Torkington

August 24, 2022

TORKINGTON

TORKINGTON PARK, HAZEL GROVE GOLF CLUB, MIDDLEWOOD WAY, HIGHER FOLD FARM, MACCLESFIELD CANAL, WINDLEHURST, KITLING RIDGE, HOLLINHEAD LANE, STRINES ROAD, ROMAN BRIDGE, ROMAN LAKES, MELLOR MILL, BEVI BAR AT MARPLE BRIDGE, GOYT MILL, MARPLE GOLF COURSE, STOCKPORT GOLF COURSE, BROADOAK FARM, TORKINGTON ROAD, WILFRED WOOD PUB AT HAZEL GROVE

Distance: 9 miles Total ascent/descent: 905 ft

Difficulty: Easy

Weather: Warm and dry.

Walkers: Micky Barrett, Peter Beal, Andy Blease, Mark Enright, Hughie Hardiman, Dean Taylor, Keith Welsh, Dave Willetts

Apologies: Julian Ross (caravaning), Tom Cunliffe (plantar fasciitis), Chris Owen (golfing), Alan Hart (returning from Cornwall), Alastair Cairns (Maserati broken)*, Mark Gibby (family commitments in Sussex), Cliff Worthington (weather wimp), Simon Williams (unspecified), George Dearsley (Turkey)

Non-walking drinkers: Colin Davison, Jock Rooney, Geoff Spurrell, Barry Williams

Leader: Beal Diarist: Beal

Starting point: Torkington Park car park

Starting time: 9.40 am Finishing time: 2.04 pm

Today’s route was chosen to fit in with the wishes of our stricken Wednesday Wanderers legend Laurie Fairman, to mark whose 87^th birthday he had wanted to buy everyone a drink at the Wilfred Wood pub in Hazel Grove.

Sadly, it was not to be. Laurie messaged the previous evening to say his illness was causing him to call off the proposed celebration. As he said in his message: ‘Sadly big C has little respect for birthdays. Sometime soon perhaps – cheers. Laurie.’ We wish him all the best in his continued treatment and raised a glass to celebrate his birthday at the Wilfred Wood at the end of the walk. We do indeed hope to see him sometime soon.

Despite terribly gloomy weather forecasts of all-round rain for much of the day, eight of us gathered at the Torkington Park car park. As it turned out the day proved dry, except for insignificant odd spots of rain, and plenty of warm sunshine. We welcomed Dave Willetts back after his summer in France.

We left the car park by walking north to cross the stream by a bridge then headed across a football pitch to take an alleyway leading us to a housing estate. A right here, then a left in to another alley brought us to Sandown Road. A short distance along here brought us to an unsigned footpath on the right – a narrow path between houses.

This took us to a tunnel under a railway line and in to a wood, We forked left on a path which brought us out on to the drive leading to Hazel Grove Golf Club. In front of the clubhouse (20 min) was a sign pointing us towards the Middlewood Way. We crossed two fairways and entered a copse of trees where the path brought us to a house and across a stile in to a field.

Another stile saw us emerge at a lane where we turned left then immedately right towards Oakfield Farm. This track took us to the Middlewood Way, where we turned left (30 min).

Just less than half a mile along the trail (38 min) a flight of wooden steps on the right led to a double kissing gate leading in to a large field. We headed for a stile next to a large tree and crossed it to follow a path over another stile and then through a metal gate. A track here brought us to Higher Fold Farm (47 min) and a group of cottages. We emerged on a road and ahead of us was a metal gate bearing the inscription ‘Springfield Farm – pet crematorium’. Fortunately, none of our canine friends were with us today to be upset by this declaration.

The track it led to was again unsigned but soon brought us to a bridge over the Macclesfield Canal (53 min). Ahead was the former Windlehurst Hall, now converted to a collection of upmarket and expensive properties, one of which had an impressive wood sculpture of Galdalf the wizard in its garden. We took a drive in front of the house and where it soon swung right we carried straight on through a metal gate into a field.

This brought us to a track where we turned left and at the top of the hill where the track swung left towards a house we carried on into another field, marked by a yellow footpath sign. At the top of the field the track turned left briefly, before going through a small gate with a ‘Beware of the Bull’ sign.

This brought us to another large metal gate, where we turned right, soon reaching Beeston Hall and its adjoining cottages. The track climbed steeply to emerge on The Ridge at the house known as Kitling Ridge, familiar to older Wanderers as The Romper pub, sadly no more (69 min).

