Bollington

July 12, 2017.

BOLLINGTON, THE COTTON TREE, THE POACHERS, HEDGE ROW, HEYSHEAD COTTAGE, HARROP WOOD, ANDREW’S NOB, SPONDS HILL, BIRCHENCLIFFE FARM, COFFEE TAVERN, SKELLORN STUD, THE MINERS ARMS AT WOOD LANE ENDS, ADLINGTON, MACCLESFIELD CANAL, BOLLINGTON RECREATION GROUND, THE VALE AT BOLLINGTON

Distance: 10 miles.

Difficulty: Moderate.

Weather: Dry and warm with blue skies and fluffy white clouds.

A walkers: Greg Barrett, Mickey Barrett, Alastair Cairns with Daisy, Tom Cunliffe, Colin Davison, Lawrie Fairman, Mark Gibby, Hughie Harriman with Coco, Alan Hart, Steve Kemp and George Whaites.

B walkers: Phil Burslem, George Fraser, Tony Job, Terry Jowett, Jock Rooney with Tip, Geoff Spurrell and Barry Williams.

Apologies: Peter Beal (narrow-boating), George Dearsley (in Turkey) and Chris Owen (hols)

Leader: Fairman. Diarist: Hart.

Starting point: Road outside The Vale, Bollington.

Starting time: 9.34am. Finishing time: 2.27pm.

We had a bumper turnout of 18 Wednesday Wanderers for the start of The Marching Season and a new route expertly planned by Lawrie. He  was tasked with finding a way from Bollington to The Miners Arms at Adlington which would take three hours and a return trip which would last a little over an hour.

His years of experience enabled us to reach both destinations at the designated times, linking up with the B-teamers at both hostelries. There were none of the dramas of last week and once again we enjoyed fine sunny weather and magnificent views.

The seven-strong B team began their walk, after a few false starts, along the Macclesfield Canal in the opposite direction from that taken by their A team comrades on the return leg. They came back to Bollington by bus.

The day had commenced with the unmasking of pole thief Tom Cunliffe, who handed over the stolen property. Last week he had created a mystery when Steve went back for his forgotten pole only to find it missing and a similar pole in its place. This turned out to be Tom’s, who had unwittingly picked up Steve’s pole in error. The conclusive evidence was teeth marks on the handle where one of Steve’s dogs had bitten it.

The traumatic experiences which followed have clearly failed to make an impression on Steve, who set off from Pietime without his pole once again. Perhaps at the start of each walk we should appoint a designated carer to look after Steve’s pole.

There was a welcome return to our group of Mickey’s son Greg, who has been piloting planes from the Naples area of Italy, from George W, who is still awaiting a hip operation, and a debut for another of our canine friends.  Coco, a three-year-old cockerpoo bitch, is owned by Hughie’s sister. She is the product of the mating of a cocker spaniel and a poodle (Coco: not Hughie’s sister)

After joining forces with the B team at The Miners Arms, Jock defected to the A team with Tip, so we finished our journey with a dozen A-teamers and three bitches.

From our meeting place outside The Vale, we walked back towards the town centre and turned left into Bollington Recreation Ground. We walked with the Bollin on our right and crossed it by a bridge leading to steps which took us to the main road, where we turned left.

This took us through the town in the direction of Pott Shrigley, passing The Cotton Tree (12mins) and The Poachers (16mins) on our right before forking left towards Pott Shrigley (18mins). At Hedge Row (21mins) we turned right passing the former Country Cafe on our right and the former Cheshire Hunt pub on our left.

When we reached a gateway guarded by two stone monkeys, we kept left (29mins) and passed Heyshead Cottage on our left (31mins). We went through a wooden gate marked with a yellow arrow (37mins), crossed a wooden stile (44mins) and entered Harrop Wood.

Ignoring a green public footpath sign pointing left (51mins) we forked left shortly afterwards to reach and cross a wooden stile (52mins). We crossed another wooden stile (54mins) and our route took us first to the left of a paddock and then between two paddocks before turning left with a farmhouse on our right (61mins)

We then headed right uphill along a gravel track with Andrew’s Nob on our left. We reached a road (72mins), turned left and immediately right at a wooden public footpath sign just before the sign for Pott Shrigley (73mins). We ascended the path until we reached a broken drystone wall where we paused for pies and port (82mins). Tom, who had taken a 200-yard lead, dined alone.

From our vantage point we had magnificent views of Croker Hill and White Nancy to our left and the city of Manchester ahead in the middle distance with Winter Hill just visible behind it.

Continuing we saw the Trig Point at Sponds Hill on our left (88mins) and we were heading for Bowstones, but turned left away from the main path and walked alongside a barbed wire fence on our left (91mins). This brought us to a wooden stile marked with a yellow arrow where we turned left (96mins).

This was the start of a long descent  during which we lost and found Coco who was bouncing in a nearby field like a springbok foal. We reached a gravel road (122mins) and turned left, then right at a public bridleway (126mins). This took us past Birchencliffe Farm on our right (133mins) to a road (140mins), where we turned right and passed The Coffee Tavern on our right.

We went left at a green public footpath sign(142mins), through a kissing gate (143mins) and headed diagonally right through a field, which we exited via  a stile in the corner marked with a yellow arrow (147mins). We turned left at another stile and carried straight on at a third stile to leave Skellhorn Stud, passing a field of horses on our left which included a newly-born foal. The downhill path brought us to a winding point on the Macclesfield Canal where we headed left and crossed it by a roadbridge (155mins).

The Macclesfield Canal is one of six making up the Cheshire Ring. It is 26 miles long, starting from Marple Junction where it joins the Upper Peak Forest Canal, heads south descending 12 locks within a mile at Bosley, continuing through Congleton to join the Trent and Mersey Canal. It was built from December, 1826 to the autumn of 1829 under the supervision of Thomas Telford.

On the far side of the bridge we swung left down to crossroads (158mins) and spotted the B team sitting outside The Miners Arms to our right on Wood Lane North, Adlington, in bright sunshine. We joined them  (159mins) and tried the Doombar which was deemed unsatisfactory. Pints of Miners Arms cask bitter went down better.

While the B team started mustering for the imminent arrival of their bus, the A team which now included Jock and Tip retraced our footsteps back to Lyme View Marina, turning right with the canal on our left (162mins). After Bridge 20 we stopped at a bench for lunch (178mins). Resuming we continued until we reached a sign for the Recreation Ground on our right (212mins)

We turned right to enter the ground (214mins) and crossed the River Bollin by the same bridge we had crossed nearly five hours earlier. We exited the recreation ground and turned right to walk down to The Vale (220mins) for a variety of cask bitter options, including a light session beer called  White Nancy. The B team were already there suitably refreshed.

Next week’s walk will start at 9.50am on the road outside the White Hart pub in Bradwell, near Castleton. We expect to reach the Cheshire Cheese in Castleton around 12.20pm for a bracer and return to our cars about 2.20pm. We will then drive to the Old Hall at Hope for a final pint around 2.30pm.

Happy wandering !