The day dawned bright and clear, so rather than continue with the decorating I should have been doing, I went for a walk. Like you do.
I needed to check out a couple of paths that I suspected may have been diverted due to changes close to the Lymm interchange / roundabout thingy. I’m leading a bit of a walk for a couple of members of the After Eight walkers next week, this was the only part of the route I needed to recce.
Parked up in Hale, I trundled down to the R Bollin and followed it’s northern bank on a nice dry footpath, eastwards, almost as far as Castle Mill….famous in the 1960s for it’s solar heated, open air swimming pool.
The R Bollin near Hale
For Conrad
I only went in the pool a couple of times, it was always bloody freezing – and at 1/ˉ
(5p), was a bit too pricey for me. The preferred, cheaper (=free) and
much warmer option was to swim in the Bollin – along with all the other
kids that didn’t have two pennies to rub together.
Footbridge over the R Bollin, close to Castle Mill
Crossing the R Bollin by a footbridge I walked south(ish) to join a tarmac road that eventually took me through Ashley, and almost as far as Tatton Park. I could hear the not very distant M56, so much busier now than a few weeks ago – the easing of lockdown restrictions is becoming more and more apparent.
The only recently closed Ashley School - up for sale
The Rev Robin's 'old' church
The M56, still not that busy
I eventually crossed the M56 by a footbridge. Peering into some woodland I spotted some shelters - I couldn't tell what was going on, but a group of folk were certainly enjoying themselves.
Re-crossing the R Bollin
I walked NE back into Hale, re-crossing the R Bollin, and to my car.
I’d only been out 2½hrs but I thoroughly enjoyed my little jaunt. 20 minutes later I was back home and tucking into a rather late breakfast.
Oh, and the footpaths hadn’t been diverted, all was well.
Where I went:
7 miles of very pleasant flatness...I may run it next time
