Bollington

BOLLINGTON, RAINOW AND ENVIRONS

Distance: 8.6 miles

Difficulty: Moderate

Weather: Windy but sunny

Walkers: Alan Hart, George Dearsley, George Whaites,  Peter Beal, Jock Rooney and Tip, Tom Cunliffe, Steve Courtney, Mickey Barrett

Apologies: Colin Davison (Euro motorbike tour), Lawrie Fairman (France), Julian Ross (unavailable)

Leader: Beal  Diarist: Dearsley

Starting Point: The main car park in Bollington

Starting Time: 9.28am. Finishing Time: 1.50pm

With the usual leaders absent Mr Beal took on the mantle very effectively and orchestrated an enjoyable walk, mostly in sunshine.

We took in the so called “permissive path” and negotiated the ridge we have previously walked in what appeared to be London smog. This time we were treated to Cheshire vistas that would bring a tear to a glass eye.

Thinking we had a full complement we set off slightly early at 9.28am when Mr Courtney arrived in his Porsche. We elected to let him join us at F Smith’s famous pie shop, which he duly did.

We continued left from the car park and turned into Ingersley Road, passing the Cotton Tree pub on the right.

The road begins to rise and we took a left fork, following a sign to Pott Shrigley. This is Spuley Lane.

We went right into Hedge Row and left over a stile after about 250 yards.

We went through a kissing gate and over a tiny, old stone packhorse bridge.

We began to climb, first up a path fenced on both sides, then past a duck house on the right.

The hill becomes increasingly steeper and there was some breathing normally heard in small, ill-lit Soho picture houses or emphysema wards.

We went through a five bar gate and turned immediately right (10.05am).

This took us to another incline.

We reached a metalled track and crossed a cattle grid.

Steep early climb

We then squeezed through a gap in a wall and followed a track to a farm. At the road we turned right.

Brink Farm was on the left (10.27am).

I was intrigued by some huge logs lying in the fields, like a Neanderthal showjumping course.

However, it transpires Brink Farm is the venue for motorbike racing. You can see more by clicking the link here. http://www.oaktreephotography.co.uk/enduro

There is also a You Tube video here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4aG571N_WA

Motorsport at Brink Farm.

At this point I also noticed the wind and not only from Mr Cunliffe’s digestive system.

(Cue Tommy Cooper joke. “I went to the doctor and asked him if he had anything for wind. He gave me a kite.”)

We reached a road and turned right.

After 50 yards we turned left, went over a fence and found ourselves on the “permissive path”.

This begins with the kind of a steep incline that might make an alternative venue for Gloucester’s annual Cheese Rolling event.

But the climb was certainly worth it.

Cheshire vista

The wind was the kind of strength that might have got Hornblower excited but could play havoc with a line of washing or an ill-fitting toupe.

Indeed I noticed that Mr Barrett had removed his Tilley-style hat for fear of having to chase it.

Coincidentally, Mr Beal alerted us to the view of Windgather Rocks in the far distance.

Shutlingsloe could also be spied on the horizon.

We were actually walking into the wind at this point.

At 10.56am Pie Time was declared and we sheltered behind a dry stone wall.

Ignoring Mr Cunliffe’s Windsor Davies-style commands to get back on our feet, we enjoyed a full 10 minutes of feasting.

We set off at 11.06am crossing a stile on our left.

We soon began a steep descent but after a couple of minutes found ourselves climbing again to negotiate a tricky right turn around an occasionally boggy escarpment.

We went over a fence and found a path with large tractor ruts.

Pie Time, with White Nancy arrowed and Mickey with his hat back on.

Another wonderful vista

This brought us to a metalled road and we passed Round Knoll Farm on the right.

At a T-junction we turned left.

We then took a right turn through the gates of Waggonshaw Farm.

Here, Mr Hart gave a rendition of a Siegfried Farnon, rescuing an escaped new born lamb and putting it back under a wire fence to join the rest of its flock.

He seemed disturbingly expert in the way he held the animal’s hind quarters.

