Today’s walk started at the Candle Workshops, Burwardsley at 9.30am.  Three of our normal six walkers were ill (hangovers?) and thus with less talking and good weather we calculated that the walk of 5½ miles would take us about 3 hours.  As normal the first part of the walk along the lanes was uphill but shortly we reached the Sandstone Trail which runs in the trees along the west side of the Peckforton Hills.  At this point the path is still going uphill but as we came closer to Bulkeley Hill we reached the top of the ridge and enjoyed walking on the level with superb views across the Cheshire plain to the east. On leaving Bulkely Hill behind the path crossed fields, went through some new kissing gates and then along a short stretch of quiet lane as we made our way towards Raw Head.  Now we were walking along with the fields of Raw Head farm on our left and a steep wooded slope on our right.  In the fields at the bottom of the slope a party of about 12 beaters were driving the pheasants from the fields and over a hedge to where the guns were waiting on the other side.  It was good to see the some of the pheasants getting right through the guns to safety.  Looking to the west the Welsh hills were covered in white frost but we were enjoying good weather with virtually no wind and were nicely warm.  Eventually we reached the trig point on Raw Head which gave us another excuse to stop while we debated the meaning of the meaning of the design on the trig point.  On leaving the trig point we carried along the Sandstone Trail for a short distance until we came to a steep path going down to our right.  At this point we left the Sandstone trail and meandered though the trees and fields passing through Bodwick wood as we made our way to the road at the bottom of Burwardsley Hill.  The rest of our walk was now on the road towards Burwardsley and with only a short stop for a photograph at Burwardsley church we finally reached our car in the Candle Workshops car Park.  The next part of our trip was going to be difficult.  With so many good pubs in the area where were we going for lunch.  One of our party then remembered that on a previous outing the Poacher on the A534 just to our south had been closed for refurbishment.  We enjoy going back to pubs which we know are good but equally we enjoy trying a pub not visited by us before so a good lunch at the Poacher completed our day.

MAIN INDEX