Poynton

 December 24, 2014.

POYNTON, MACCLESFIELD CANAL, LADYBRIDGE TRAIL, LYME PARK, PLATTWOOD FARM, HILLTOP FARM, BOAR’S HEAD AT HIGHER POYNTON, DAVENPORT GOLF CLUB, PRINCES INCLINE, BULL’S HEAD AT POYNTON

Distance: 8-9 miles.

Difficulty: Easy.

Weather: Dry and chilly.

Walkers: Alan Hart, Terry Jowett and George Whaites.

Non-walking drinkers: John Laverick and Geoff Spurrell.

Apologies: Peter Beal, Steve Courtney (sailing in West Indies), Tom Cunliffe (w*^king), Colin Davison (visiting Bristol and Wales), George Dearsley (in Turkey), Jock Rooney (supervising diving in Persian Gulf)

Leader: Hart. Diarist: Hart.

Starting point: Diarist’s home at 68, London Road North, Poynton.

Starting time: 10.05am. Finishing time: 1.50pm.

The fact that Christmas Eve fell on a Wednesday this year caused severe depletion to our numbers for domestic reasons. It also meant that those who did turn up at your diarist’s home were obliged to drink a larger share of mulled wine and to eat a bigger portion of pizza and mince pies than anticipated.

The absence of any recognised guides also meant that your diarist became the de facto leader – an unwelcome situation which was always likely to end in tears. Those were shed in the first hour when the trio found themselves up to their fetlocks in mud. No doubt a more experienced leader would have plotted a route avoiding such conditions.

We did, however, manage to reach our main goals – The Boar’s Head and The Bull’s Head – only a few minutes behind schedule and were rewarded with excellent pints of Black Sheep bitter in the former and Thwaites’ Original in the latter.

From your diarist’s home we turned right and followed a footpath which brought us out on Towers Road (3mins) We turned right along the road until we reached a wooden public footpath sign (12mins) and turned left over a wooden stile on to duckboards leading into a field. We headed diagonally right and then picked up a path which brought us to a kissing gate (20mins) which took us across a track.

After picking our way daintily through the mud on the churned up path, we came to a stretch of slime which led to a gate. Despite our best efforts there were many traps for the unwary and George had a “vicar of Dibley” moment when he stood on a treacherous tuft which gave way to sink him up to his knees.

Terry, who was at the rear, saw our plight and wisely took a circuitous route round the worst of the slime and over a broken fence to emerge relatively unscathed.  We then went t right over a wooden stile marked with a yellow arrow (39mins) to follow a narrow footpath which emerged in Middlewood Road.

We crossed this (41mins) and passed the former home of our late colleague Ian Price on Prince Road, crossing Hilton Road to go over the Middlewood Way (45mins) After passing Sunny Side Cottage and The Cedars on our left we reached the Macclesfield Canal (50mins) and turned left. At the first bridge (Number 13) we left the canal by turning left and winding round, admiring the gaily-decorated World War 2 pillbox on the far bank, before crossing Bridge 13 and turning left to walk past it on our left.

After 60 yards we turned right at a public footpath sign (58mins) This took us downhill to a pair of wooden footbridges which criss-crossed Lady Brook (65mins) We followed the yellow arrows of the Ladybrook Trail and crossed two ladder stiles to walk over the Manchester-Buxton railway line (75mins)

At a public footpath sign on our right we turned right (84mins) and then entered Lyme Park by a ladder stile (90mins) Our stay in the park was brief as we turned right 50 yards before reaching the entrance hut and swung right again to exit the grounds over a cattle-grid (96mins) Following the route marked for Poynton we turned left and then swung right across another cattle-grid (111mins) to head for Plattwood Farm.

After going through the farm (115mins) we continued downhill along a path which swung left and headed unpromisingly towards the drive of a house. However we spotted a wooden stile marked with a yellow arrow on the far side of the drive. We crossed this (122mins) and soon came to another wooden stile with a yellow arrow which we crossed and turned right.

Another wooden stile marked with a white (or possibly faded yellow) arrow took us to the left of a duckpond and through a kissing gate to the left of Hilltop Farm. The Path emerged at a lane where we turned right, over a cattle-grid and past Victoria Pit Moorings on our right (133mins) A bridge took us over the Macclesfield Canal and we continued downhill, passing the Nelson Pit Museum on our right, crossing the Middlewood Way and reaching the Boar’s Head opposite (137mins)

After pints of Black Sheep cask bitter costing £3 we left the pub’s front door and turned left into Anson Road. Our route was now all downhill as we reached the end of Anson Road and crossed Middlewood Road to head for Davenport Golf Club (152mins) At a public footpath sign we turned left across the fairway, went through a gate to exit the course (155mins) and head up through a copse.

After leaving the trees we followed the path to our right which brought us to Towers Road (162mins) We crossed the road diagonally right to head down Princes Incline and reach the main road (172mins) Here we turned right to reach the Bull’s Head for further refreshment at £3-10 a pint.

There will be no organised walk next Wednesday (New Year’s Eve) but there is a traditional walk the following day (Thursday, January 1) to which wives, family members and friends are welcome. It starts from 10.30am near the nets at Poynton Sports Club car park. In recent years we have walked to The Miners Arms at Adlington but I am advised this has recently closed down. In those circumstances we are changing the venue to the Horseshoe at High Lane, aiming to arrive shortly after noon, and returning to The Bull’s Head at Poynton around 2pm.

In the past picnics have been taken and shared, along with fortifying drinks to keep out the cold.

Happy wandering !