At the farmhouse we circumvented the buildings to the right. There was a huge reservoir below us to our left. Some thought this to be Lamaload. We were not sure but I believe this was correct.

We passed Croft Cottage on the right.

We went over another cattle grid and on reaching a road, turned left.

We were now in Rainow and we reached the Robin Hood at 12.10pm.

Wainwright and Bombardier were both £3.05, while Black Sheep was £3.

Mr Barrett had some kind of device about his person that claimed we had travelled 6.7 miles (some disputed this) and that he had personally burned off 905 calories, while making 14,908 steps.

He then revealed a T-shirt carrying the name of the blues combo The Hoax, whose website (see the link) http://thehoaxuk.tumblr.com/  helpfully carries a photograph of a urinal.

As every schoolboy knows, the British blues band The Hoax was founded by Cornishman Robin Davey, the second most exciting thing to come out of Bodmin after the mythical Beast of Bodmin Moor.

The band signed to East West Records in 1994 and released their debut album Sounds Like This to critical acclaim.

Q magazine likened the band to the Yardbirds and The Rolling Stones and gave the album a 4 star review. The album was produced by Mike Vernon whose early work included Fleetwood Mac and John Mayall's Blues Breakers (with Eric Clapton).

The Hoax split in 1999 having released four albums and shortly afterwards Davey formed the Davey Brothers, a blues rock outfit with his older brother Jesse.

The duo signed to Interscope records but split in 2006 without actually releasing anything through the label.

However, the Davey Brothers' song "Heart Go Faster" was featured over the closing credits in the film Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life and featured on the soundtrack album.

In 2009 Davey embarked on a European tour with his former band The Hoax. The band recorded the shows for release of a live album and DVD.

The band’s current so called “Big City” tour has taken in such legendary venues as the Picturedome …..in Holmfirth.

Robin Davey now lives in a small town in Orange County, north of Los Angeles, a place, he says that “reminds me of Bodmin... or Devizes”.  How very rock n’ roll.

We left the pub at 1pm and turned down Stocks Lane to the left and then right into Chapel Lane.

We passed an interesting sign on a gate to The Old Hall.

Warning sign

Formerly a farmhouse now a house, The Old Hall was built in the early 17^th century with additions dating back to 1690.

I’m sure, like me, the Wanderers were agog at the coursed squared buff sandstone rubble, Kerridge

stone-slate roof, stone ridge and 3 stone chimneys.

The right gable end has four, 2-light chamfered stone mullions under hood moulds, too.

The route back is one with which we are very familiar, taking in the Virgins’ Path and the waterfall where we had lunch at 1.22pm.

We resumed at 1.32pm passing the derelict mill and entering Bollington via Church Street, with its boarded up church. We have passed this many times but never written about it.

St John the Baptist's Church, Bollington, is a redundant Anglican parish church designated by English Heritage as a Grade II listed building.

The church was built between 1832 and 1834, and was designed by William Hayley and Thomas Brown but was declared redundant on 1 February 2006.

The building was due to be converted into 13 apartments and the planning application was duly approved by Cheshire East Council Northern Planning committee on 20th October 2010.

Work started by clearing that part of the graveyard that  was to become the car park. Then all work ceased for many months.

On 2nd December 2011 the developers Simply Group made the following announcement regarding commencement of building work.

"Unfortunately once the floor was removed it became apparent that there was significantly more subsidence than originally anticipated and so new Structural Engineers had to be drafted in to redesign the sub structure.

“This meant that after receiving the original tender quotations back, we then had to re-tender which considerably delayed our start on site.

“ I am pleased to now advise that the project will be beginning at the start of January 2012.”

Clearly nothing more has been done so it appears that the costs of saving the building vastly outweigh the potential profits.

We turned left at the end of Church Street and were back at the cars at 1.50pm.

After de-booting a libation was taken in the Dog and Partridge where Unicorn was £2.80, cheap but not up to Mr Cunliffe’s high standards.

Next week’s walk will start from the Wheatsheaf in Old Glossop at 9.45am. We are going to explore Bleaklow with no mid-way point stop for refreshments.

Happy Wandering!