This is another walk that I have been meaning to do for some time now, although I have done various parts of it over the years on other walks, this is the first time I have done this as a circular. I have visited
QUARRY BANK MILL over the years and seen some changes taken place to both the gardens and the expanding visitor centre and car parks, a sign of how it has attracted a lot of people over the years. For this walk, I started at a small car parking spot near to the Airport Hotel, on the A538 Altrincham to Wilmslow Road. You can of course start and finish at the Quarry Bank Mill car park if so desired. The walk takes you on part of the
NORTH CHESHIRE WAY and also part of the
BOLLIN VALLEY WAY, a short road walk as well as a couple of fields that may have cattle, sheep or horses in. You also follow the
RIVER BOLLIN for the first part of the walk to Quarry Bank Mill.
Setting off from the small car park along the NCW, you follow the River Bollin as it snakes it's way through a small wooded area that is below the Airport Runway, (where there is a path that takes you to a good viewing area alongside the runway), before you get to a field where there is usually a small herd of
LONG HORNED CATTLE. This is fenced off so you walk around the perimetre, which can be very muddy after any rainfall. Through the next bit of woods that brings you to the bottom of a few steps that take you high above the river.
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| Start of the walk |
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| Path leading up to a viewing point of the Airport Runway |
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| River Bollin |
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| Path through the woods |
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| River Bollin |
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| Long Horned Cows |
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| Long Horned Cows |
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| Path through the woods |
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| The start of the first lot of steps |
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| Up we go |
There are quite a few steps that you have to go up and then back down on the otherside where the Giants Castle Bridge is, in fact, all the way to Quarry Bank Mill there is over 300 that you have to go up and down as you follow the river through the woods. It's a really interesting walk that takes in another couple of bridges, Oxbow Bridge and Kingfisher Bridge before you get to the Mill. There is also a wild honey bees nest that I have know about for many years and it was very busy in the warmth of todays walk. Although I didn't see any this time, there are quite a few fish in this part of the River Bollin and along with the ducks and all the birds, it really is a little oasis for wildlife.
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| Along the top path |
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| Giants Castle Bridge at the bottom of the steps |
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| Giants Castle Bridge from the River Bollin |
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| Giants Castle Bridge from the otherside |
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| Wild Honey Bees |
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| A few more steps to go up |
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| And a few more to come down |
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| Oxbow Bridge |
Crossing the Oxbow Bridge I turned right and followed the path next to the river although you could turn left and miss this bit out but the paths do come together. There has been a bit of work on this path over the years to make it a bit more user friendly as it's close to the Mill gardens. It just adds another ten minutes on to the walk and there are a few bench seats and area's of the bank where families have a pic nic on good warm days like today was. This path also takes you to the next bridge, Kingfisher Bridge, where again, they have made the sandy area next to the river a bit more user friendly with stone steps going down to the small beach area.
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| User friendly path and bench seat |
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| User fiendly path |
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| Kingfisher Bridge |
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| The River Bollin on the beach area |
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| Kingfisher Bridge from the river |
From here it was straight up more steps and path through the woods where there are a number of paths and bridges that all lead to the Bollin,
NORCLIFFE CHAPEL and into
STYAL and the QBM car park area. As you walk on the manmade path, the ravine on the left hand side has an old Folly Bridge, another bridge (Chapel Bridge) and the Centenary Bridge, all connected by the various paths in this wooded area. I headed past the Norcliffe Chapel, Styal Cross and the visitor centre and down to the Mill. I walked to the pond where the Wier is before heading back for a rest on the large grassy area for a bite to eat and a pitstop.
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| Norcliffe Chapel (front) |
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| Norcliffe Chapel (back) |
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| Styal Cross |
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| Visitor Centre Information board |
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| Quarry Bank Mill |
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| Mill Pond |
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| Looking back to the Mill from the Wier |
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| Quarry Bank Mill |
I followed the cobbled path away from the Mill beside the gardens that take you up above the river on your right as you go past Bank House Farm, that's getting a bit of a renovation, before getting to the Main A538 road that you have to cross near to the Honey Bee Pub/Restraunt and down Morley Green Road before getting on the Bollin Valley Way
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| The cobbled path leading up into the woods away from the Mill |
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| Past the old farm that is being renovated |
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| Cross the A538 at the Honey Bee and down Morley Green Road |
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| On to the Bollin Valley Way |
Passing another farm, old Cottages and through fields I came off the BVW before you pass through a gate that takes you to the Airport Tunnel, instead heading up through another field that leads to a lane before getting on the North Cheshire Way that takes you next the the Airport Runway. This is another great palce for watching the planes coming and going but with this Cronavirus still hanging around, it was very quiet again with only a couple of planes landing and taking off where as this time of year should see planes every few minutes or so.
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| Past the old farm |
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| Past the derelict cottages |
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| Across the field |
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| Over the bridge |
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| Past the River Bollin |
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| Up the steps |
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| Leaving the BVW as I go straight on here |
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| Across more fields |
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| Straight on up the lane |
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| Over the style |
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| The North Cheshire Way along the airport runway |
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| The North Cheshire Way along the airport runway |
Although this was the NCW, it is also part the the Runway Two Trail which is another circular walk around the airport and fields. I followed the NCW path down to the Tunnel but didn't go through it this time, instead heading up the NCW to the right that brings you out near the Runway Fire Station and following the path round and eventually bring me out near the Airpotr Tunnel on the main A538 and back to the starting point of the days walk.
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| Over the River Bollin on the NCW |
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| Runway Tunnel with the River Bollin going through it |
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| Up the emergency road |
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| Path alongside the Fire Station |
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| Down the path to the end |
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| Steps down to the A538 |
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| Across the A538 and back to the car |
Another geat circular walk that was around 7 miles and took around 4 hours on a good clear warm day. A really great area for linear or circular walks that you can make up with various lengths and timings. Lots to see and explore in the woods, by the river, wildlife ponds, the Airport and Quarry Bank Mill and also very quiet. It was busy at Quarry Bank and there were a lot of cars parked at the begining of the walk but quite a few were there just for the airplane viewing. Most of the walk is quiet even though it was a good warm August Saturday.
Cheers :-)
MY VIEWRANGER ROUTE (click here)
BOLLIN VALLEY & AIRPORT CIRCULAR WALK (click here)
