27th July 2017: Barthomley

I arrived at Rose Farm to find Jim already there, and the others gradually drifted in: Andy B, Clive, Bryan W, David M, Mike G, Tom and Steve T. There was an air of depression as it started to rain and the weather forecast was discussed – heavy rain, hail, thunder and lightning, swarms of flies, plagues of frogs and locusts! The consequence was that only four riders persuaded themselves to venture out on a full CER ride: Mike G, Tom, Steve T and myself.

I decided on the White Lion at Barthomley, partly because it was the only destination on the CER list of favourite lunch spots that I’d never been to. Initially, due to the weather, we aimed to take the shortest possible route, but as we passed through Cotebrook and Wettenhall, the skies dried up, so we followed the road out to Church Minshull and onwards to Crewe. Leaving Church Minshull, Steve T had his first altercation with a motor car – he failed to appreciate your lane having priority over oncoming traffic does not apply if you are riding a bicycle!

We continued through Wheelock Heath, Alsager and Audley to arrive at the White Lion at one o’clock. It is full of character having been built in 1614, being Grade II listed and appearing in CAMRA’s National Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors. The doorways are low, there is an exposed wattle wall and on display is a list of all the landlords since 1614 (see photo).

Clive had told us to try the steak pies, but alas by 1pm they had already sold out, along with some other dishes.   We consoled ourselves over a good sausage & mash and sandwiches, while the two ‘francophones’ of the group identified the outward journey as a typical "cedilla" route. (If you want to know what this means you can ask – but it’s really not worth the bother.)  We also looked forward to the CER Moderate Long Ride to Longden upon Tern on the 10th August and noted that there were still places available.

The return route took us through the middle of Nantwich and out past Rease Heath Agricultural College, heading towards Wettenhall.  On this road, Steve T again showed his ignorance of the Highway Code by failing instantly to ride into a ditch when a car behind honked his horn!  At Wettenhall we headed west to make for Tilly’s at Bunbury, and decided to enjoy the improved weather by sitting outside. We soon regretted out decision as our conversation was drowned out by the noise of a stone cutter being used for a patio opposite.

Photos by Mike G

From Tilly’s Tom and Mike headed back into Chester, while the two Steve’s made their way back to Rose Farm clocking up a total of 61 miles on a great day, and for me, very much a brisk ride.

See route map and/or gpx file download.

S O’H

20th July 2017: Caerwys

Thursday had dawned cold and wet, but promised improvement and this promise had enticed 13 Easy Riders to meet at the Gallery Tea Room in Hawarden.  The rain ceased but the skies remained overcast with a cool westerly blowing.  Bryan W and Trevor were doing their own thing, and Clive was only joining the ride for a short time before leaving for fun and games in Norfolk.  This left 10 of us, Dave H, Steve T, Keith, Paul R, Ken, Tom, John M, Ray, Andy B and myself, on a ride to the Piccadilly Inn at Caerwys.

We rode out through Ewloe and Buckley before entering countryside and some steep climbs to Rhosesmor.  Once the height had been gained we ran along lovely open lanes towards Babell.  At one point Dave suggested that the faster riders should go ahead to the pub, and after some debate about navigation, this is what happened.  Both groups had arrived at the Piccadilly by 1230 and were made very welcome. Most ordered sandwiches which came with chips and were made of the thickest slices of bread we’d ever seen.

Photos by John M

 Well please with our stop we saddled up for the return. About two miles north of Caerwys I took what the map showed to be a narrow yellow road, pausing briefly to discount a “no through road” sign, to cross the A55.  It wasn’t long before this deteriorated into a broken-surfaced track running beside a farm with plenty of mud and cow pats.  We persevered through to the other side and cleaner lanes.  As one of us said: it’s an Easy Rider tradition to travel on such tracks.

Next we passed through the village of Chwitffordd on the way to Pantasaph. After completing all of 7 miles since lunch, Dave suggested a stop at the Franciscan Friary’s St Pio’s Café.  This was well received and for many of us this was our first visit.  We received a friendly reception and sat outside in a warm and sunny spell enjoying our drinks and for some our sugary treats.  Google tells me that people have been coming to Pantasaph for 125 years on a constant spiritual journey. In 1852 the church of St. David’s, in Pantasaph was completed and, together with other buildings and surrounding land was given to the Franciscan Friars who arrived at that time.

Remounting we cycled over familiar ground across Halkyn Mountain, crossing our outward route on the way to Northop and back to Hawarden.  The ride totalled 42 miles, relatively short for the summer, but seemed just about right with the company, a couple of excellent stops and improving weather.

John M in addition to taking the above photos, has also produced this Relive! link which is well worth looking at and where you’ll find a couple more good pictures: 

"EASY RIDERS CAERWYS AND CAFES!" 

See route map and/or gpx file download.

