM AND UNICORN

Distance: Ten miles.

Difficulty: Easy.

Weather: Dry and mostly sunny.

Walkers: Mickey Barrett, Tom Cunliffe, Colin Davison, Alan Hart, John Laverick and George Whaites.

B walkers: Tony Job, Pete Morrall, Ken Sparrow and Geoff Spurrell.

Apologies: Peter Beal (hiking elsewhere with wife), Nigel Crank (Portuguese hols), George Dearsley (extended Turkish hols), Jock Rooney (Isle of Man hols), and Julian Ross (family hols).

Leader: Hart. Diarist: Hart.

Starting point: Car park of The Unicorn at Dean Row, Handforth.

Starting time: 9.35am. Finishing time: 2.28pm.

Botany was the talk of the day as we enjoyed another burst of fine summer weather during which we took a largely flat walk along the Bollin Valley Trail in north-east Cheshire. The subject was first raised by John who reported he was suffering from bottom rot.

Although it has long been suspected that John talks through his arse at times, he explained that on this occasion it was a serious fungal disease which affects onions, garlics and leeks. Sadly, he announced, his onions will not be gracing The Poynton Show this year but have been despatched to the cooking pot with their affected bottoms having been first removed.

Later we saw the full horror of what can happen when a foreign invader gets a foothold on our green and pleasant land – and we are not talking here about Nazi stormtroopers or Romanian gipsies. Himalayan balsam, a large annual plant native to the world’s highest mountain range, has spread like wildfire along the riverbank, choking our indigenous species and dominating the scenery.

We were not blessed with a map amongst us, so your diarist led the way in the hope that his natural instincts, plus a brief verbal guide from Lawrie the week before, would find a route to The Admiral Rodney. This proved to be the case, although our homeward journey was not without its adventures and unintended detours.

From the Unicorn car park we headed right at the road and kept right at the roundabout along Lees Lane. On our right a public footpath sign pointed down a gravel track which led us into Vicar Farm (6mins). We walked through the farmyard and to the right of the building where a series of yellow arrows showed us the way.

By following them we reached a kissing gate (22mins) through which we entered a garden. We then turned right following a wooden public footpath sign marked Bollin Valley Way (24mins). When we reached a road, despite Colin’s impassioned pleas that we should ignore Lawrie’s advice and a footpath diversion sign to carry straight onwards, we turned left along the road (29mins).

After 700 yards we turned right along Wilmslow Road towards Mottram (35mins) and reached on our right the wooden public footpath sign for Mill Lane (45mins) which would have been the point at which we would have reached the road if we had not been diverted. 

After some discussion, and complaints about new boots being ruined by excessive road-walking, we continued until we reached a footpath sign on our right (47mins) pointing at ornate gates and a large house screened by high walls.

A series of yellow arrows led us round the left of the property, passing a windmill and a painting of a giant cock, both of which are rarely seen outside Holland. We reached a track and turned right past a row of cottages (59mins). We continued to follow yellow arrows which led us to the River Bollin and a wooden footbridge (69mins). Here we turned left and saw the entire riverbank and its surrounds were covered in Himalayan balsam.

This plant, impatiens glandulifera to you Latin scholars, is also known as “kiss-me-on-the-mountain” or “policeman’s helmet” because of the hooded shape of its pink flowers (I kid you not!) It flowers between June and October and forms seed pods one inch long which explode when disturbed, scattering seeds up to 23 feet.

It was first introduced to Britain in 1839 along with giant hogweed and Japanese knotweed by enterprising merchants who promoted them as being fast-growing flowers which ordinary folk could afford if they could not find the cash for orchids. It has since spread along our river systems and local wildlife trusts organise “balsam-bashing” events.

Recent studies conclude that such efforts do more harm than good, opening up the habitat for more aggressive plants such as Japanese knotweed and aid seed dispersal (by seeds sticking to boots). In Germany they have carried out research which shows the seed pods, seeds, young leaves and shoots are all edible. They are hoping to use this fact to finance the plant’s eradication.

We followed the path through this unwelcome vegetation with the Bollin on out right, passing Prestbury Sewage Works, and stopping at a bridge for pie and port time (81mins). It was during this interlude that John’s bottom rot was discussed. This can cause wilting and yellow foliage, and the soil-borne fungus, sclerotium cepivoram, can persist  for 15 years: dreadful news for a leek-growing Geordie boy.

