Rudyard

Rudyard

October 26, 2016

CAR PARK AT MINIATURE RAILWAY AT RUDYARD, STAFFORDSHIRE WAY, LADDEREDGE COUNTRY PARK, CALDON CANAL, HOLLY BUSH INN, STONELOWE HALL, DUNWOOD, BRADSHAW, DEVIL'S LANE, RUDYARD

Distance: 11 miles

Difficulty: Easy

Weather: Mild and mainly sunny

Walkers: Peter Beal, Micky Barrett, Tom Cunliffe, Colin Davison, Laurie Fairman, Mark Gibby, Steve Kemp, Chris Owen, Jock Rooney with Tip

Apologies: Alan Hart (caring duties), George Dearsley (still living in Turkey), George Waites (unspecified)

Leader: Fairman​Diarist: Beal

S.O.B. Walkers: Tony Job, Terry Jowett, Ken Sparrow

Starting point: Miniature railway car park at Rudyard

Starting time: 10.02am​Finishing time: 3.24pm

Rudyard Lake marks probably the most southerly starting point of all Wednesday Wanderers expeditions. And as befits southern climes, our nine walkers were rewarded with mild weather and, despite a hint of rain around pietime, largely sunny skies with some fine views of the Staffordshire Moorlands.

Our journey was slightly longer than usual but with easy walking, despite a large number of stiles, and an excellent pub at halfway. During the course of our travels a passing young lady cyclist apparently referred to us as 'an interesting group of men'. This might have been because we appeared to be lost at the time.

Sadly Alan was an absentee today, having to look after the lovely Elaine, who he wryly describes as his carer. Elaine, a very experienced walker, was alone on Coombs Moss above Chapel, one of the Peak's less-frequented moorlands, on Monday when she fell, came to a halt above a steep drop, and broke an ankle. Fortunately she was able to ring 999 and the Mountain Rescue reached her two hours later and as darkness fell stretchered her down to a waiting ambulance near the Beehive Inn. She expects to be in plaster for six weeks. The Wanderers wish her a speedy recovery. 

Our starting point was the car park of the miniature steam railway that runs alongside Rudyard Lake. It should more properly be called a reservoir, as it was built in 1797 to supply the Caldon Canal, which we were to walk along later. At 168 acres and over 2.5 miles long, it was probably at the time the largest of its kind in Britain.

It also gave its name to one of our most famous storytellers. Stoke-on-Trent architect and illustrator Lockwood Kipling got engaged to his girlfriend Alice MacDonald there in 1863 and when their son was born in Bombay two years later they named him after the spot. Who has not heard of Reservoir Kipling?

We left the car park to the south and headed along the course of the disused North Staffordshire Railway, which in its 19th century heyday used to bring thousands of trippers to the Lake, earning it the title of the 'Blackpool of the Potteries'.

We reached a concrete bridge (7 minutes) and descended steps to the right, crossed a small stream, and turned immediately left to join a path running alongside the small feeder stream which carries the water supply to the Caldon Canal.

We followed this for the next 50 minutes, along a track that was muddy at first but improved later, crossing a series of stiles. Leek golf course came unto view below us to the left and shortly after we crossed a wooden footbridge on our right.

We turned right almost back on ourselves on a path up a steep grassy hill but before reaching the top slanted left and downhill to reach a picnic table where pietime was declared (55 min).

Resuming after a leisurely 14-minute break, despite Tom's presence, we continued downhill and turned left over a substantial footbridge. We went uphill on a path with a series of wooden steps and emerged at houses on the main A53 Leek to Stoke-onTrent road (62 min). A sign told us we had been in the Ladderedge Country Park.

We turned left and walked on the pavement. Some familiar confusion reigned here over where we should turn off. Colin at one point resorted to the old Indian trackers' trick - of asking an elderly couple in a car (66 min). They were no help.

We ended up a good distance down the road before turning (74 min) right across a cattle grid on a track. We were in fact here only a stone's throw from the point where we had left the feeder stream for our diversion in to the country park.