SH

13th July 2017: Lower Walton

It’s almost two years since Clive led a ride from Manley Mere to Little Bollington, memorable amongst other things for having to scramble down a banking, bikes in hand, onto a muddy pathway near Dunham Massey which was masquerading as the Trans-Pennine Trail (TPT). Further along the TPT, at Warrington, we cycled down the St. Helens canal and came upon the beginnings of the construction of the new bridge across the river Mersey at Runcorn/Widnes. Having watched the construction of the bridge (now called the ‘Mersey Gateway’ – how grand!), over the ensuing period of time, I thought we should take another look at it, since it is approaching completion and it is quite a sight to see.

Ten riders gathered at the café at Delamere Station. We were all extremely pleased to see Dave and Liz Pipe arrive in civvies, the first time they’ve been for coffee with us since Dave’s op. All seems to be going well with his recovery except that he complains that he feels physically ‘weak’ when he exercises. Not surprising really, as he hasn’t taken much exercise in the 4 months since his heart attack!

As usual, Dave M wasn’t staying for the ride due to grandchildren duties and he left us when we got to Hatchmere. Happily, John W was able to ride today, so he, along with Clive, Dave H, Andy B, Bob, Nick, Tom, Mike G and yours truly set off from Delamere turning at Hatchmere and going via School Lane and Post office Lane to reach Norley Road. From there we took the little road to Pytchley’s Hollow, emerging in Norley at the Tiger’s Head. As we went down Bay Lane on NC70, there were ‘Road Closed’ signs on display. As usual we ignored them and were rewarded with no sign of a closed road nor of any workmen - #justbluffing! Via Onston Lane and the B5153, we reached Acton Bridge and took Hill Top Road to reach the steep hill down to the A49 where the swing bridge crosses the River Weaver. The bridge works here continue (still) and we were obliged to take the footpath here to cross the bridge before turning along Willow Green Road towards Little Leigh. The short, but steep hill over the Trent & Mersey Canal and thence up to Little Leigh was not appreciated by some (you know who you are..) but it got us to the A533, which we crossed to make our way into Comberbach. In order to make sure we didn’t arrive too early for lunch, I had thrown in a loop through Marbury Park and the associated flashes which took us to Marston, not far from the Salt Barge pub which we have visited on previous rides - but not today. On our way down Marbury Lane we came across a road block where workmen were installing a new (drain?) pipe. Their trench was only a foot wide and nine inches deep, so we were able to persuade them to let us carry our bikes over the obstacle.

Our route from Marston took us via Wincham to Pickmere where we took Park Lane to circle around Pick Mere and head back towards Great Budworth. Now the good burgers of Great Budworth complained last year that cyclists passing through their village were urinating in their horse troughs and being generally being rowdy (“car back”!!!). So we skirted the east side of the village and took Budworth Heath Road heading towards Antrobus, a pretty little village where the residents could be seen tending flowers at the side of the road. ‘Best Kept Village’ anyone?? Taking a left onto Meg Lane we crossed the busy A559 into Frandley. There, in Well Lane, we had to take to the ditch as a massive tractor and trailer came down the lane – it’s harvest time again as we could see from the combine harvester in the field a little further along the lane. Using the small lanes we soon arrive at the delightful duck pond at Higher Whitley followed by the A49 which we needed to cross. This can be tricky, but luck was with us and the road was unusually quiet so the crossing was achieved without any problems.  We ran along Grimsditch Road and Newton Lane, crossing the M56 motorway before arriving in Daresbury which happens to be the birthplace of Lewis Carroll. There are stained glass windows in the church depicting characters from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

Crossing the A56 we headed down Keckwick Lane and passed through the wonderland that is ‘Sci-Tech Daresbury’. According to Wikipedia, S-T Daresbury is one of two national science and innovation campuses, which supports scientists, researchers and industry by providing a collaborative and innovative environment to perform cutting-edge research. The work is mostly in the area of particle physics, but it also encompasses bio-medicine, physics, chemistry, materials, engineering and computational science. Cerebral stuff indeed!

Continuing down the lane we soon joined the A558 which we followed through Moore and then on to the cycle path which runs alongside the A56 to Lower Walton and The Stag at Walton, where we were to have lunch. At this point, we’d done 29 miles in a smidgeon over two hours through rural Cheshire – an excellent pace for a bunch of ‘moderates’. The menu at the Stag was extensive, so it took us a while to make our choices. The food came quite promptly and, for the most part, was well received. However, the steak pie came in for some criticism from our resident food critic – overcooked steak.

Suitably fed and watered we embarked on the ‘industrial’ part of our journey. Crossing the Manchester Ship Canal we threaded our way through the houses to find the Trans-Pennine Trail (TPT).  Several sections of this run through woodland, where the trail is somewhat overgrown and the track a bit gravelly, but eventually we arrived, via the local recycling centre at the St. Helens canal, where the TPT opens out into a wide, well prepared track. The canal itself is covered in green algae in which the moorhens and coots ‘dredge’ a path to their nests. The route took us past the Ferry Tavern and associated ‘marina’. The boats here look as if they never go anywhere, but our spirits were lifted by the sight of a pair of swans with seven cygnets. Further along, we cycled past a grey heron, who took absolutely no notice of us, even though we were only two feet away as we passed him.

