A good number of CER members gathered at Delamere Station Café on a warm if humid summers day. Steve Haywood, back from bagging Munros had a ride planned to The Dog at Over Peover, but I had been waiting for a dry period to coincide with the start from Delamere to be able to offer a ‘Tour de Runcorn’. This is because part of the route goes along the Trans Pennine Trail, which can be muddy when the weather has been wet. Steve Hu and Alan were keen to join me, as this isn’t part of their usual stomping ground. Clive agreed to join as the plan was for the ride to be at a ‘mod+’ rate, which put Dave H off.
So, the four of us set off towards Hatchmere bound for Norley, Acton Bridge and Dones Green, where we crossed the A49. This took us up Marsh Lane to join Higher Lane and then Morphany Lane. Here, we stopped briefly to look around the site of the old vicarage where Charles Ludwig Dodgson, alias Lewis Carroll, was born when his father was the vicar of Daresbury.
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| Photo by Steve Hu |
From here, we went on through the village of Daresbury, crossing the A56 to pass through the Daresbury Science Park, which is now very extensive. It was originally a nuclear science lab where a 35 MeV Van de Graff generator was built in the early 1970s.
Taking the back lanes through Moore, we eventually hit the A56 just outside Warrington, crossing the River Mersey there. From here, we wiggled through a number of lanes and tracks, emerging next to the St Helens canal and the Trans Pennine Trail. A short run down the cinder track found us at The Ferry Tavern at the side of the muddy River Mersey (it was nearly low tide).
Lunch offerings here are limited to pies of various sorts, sausage rolls (both with or without brown or red sauce!), crisps and beer – not somewhere that’s going to be added to our list of preferred lunch stops. Nevertheless, we were reasonably fed.
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| Photo by AO |
Continuing along the TPT, we soon arrived in Widnes at Spike Island, an artificial island between the St Helens canal and the River Mersey. From here we threaded our way through the streets of the ‘west bank’ and found our way on to the Jubilee Bridge to cross the river. The bridge is currently closed to traffic during the week as work is being carried out, but cyclist and pedestrians are allowed across.
Reaching Runcorn, we followed Moughland Lane up past the cenotaph and round past Weston Village before joining the cycleway running through Beechwood to Wood Lane where we could join the busy A56 heading towards Frodsham. As we reached the swing bridge at Sutton Causeway, Clive offered to lead the rest of the ride back to Delamere as we had only just passed my house. Since this meant that I would not have to ride up the hill out of Frodsham, I readily agreed. The route back would take them up though Frodsham, past the outskirts of Kingsley to Hatchmere and Delamere.
About 40 miles covered on a very sunny and warm day. Thanks to Clive for taking over the last 7 miles and to Steve Hu and Alan for their company.
ST
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