As we got close to Delamere in the Berlingo, we saw a ‘Road Closed’ sign, but in true CER style we ignored it. As we will see ‘Road Closed’ was to be a running theme of the day. Arriving at the café, there are now notices saying that parking is for station users only and that payment can be made using the app or by phone. So, it’s a bit of an issue for those who’ve been in the habit of parking there.
About 15 CER members gathered at the Delamere Station Café. Jim
was doing his own thing and Dave M was coming with us as far as Hatchmere
before peeling off for home. So, the ‘mods’, consisting of Dave H, George,
Keith, Ray B, Andy B, Trevor and yours truly set off (a little late, as usual) along
our favourite bit of road (not!) towards Hatchmere and beyond. As we reached
the B5152 where we would normally turn left down Guest Slack, the road closure
was now operating, so we diverted to Kingsley. Whilst this was no problem, the
drag up the hill past Kingsley School is a slog.
But we were soon reaping the benefit of altitude as we
zoomed down towards Frodsham. At the bottom of Fluin Lane, we joined the busy
A56 heading towards Warrington. We pulled off after the swing bridge at Sutton
Causeway and continued climbing past the Holiday Inn and Dave H’s mansion.
At the top of Wood Lane, we went straight across Beechwood
Avenue to pick up the path that runs between the railway and the Southern
Expressway, soon reaching the bus depot. Threading through some of Runcorn’s
finer suburbs, we were soon on to the old (Jubilee) bridge across the Mersey.
Sadly, the new smooth cycleway across the bridge was closed and we had to take
the old footpath that still hangs precariously on the outside of the bridge
structure.
At West Bank we soon found our way to Spike Island, once the
site of a major soap works, but now a municipal park where the St. Helens canal
joins the river. At the far side of the park we joined the Trans Pennine Trail
which runs up to Warrington alongside the canal. At this point there’s no water
in the canal, as it used to come from Fiddlers Ferry power station which is now
closed. The track here is quite rough, but it improves as we reach Fiddlers
Ferry Sailing Club.
By this time, it was 12.10 and the peleton was hungry, so my
plan to eat at the café in Walton Hall gardens was swiftly ditched in favour of
lunch at The Ferry pub. The last time I was here with Clive and Alan, the
offering was quite limited and today it was no different. They do pies and that’s
it! No chips, or salad or other refinements. But you can have red sauce, brown
sauce or even 'no sauce'. So pies it was and
they were okay. The place was full of cyclists, including a group that were down
from Pennington Flash (near Leigh) The sun was shining and the tide was in, so
the vista was beautiful and even Ray was impressed.
Leaving the pub, we soon reached the point where the track
leaves the canal. It’s near the municipal tip and in an area which is trapped between
the river and the Ship Canal. A sort of no-man’s land around the water treatment
works. Here, the trans-Pennine trail goes through a couple of wooded areas and
as we had almost reached the end of the second one, there was a cry from behind
as Andy suffered a puncture. This turned out to be a slit in the inner tube.
Joining the A56 at Lower Walton we soon picked up the cycle
lane which runs alongside it on the way towards Chester. Peeling off near
Walton Hall Gardens, there we more ‘Road Closed’ signs, this time due to the ‘Creamfields’
electronic dance festival which takes place every August Bank Holiday. Crossing
the Bridgewater Canal using the hump-backed bridge which is currently under repair
(more ‘road closed’ signs!), we cycled uphill next to the fields where the
dancing will start today. At Hatton, there were even more ‘road closed’ signs
as the organisers funnel festival goers to the entrance via their approved
route. Here we crossed over the M56 and took Summer Lane which runs next to the
motorway. When we turned up Newton Lane,
Andy carried straight on to join the A56 at Preston Brook as the most direct route
home. This is a busy road, so I hope Andy got home okay.
Passing the site of the birthplace of Lewis Carroll, we took
the small lanes, crossing the A49 at Dones Green. Keith left us here to head back to his car which he'd parked in Helsby. Pressing on, we soon reached
the A49 (again!) at Little Leigh. Rather than taking the usual route up to Acton
Bridge and Kingsley, we decided to ride alongside the Weaver Navigation, heading
for Dutton Locks where we paused for a drink and group photo.
Dave H had said that we might need machetes to hack our way
along the footpath to Pickerings Lock and, until we reached the railway
viaduct, he was right. The ferns, bramble and nettles seemed to be hell bent on
pulling you into them. Past the railway, the field was full of sheep, many of
which were asleep under the bushes next to the river. In the past we’ve ridden
this way when there have been cows or horses there, which can cause some issues.
We now started the climb back up to Delamere. The first
part, up to the B5153 wasn’t too bad, but from there to the top is a long drag
and, in some places, very steep although there are no chevrons on the OS map.
Reaching Hatchmere, Trevor and George headed for home/car, Ray continued to
find his car at Delamere and Dave and I went to the Berlingo.
35 miles covered with about a quarter of the being ‘off road’.
Fortunately, the recent warm weather meant that the off-road parts were dry. Thanks
to the ‘mods’ for their company and tolerance as we made plans ‘on the hoof’.
Next time, we’ll try to get to Hatton Arms for lunch as they do an excellent
‘small’ fish and chips.
ST
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