Eventually we reached the viewing platform next to the River Mersey from where there is a good view of the new bridge. Once the obligatory group photo had been taken (thanks, John), we continued on. Because of the construction works, the TPT has been diverted through the ‘badlands’ of Widnes, where we were briefly embroiled in heavy traffic before arriving at the ‘Catalyst’, a science centre and museum focusing on chemistry and the history of the chemical industry. There is a (free) exhibition about the new bridge here, but the group felt the need to press on.

Mersey Gateway site 2 year ago (Photo by Steve T)

Mersey Gateway site today (Photo by John W)

Threading our way through the streets of West Bank we cross the existing Runcorn/Widnes bridge and then took some back roads and paths, known only to Dave H and myself, which brought us to the A56 at Sutton Weaver. Here John W, Tom, Nick and Clive followed the main road down to Frodsham and a direct route back to Chester and the rest of us took a route back to Delamere via Aston Lane and NC 5 down to Dutton Locks. In fact there is quite a long section of this route which is a rough track which was more than usually rutted because of the rain earlier in the week, so I must apologise to my companions for taking them along here. Crossing the River Weaver at Dutton Locks, we made our way along the south side of the river and then up the lanes towards Kingsley. Here, Beech Lane leads up to Norley Road, but it is quite steep in places – not so welcome at the end of a ride. Crossing Norley Road we followed Forest Lane get us onto Delamere Road which took us to Hatchmere and back to Delamere Station. Mike G left us at Hatchmere to head home and Bob continued on from Delamere with the same intent. So Dave, Andy B and myself enjoyed a coffee at the café where we had started, before wending our own ways home.

In total, 51 miles of rural and industrial scenery on a fine, warm and mostly sunny day.

See route map and/or gpx file download

ST

6th July 2017: Chirk to Maesbury Marsh

It was going to be a hot day - about 28C in the afternoon. Steve H, Bob and I arrived in the Chirk carpark almost contemporaneously. Steve said he had a 50 miler to the Bradford Arms in Llanymynech which “involved hills” (one of my earlier routes I think) and I had a 40 miler which didn’t involve hills to the same pub. Bob preferred “no hills” to “hills” and thus the choice was essentially made before we arrived at the Tea Rooms. There were a lot of us, but Andy W and David M had “just” ridden over for coffee.

So the Magnificent Seven consisting of Andy B, Steve H, Bob, Nick, Trevor, Mike G and myself set off via the aqueduct for Western Rhyn. This way is my favourite way out of Chirk sliding down the little lanes that run parallel to the A5. We turn downhill towards Gobowen and once around the roundabout passing Derwen College to dive down onto NCR455 bound for Hindford and Frankton. The sun is out, there are few cars, and it is a delight to be idling along in the warm air. At Lower Frankton Andy picks up a thorn and a puncture, which gives me time to appreciate his new Van Nicholas titanium charger with Rohloff gears and rubber belt “chain” - a snip at several thousands!

I try to ring the Bradford Arms but alas no phone signal — so what’s new! We take the triangular route around Rednal airfield admiring the downed Sea King helicopter and N. Korean Mark 1 rocket bodies (all part of the paintball centre). I miss a turn in Haughton but decide to re-route on the fly anyway — nobody will notice! It is a very pleasant diversion through rural Eardiston arriving back on track in West Felton. I phone the Bradford Arms again to find that there is no food today as they have a funeral party in. So we agree on diverting to the Navigation Inn at Maesbury Marsh. The Navigation Inn is deserted until we arrive. The ale selection is good and the food comes quite quickly.

Steve and I agree that we need to add a few miles in as only 22 have passed so far. So we climb back up the main road to Woolaston Bank and free-wheel down to Osbaston on our way the Maesbrook. It’s now northwards up the tiny lanes to Maesbury - just a mile or so from the Navigation Inn!  Through Ball and across the A435, we take the Wat’s Dyke Way Lane into the back of Oswestry. I can’t resist inflicting a stop at Oswestry Castle mound and a few of us climb up into the derelict bailey and keep to understand why it has been built here, and to admire the views all around including Old Oswestry (Iron Age hill fort). Out through the back streets we are soon sliding by the hill fort and take part of our outward route back down into Gobowen. We head north for Henlle Hall Golf club. Cresting the lane, a brave trio dive down to Rhyn and the Ceiriog Valley - and the steep slopes in and out. We four take the usual route back into Chirk accessing the towpath by The Bridge pub.

Photos by Mike G

Only 41 miles and 1400ft of climbs but a lot of new lanes and excellent weather and company — no one could ask for any more on a traditional summer’s day.

See route map and/or gpx file download

CA