We turned left and almost immediately right in to Hollinwood Lane with the Peak Forest Canal below us on the right. Here your leader declared an early pietime next to a low wall with excellent views, despite grumbling from Dave about the seating arrangements. He has obviously become used to more sophisticated French dining.

The lane led to a bridge over the canal (76 min), which we crossed and continued downhill to emerge on the New Mills to Marple road (81 min).

We crossed this and took a well-surfaced bridleway downhill, which ended at two houses, where it became a footpath that dropped down to the River Goyt on our right. Here we crossed the river by the Roman Bridge – in fact a 17th-century packhorse bridge - and climbed to the broad track of the Goyt Way (86 min).

We turned left, passing under an imposing viaduct carrying the Manchester to Sheffield rail line and came to the Roman Lakes (91 min). These lakes – and the nearby bridge – have no Roman connections at all. They were the millponds serving the massive mill of Samuel Oldknow until it burnt down in 1892 after 100 years of operating and employing hundreds of local people. The lakes, with boating, fishing and tea dances were romanticised to appeal to the large numbers of visitors from Manchester who flocked to the area.

We continued along the Goyt Way, turning left at a junction of tracks, to reach the ruins of the Mellor Mill (103 min), recently excavated and turned in to a tourist attraction. Here we bore left, crossed the Goyt over a bridge and took Lakes Road uphill to arrive in Marple.

We headed up Oldknow Road with a large green on our left and reached Marple’s main street at the point where the Peak Forest Canal runs under the roadway three-quarters of the way up a flight of 16 locks. Our original planned watering hole was our old favourite the Ring o’ Bells at the top of the locks. But a visit by your diarist the previous week – purely in the interests of research of course - had discovered the place had gone all foodie and visits to the bar were banned.

The alternative of the rather grotty Navigation Inn met with little enthusiam so Dave suggested a place called Bevi in the nearby precinct. Its description as an ale and prosseco bar did not bode well but it proved to be a real find.

We were early – thanks to our brisk pace so far – and waited for 15 minutes on the tables outside but when they opened we found them more than welcoming with a great selection of ales including Wainrights Gold ( it has just been rebranded) at an amazing £3.40. We shall return. We were joined briefly here by Colin, who was on his way to a bowls match in the Marple park.

Resuming, we turned right from the bar to the top of the precinct and turned left up the road towards the start of the Macclesfield Canal. Just before the Ring o Bells we took a gate on the left which took us down to the canal towpath.

We followed the canal until it passed the magnificent six-storey Goyt Mill, now home to several business enterprises. Shortly after canal bridge no.4 we took a path on the right taking us in to Marple golf course (135 min). Clear signs directed us across a number of fairways in to woods on the opposite side where we eventually came again to the Middlewood Way (147 min).

We crossed straight over, via a stile, to a narrow grassed path leading initially between two rugby pitches.This continued before dipping down steeply through woods and across a wooden bridge over a stream (dry on this ocassion from the recent drought) before climbing to come to the side of a fairway on our third golf course of the day – Stockport (156 min).

Signs took us right along a rough path through the woods with the course alongside us on the left. It broke through on to the course again and signs directed us across two more fairways to come to a stile leading in to a field (168 min).

We skirted the edge of the field before coming to a stile taking us in to the yard of Broadoak Farm (173 min) , with the fishing venue of a moat on our right. We carried straight on to another gate leading us in to fields, where a spooked young horse charged past us at top speed causing some alarm, and followed signs through two more fields, taking us beneath an electricity pylon, and shortly afterwards emerging on Torkington Road (185 min). A right turn here took us along the road before reaching the entrance to Torkington Park on our left.

Most of us carried on here to reach the main road in Hazel Grove and turned right towards the Wetherspoon’s Wilfred Wood, named after a local hero VC of World War 1.

We were joined by Jock and later Geoff and Barry and raised a glass in honour of the birthday of the sadly absent Laurie.

Next week’s walk, led by Dean, will start in the car park of Brabyn’s Park in Marple Bridge at 9.45am before going through the Etherow Country Park to reach the Devonshire Arms in Mellor around 12.30pm. Post-walk refreshments will be at the Norfolk Arms in Marple Bridge.

*Apologies may be due to Alastair, whose reason for absence described as ‘Maserati broken’ sounded so unique that Mr Barrett insisted to your diarist that it should be included.

Happy Wandering!