Day 7

Thelwall to Northwich - Tuesday 31st August - about 15 miles

My Air B and B at Thelwall was excellent . A very pleasant welcome (with tea) and much good conversation.

My meal in the Little Manor was a bit of an expensive blow out. My main  was a crispy beef salad with a sweet chilli sauce , and cashew nuts, something new to me . The subtle combination of salad ingredients and the overall balance of tastes was superb - these things don't happen with some chef coming up with something that seemed like a good idea at the time, it takes skill, knowledge and experience to get such things right.

Walking was on a mixture of country lanes, footpaths, death defying A road, motorway link roundabouts, and the odd crop field margin. It's surprising how many farm tracks have now been tarmaced. I hardly saw anybody all day and must confess it was a bit lonely. At one point I walked one kilometre on the wrong road and had to re-trace steps.

I had a sandwich, tea  stop at Arley Hall café amongst many greys. Nearly everybody was foreign - it was very busy.

Walking through Northwich  was hectic negotiating correct entries and exits from roundabouts with crazy streaming traffic in all directions.

I had a super welcome at my Air b snd b. Almost in the centre of town. I had a whole pot of tea - what would we (or I) do without it. The house and room are immaculate.

I am now eating in the Bombay Quay Indian restaurant only five minutes walk from th b snd b snd all is most enjoyable.

Arley Hall café.

Great Budworth - pretty.

Day 6

Monday 30th July - Salford Quays to Thelwall - about 15.5 miles

Self service breakfast at Travelodge made for an efficient early start - walking by 7:30 - I was marching

down one of Manchester's main thoroughfares with hundreds rushing to work well beyond the speed limit and interspersed with blue flashing ambulances and unmarked police cars..

Careful scrutiny of the OS map got me to the canal properly. Was it last year, Bowland climber snd I finished off our undone part of the Cheshire Ring Canal walk, and I seem to remember us having some difficulty around here.

During my four kms or so on the canal I must have met head on well over a hundred cyclists presumably commuting into Manchestre for work. Normally leisure cyclists give one a hello but that was less than one in twenty today - shows the difference in the mental state between work and leisure I reckon - perhaps a subject for an aspirant PhD?

Lanes enclosed by high hedges prevented any views, i was following perhaps the Pennine Trail which I certainly did further. At the underpass for the M60 ( SJ 784 936) I encountered the highlight of the day.. The underpass is around fifty yards long. It consisted, one hundred percent, wall to wall of slimy, black, five inch deep, liquid mud. It took me quarter of an hour, suction trapped step by suction trapped step step.That is one of the most disgusting experiences ever. Later on at an equestrian centre two very young horsey girls let me use their hose pipe. I stripped off shoes and socks and did my best to clean up. My originally brown trainers remained black, stained by that evil gunk. Later at my Air B and B I prevailed on my host Julie to wash the socks for me.

A bit further on, with Himalayan Balsam on both sides I encountered a sickening smell and I was on the verge of wretching, and gasping for clean air. That prevailed for a few hundred yards. Looking at the map I saw there was an adjacent sewage works.

I had made good time (for me) on easy walking and arrived at my excellent Air B and B at 4:30 after a long trod down the disused railway forming part of the Pennine Trail.

I am now eating at The Little Manor - a bit up market and my first blow-out of the trip. I may say more tomorrow, but time has run out.

From my Travelodge window

The disgusting underpass for the M60

Day 5

Middleton to Salford Quays - about 11 miles - Sunday 30th July

Rain,rain,rain. It was heavy and none stop until 12:30. The new Mountain Warehouse lightweight waterproof withstood it all at less than half the price of most of the well known brands. Apart from that it is well designed with good zips and it is long enough, and roomy enough to cover my waist pouch and camera. Everything remained dry.

Initial walking was through wooded trail paths and then crossing th M60 motorway. From there it was mostly Tarmac through endless inferior housing estates and then onto busy big city roads, but always things of interest to see.

I have now found an up-and-coming rival for discarded Lucozade bottles, the most frequented litter item. The newby is (or are) what I presume are the three inch metal, silver coloured mini gas bottles from the vaping addicts - not a good way to minimise criticism of this new disgusting phenonemum. I mentioned the plural because they often seem to be thrown down in groups of two or three or four which is a bit of a puzzle. I despair of the litter problem, it is an ever increasing rampant blight on our towns snd countryside.

I took no photos until the rain ceased which coincided with a tea and cake stop at a jolly but down market café on the edge of a housing estate.

I have just finished eating at the Travellodge, Salford Quays. I enjoy their common sense budget price policy but still providing good quality and cheerful service.

After an hour and a half of intensive internet work I have managed to book the next two nights ahead. All goes well, and I'm proud of keeping my powder dry today.

First stop after four hours rain.

The start, over the bridge, of  The Irwell Sculpture Trail as named on the OS map, not a sculpture in sight.

The artless trail - I was so looking forward to a bit of culture.

First sighting of Msnchester city accross the River. 