We crossed  a concrete bridge on our left and took a grassy path alongside our old friend the feeder stream to where a sign on a kissing gate declared it to be a wildlife habitat (of unspecified nature) (80 min).

We soon came to another bridge that marked the end of the Leek branch of the Caldon Canal and a large stone sign proclaiming 'Welcome to Leek'. We were truly in the Midlands.

The Caldon Canal, which leaves the Trent and Mersey in Etruria, Stoke, was opened in 1779 to carry limestone from Cauldon Low quarries near Froghall to the Potteries. The Leek branch opened 18 years later. It was restored to leisure use in 1974.

We turned right along the well-surfaced towpath, with the canal on our right, and followed this tranquil stretch of canal for the next 44 minutes. Before we reached a low tunnel, which we by-passed on a flight of steps, we watched a large hired narrowboat attempting to turn round, with difficulty, in the narrow channel.

We finally reached a bridge (124 min), where we turned left down a lane to reach the welcoming Hollybush Inn on the nearby main branch of the Caldon Canal (132 min).

We sat outside the attractive pub, once a flour mill, with narrowboats moored alongside and were soon joined by SOB walkers Tony Job, Terry Jowett and Ken Sparrow. They had parked at the pub, walked along the canal to Cheddleton, and returned by footpaths for a walk of around 4 miles.

Wainwright's bitter was on offer at a reasonable £3. But your temporary diarist has to report that a pint of lime and lemonade was an eye-watering £2-50. He is now off the wagon again as a result.

We restarted at 1.20pm and turned right along the canal, under an aqueduct carrying the Leek branch, and reached a flight of three locks and a white former lock-keeper's cottage at the point where the two branches of the canal divide. As we searched for a footpath sign Mark struck up conversation with a passing lady cyclist on the flimsy excuse of asking directions. That was when she made the 'interesting group of men' comment. Mark reports a definite hint of disdain in her voice.

We located the well-hidden footpath next to the house and turned right on a footpath (138 min).

We crossed an open railway line and crossed two stiles across marshy gound to join a stony path uphill. We turned right over a stile in to a field and reached a lane where lunch was taken opposite a house called Bank End (153 min).

We turned right up the lane and almost immediately turned left at a footpath fingerpost. We crossed the A53 again via two stiles, through three fields and up a track to reach Stonelowe Hall, a converted 17th century farmhouse, now a Grade Two listed building that Laurie reported had featured recently on TV's Grand Designs (205min).

We took a grassy footpath at the side of a pond at the left of the hall and followed a high hedge across a series of fields before going right over a stile to reachy a minor road (215 min).

We turned right and at the crest of the hill (228 min) taking a track on the right signed Summerhill Farm. At a right-hand bend we carried straight on along a footpath (232 min) and continued over stiles through fields to emerge on the drive of a large private house whose front gate brought us out on the road called Devil's Lane (243 min). Research shed no light on the origin of the name.

We turned left and at the crest of the hill turned right through a gap in the stone wall (250 min). A pleasant walk through field with stiles too numerous to detail followed with excellent views from the high ground we were now on.

Bosley Cloud and Croker Hill could be seen to the left and front of us and on the skyline to the right the distinctive outline of the Roaches and Hen Cloud. We followed the footpath signs to drop steeply downhill to reached the railway track at the point where we had left it to join the feeder stream on the outward journey (309 min).

We turned left along the track and shortly afterwards reached the car park (324 min).

Next week's walk will start at 9.45am at the National Park free car park near Barber Booth in Edale. To reach this turn right off the Chapel to Castleton road to Mam Nick, next to Mam Tor. The road drops down in to Edale and just before Barber Booth is reached at the bottom a minor road goes left. Go under a railway viaduct and the lay-by car park is around 200 yards further on.

En route refreshments will be at the Nag's Head in Edale, and afterwards at the Roebuck in Chapel-en-le Frith.

Happy wandering!