Continuing, we passed a play area on our right (100mins) and Prestbury Village Club on our left (105mins) before turning left into Pearl Street and reaching the rear entrance of The Admiral Rodney on our right (106mins). The pub was already open at 11.31am so we were able to order our £2-80 pints of excellent Robbies’ cask bitter before the arrival of the B team a few minutes later.

We started the return journey by retracing our footsteps as far as the banks of the Bollin until we reached a stone bridge (116mins) and crossed it. We went over a wooden stile (119mins) and followed yellow arrows leading us round Lower Gadhole Farm until we reached a gravel lane (129mins). We turned left uphill. This brought us to a tarmac section and we crossed a wooden stile before stopping for lunch (131mins).

Continuing, we entered a field through a kissing gate (139mins) and turned right along a path immediately after passing Legh Old Hall (140mins). We followed a yellow arrow into a field where a white horse came across to welcome us. His friendly attention was not universally appreciated, especially by Tom, who will clearly not be taking part in the Grand National any time soon.

After exiting the field by a wooden stile, we followed a wooden public footpath sign through Mottram St Andrew golf course (150mins). After crossing a fariway we left the course by a wooden stile (156mins) and reached the drive leading to the Mottram Hall Hotel. While Colin decided to turn left towards a road, the remainder of our group walked to the hotel, passing its front entrance on our right (161mins) and heading through the car park to a hedge on the far side of a soccer practice pitch.

                              picture courtesy of John  Laverick

Here we turned left following first a yellow arrow and then a wooden public footpath sign for the Bollin Way. We also saw diversion notices informing us that there was no access ahead. We ignored them and reached Mill Hill Farm, where the owner had persuaded his local council to close the public right of way for health and safety reasons.  

We crossed a stile and then a gate at the side of a house which brought us to the bank of the Bollin. As we made our way to the road ahead, we passed the backs of many signs warning that this was private property, that trespassers would be prosecuted and that there were guard dogs. There had been no warning signs for hikers walking in our direction.

We emerged at the road we had walked earlier and turned right (186mins). After 80 yards we turned left to cross the wooden stile by which we had reached the road some four hours earlier. Colin was hurrying along the road to catch up with us. The irony that a man who had earlier complained about too much road-walking had opted for a mile and half of tarmac instead of grass was not lost on us.

It should now have been a simple matter to retrace our footsteps back through Vicar Farm, but I fear your diarist and leader missed a right turn at some stage. 

Consequently, we continued to walk with the Bollin on our left until we reached a wooden stile and turned right uphill (206mins). This brought us to a series of narrow pathways which emerged at an impressive house called Wellfield on our left (209mins). We passed Lane End Cottage on our right to reach the main road (211mins). We turned right and reached The Unicorn on our right (219mins).

The B teamers were already in situ, quaffing a selection of cask bitters at £3 a pint.

B team report.

Wally, Tony, Geoff, Pete and Ken assembled in a small car park off the entrance drive to Mottram Hall. 100 yards back towards the entrance, we took the path on the left, crossed the golf course to Woodside Farm, then followed the footpath sign South towards Leigh Hall. At Leigh House, we went through a metal gate, and came out in the middle of the Leigh Hall complex. We are sure there used to be a footpath sign back to Leigh House, but this has gone. Suitably corralled, we headed for the equestrian complex at Lower Gadhole Farm where we took elevenses and met another group of wrinklies. Suitably fortified, we continued to Prestbury, and joined our A team chums in the Admiral Rodney. Rain had been forecast for later, so after the second pint, we followed the original Bollin Valley Trail, After crossing the Bollin by wooden footbridge, we cut across the golf course to Mottram Wood, and thence back to the cars for a total walking distance of 5.2 miles. At the time of editing, no B team walk had been decided on for next week. Advance apologies from Tony, who will be engaged in labouring for Poynton Show on Saturday 24th Aug.

Next week’s walk will start at 10am at The Quiet Woman in Earl Sterndale, Derbyshire.  We hope to reach The Horseshoe at Longnor around 12.30pm for a tincture before returning to The Quiet Woman by 2.30pm.