Day 4

Whitworth to Middleton - Saturday 28th July - about 12 miles

Some good walking, partly on bits of The Pennine Bridleway, and the Burnley Way. From those samples I reckon they are worthwhile routes using old lanes, some cobbled and paved. They may look pretty but not comfortable to walk on. At one place I lost the plot with my navigation and did a bit of wandering but all came good. A petrol station provided refreshment at the right time. It had rained in the night and I had two short but heavy showers - they were quite welcome after the drought.

The hotel in Middleton reflects its price. A clean room with not even a chair, toilet and shower well up the corridor somewhere , breakfast not served,, but what the heck it's a comfortable bed for the night. Weatherspoons is just across the road. On entering the din was like a football match in full swing but I found a relatively quiet corner and ate well for surprisingly little cost.

I am in the town centre and every few minutes there is the raucous sound of a car without exhaust being driven at speed by some nutcase who must think it sounds good. If I tried to do that I'd be in the cells overnight with my car confiscated - how do they get away with it?

That last one is the way ahead on a public footpath - I think it's Himalayan Balsam - hard going for a while.

Photos from yeasterday

The quarry photo is just a small disused one on the way to the big one later. As I was walking here I realised I had been to the obscure summit a couple of years ago -it is a Marilyn.

Day 3

Worsthorne to Whitworth SD 886 187

That was a really enjoyable Air band b last night.

Off to a good start good walking with extensive views . There must be loads of  good walks in these Lancashire hills and the attractive, stone built villages dating back to the Industrisl Re olution , but now mostly much prettified. I went in search of the Singing Kristi Whistling tree but never found it. Knowing it is perched on top of a hill it should have been easy but in the heat I gave it up as a bad job. I followed part of the Pennine Bridlesay on ancient tracks. I stopped at a cottage renovation asking for a refill of my water bottle. A young lad had been renovating this property for his sister for two years. He filled me up with delicious spring water.

I was getting tired and moving slowly until I came across a café in  Stacksteads - one mug of tea, a visit to the toilet and quite a long rest had me like a new man, BUT...

A steep, pathless grass climb took me up to the unnamed moor showing a footpath bee lining for Whitworrh across Briannia Quarries. From here on an enjoyable day’s walking turned into a minor epic. The footpath, very indistinct, took me to the edge of the quarry marked on the map. The quarry is still being worked. I have since learned the footpath is closed whatever that means The path disappeared. I spent ages trying to find the  track leafing leading down to the reservoir and into Whtiworth but I was stalled by up and down  spoil heaps, tracks—and barbed wire fences - I actually cut some barbed wire going across the top of a gate. After much deliberation i had included some recently purchased wire cutters in my kit. I was eventually forced onnto the quarry access road. At least that would get me out to Whitworth...BUT after half a mile massive locked gates prevented me.I squeezed through some other fencing to gain access to an encampment for quarry workers and got the help of a young quarry guy who told me of a bent hole in the galavsnised fencing so off I went - there was no way I could get through. I went back and Young Man produced keys and unlocked the gates. I was now running late for my Air B and B but eventually got there hot and bothered. I then had limited time to shower, rinse through very sweaty clothing, and generally re-group. My hostess inferred the Red Lion was in z"walking distance..  I phoned them and was only able to book for 7:45 so off I set leaving some of my chores undone. It turned out to be over s mile's walk! I was bushed again when i arrived, just in time. I managed to knock over my first pint, due to fatigue and a sweet covered body. I didn't feel hungry despot having Estonia nothin midday, snd most un characteristically for me , had to leave an enjoyable smoked salmon and hot new potatoes salad - I just couldn't eat any more.

I ordered a taxi to get mr bsck to b snd b.

Day 2

Old Stone Trough to  Worsthorne SD 886 187 Thursday 26th July
11.5 miles.

A good start with the high minor road to Foulridge giving marvellous views.

The Noyna Café in Foulridge provided a coffee stop. I had a good breakfast at the Stone Trough. I sent BC an email telling him I had slept in The Old Stone Trough (but not literally.)

The café husband was sat at a table reading the Daily Mail. His wife prepared the coffee. He was my first Jonah on this trip.

"How far are you going?"

"Worsthorne."

"it's uphill all the way."

I politely told him I was following the canal.

The Leeds Liverpool was my route for most of the day after I had walked round the nearly empty Foulridge Reservoir. I passed the emergence of the famous canal tunnel.

At my Air B and B I had an excellent greeting from Gillian and husbandThey are kindred spirits, keen walkers and bikers. I had a ten minute walk to the Bay Horse in Worsthorne village and was told, quite rudely, that the kitchen was closed. Although in Lancashire this was redolent of the surly kind of customer relations I know all about in Yorkshire - I was born there and stayed until I was over thirty, so feel entitled to comment in this vane.

I walked back to Gillian's and was very kindly given a lift further down the road where I am now eating in s other pub where i appear to be othe only customer at 8:00 pm - not a good den- Nuffield said. If anybody wants a reference to this Air b snd b give me a call. I think precise details are reserved for the Air B and B website.

Doing these posts on the iPad is laborious to say the least do please put up with typos and miss -spells.