Members:  Dave Shotton, Lorna Marsland, Dave Wylie, Phil Hartwell, Roger Dyke, Sue Marsden, Christine Beeston, John Castick, Midge Castick, Iain McCallum, Chris Thickett, Oi Ding Koy, Kate Harvey, Lucie Crouch

Guests:  Karen Ellis, Amanda Preece, Neil Boynton

With a glorious sunny day the walkers kept appearing in the Alderley Edge street to gather for the Cheshire walk.  An amazing 17 of us!

 I chose the walk in Cheshire originally as it is not far for Roger, Sue and I to travel to, I didn’t think that a walking meet had been out that way for a while and also was keen to explore the area.  The walk has a great mix of countryside, fields, woodland, historic buildings, millionaires mansions and various animals to spot.

Most meet reports tend to have comedy tales of things that happened, this walk there were no major events and no getting lost (thanks to Gareth for doing the walk with me 2 weeks before and working out a diversion route due to the National Trust closing a path we needed to take).  A very relaxed meet with lots of chatting, reminiscing and of course cake (well, brownies, I provided at the tea break).

We started and parked in Chorley Lane in Alderley Edge and from there took lanes and fields to Nether Alderley, stopping at St Mary’s church to enjoy a quick tea break in the sunshine.  The walk continued with more lanes, fields, woodland to Hare Hill which is where we had to take a diversion along the road due to the path closure.  Everyone was starting to get hungry at this point and following the only real uphill of the whole walk we found a dip with fallen trees to sit on at the top of Daniel Hill to stop and have lunch, as well as admire Roger’s brand new gaiters.

After lunch we continued on to the ‘Wizard Walk’ area where there are great views across to Manchester. We found the Druid’s Circle, the Armada Beacon and Wizard’s Well as well as a small gunpowder store (not a patch on Ty Powdwr) and old tunnel used by the quarry.  The last part of the walk was spent choosing which mansion we would like to live in as we walked back through Alderley Edge.  Some of us stopped at the De Trafford Arms for a well-earned drink and chance to compare step counts and distance walked with the various gadgets people had with them.

Thank you everyone for coming along and for a really enjoyable day.

Having moved to Cheshire from Leeds last year, its time to explore the area. This walk promises surprises, several fine old buildings, pubs, tearoom, millionaires' houses and grand views. Something for everyone. The walk starts at Alderley Edge and goes to Nether Alderley and Hare Hill before returning to Alderley Edge. I can even give you some historical facts about things we will see.

Length: 8.5 miles

How to get there: From the A34 in the centre of Alderley Edge, look out for the De Trafford Arms and turn west into Chorley Hill Lane. After a short distance the road crosses a railway bridge, park along the road beyond the railway. Alderley Edge station is a short walk away from this point.

Meet: 10am, Chorley Hill Lane, Alderley Edge, SK9 7UL

Interested in coming on the walk? Please add yourself to the intend to attend list.