Walks from The Poachers Inn around Bollington
Three walks are presented here, all starting and ending at the Poachers Inn, which is situated on Ingersley Road in Bollington. Please choose the short walk or medium walk or long walk.
If travelling by car, take the Bollington Road (B5090) exit from the roundabout on the A523 where the Silk Road becomes London Road, by Tytherington Business Park. Bollington Road (B5090) continues onto Henshall Road, then Wellington Road, then Palmerston Street. After passing under two viaducts, Palmerston Street rises uphill. At a mini roundabout, go straight on (B5090 towards Pott Shrigley), then turn immediately right up Ingersley Road. After a right hand bend, the Poachers is on the right. The pub has a small car park. The Poachers is a pleasant and very friendly pub with a reputation for good quality, fresh home-made food. Formerly known as the Masonic Arms it has been created by merging half a dozen terraced cottages. Occupying a corner site it is solidly built from local stone and blends well with its surroundings. By the door, the comfortable lounge chairs and open fire provide a warm, relaxing and surprisingly quiet niche where you can stare into the fire while enjoying a pint of real ale. To the rear can be found a large secluded beer garden.
| Fact File - Short Walk | |
| Distance: | 4 miles (6 km) |
| Terrain: | Lanes, footpaths and bridleways. Two steep, but short, climbs. |
| Maps: | OS Explorer Map 268 |
| Start: | The Poachers Inn, Ingersley Road, Bollington. |
Route Guide
Bollington is known locally as the Happy Valley. The walk is a circular route around Bollington, beginning and ending at the Poachers Inn.
To the north of Bollington, there is a short climb up a steep lane. There is also a short climb up Kerridge Hill. Apart from this, the walk is fairly easy. Strong shoes or walking boots are essential - there are some potentially muddy footpaths. Two hours should be allowed.
From the Poachers, the walk initially heads away from Bollington, along roads to meet with the Gritstone Trail, which passes to the east and south of Bollington. The Gritstone Trail is a long-distance footpath running from Kidsgrove in Staffordshire to Disley in Cheshire. The trail is well marked using a mixture of finger posts and yellow waymark discs with a ‘G’ in a footprint. On the Gritstone Trail, the walk passes behind Savio House, a retreat centre. After walking around the edge of the grounds of Savio House, the walk continues along the Gritstone Trail. After emerging onto a lane, the Gritstone Trail leads you up the side of Kerridge Hill. Before walking up Kerridge Hill, a short and worthwhile diversion leads to Waulkmill Farm, and this picturesque waterfall on the River Dean. The River Dean flows from Rainow, and over this waterfall before passing through Bollington.
The Gritstone Trail then leads you past the base of Kerridge Hill, where a short diversion up to the White Nancy is recommended. The White Nancy is an 18 foot high Grade II listed landmark standing on the top of Kerridge Hill overlooking Bollington, and is visible for miles around. White Nancy was actually built as a summer house by the Gaskell family, who lived below the hill at Ingersley Hall, in about 1815. It is stone built with external rendering and regularly painted white in order to maintain its visibility. It is thought that it may have been built to commemorate the battle of Waterloo. Internally there is a seat all round the wall with a large table in the centre. The table is circular, cut from a single piece of stone. Before White Nancy was built the site was occupied by a beacon which was a small rotunda of brick. Such beacons were erected on high points across the land in which fires could be lit to warn of invasion. It was white-washed from the beginning, but painted green during World War II so as not to provide a landmark for enemy aircraft. The boundary line dividing Rainow and Bollington passes through the middle of the building, placing White Nancy in both parishes. There is no settled reason for the name Nancy, it has been suggested that it was the name of the horse that lead the team dragging the building materials up the hill.
After descending into the village of Kerridge, the walk leads down to the towpath of the Macclesfield Canal. This takes you past both of the majestic mill buildings: Adelphi Mill and then Clarence Mill. The Swindells family made their lasting contribution to the town’s architecture when, with partners the Brooke family, they built Clarence Mill in 1834-38, then Adelphi Mill in 1856, taking full advantage of Macclesfield Canal (newly opened in 1831). These magnificent industrial buildings have now been converted into flats and business units. The Swindells family was a major force in transforming Bollington from an agricultural village of 1,200 people in 1801 to an industrial town of 4,600 people by 1851. Once you have reached the canal towpath opposite Clarence Mill, the walk descends to and follows the main road for a short distance.
From the main road, the walk leads up the hill to the north of Bollington. There is quite a steep climb up the lane here, but this is quite short, and is worth it! From the lane (Long Lane), a footpath leads across fields (from where this photo was taken). This view is from the highest point of the north side of this walk, over to Kerridge Hill, to the south (the White Nancy monument may be seen on top of Kerridge Hill). The higher hill up to the left of the path is Nab Head, but this is not accessible from our route. The walk then descends back down to, and crosses, the main road out of Bollington to Pott Shrigley (Shrigley Road). A short walk across a field leads to Ingersley Road and back to the Poachers.
Route Directions
| 1 | Turn right up the road (Smithy Brow) from the Poachers Inn. There is a pavement on the left hand side. |
| 2 | A short distance further on, a crossroads is reached. Turn right along Oakenbank Lane. You are now following the Gritstone Trail - follow the signs with a yellow waymark disc with a ‘G’ in a footprint. |
| 3 | Having passed some houses on the left, look out for a footpath off to the right, signposted as the Gritstone Trail. Follow the footpath downhill. |
| 4 | Keep following the Gritstone Trail uphill again, where it follows a wall to the right (this is the edge of the grounds of Savio House). Having crossed a stone stile, turn right at a crossroads of paths, with the grounds of Savio House still to the right. |
| 5 | Follow the Gritstone Trail as it descends through a few kissing gates, and eventually emerges onto a lane. Turn left along the lane. |
| 6 | Soon the Gritstone trail (and our route) turns right uphill at a junction. However, it is worth taking a small detour to see the waterfall - keep straight on at the junction instead, towards Waulkmill Farm and the waterfall. |
| 7 | Retrace your steps back to the junction, and follow the Gritstone Trail (now a bridleway) uphill. |
| 8 | At the top of the hill (Kerridge Hill), and off to your left, you will be able to see the White Nancy. It is worth a small detour from the route to follow the Gritstone Trail signs to walk up to the White Nancy. Retracing your steps, return to the bridleway and continue on down to a road (Redway). Turn right along the road, which takes you into Kerridge. |
| 9 | At the end of Redway, turn left, then fairly soon after take the bridleway off to the right. This is signposted as a Private Road (to Beehive Cottage amongst others). Follow the bridleway downhill. |
| 10 | Bear left at the bottom of the lane (to the left of Beehive Cottage), crossing the canal over a bridge. Turn right straight after the bridge, down some steps and along the canal towpath.. |
| 11 | Continue along the canal towpath, passing Adelphi Mill on the left. Eventually, Clarence Mill is reached (on the right). |
| 12 | Cross the footbridge (26A) over the canal to Clarence Mill. There is a cafe (Waterside) in Clarence Mill. |
| 13 | Follow the road down to the main road. |
| 14 | Turn left along the main road. |
| 15 | After a church on the left, turn left up Beeston Brow. This is a steep, cobbled lane uphill past several houses. At the end of the houses, Beeston Brow takes a sharp right turn. A little further on, bear left up Long Lane. |
| 16 | Eventually, Long Lane becomes less steep. Look out for a footpath on the right. Take this footpath, which heads across fields, with fine views to the right across Bollington to the White Nancy. |
| 17 | At the end of the footpath, and just past a few buildings on the right, turn right down a lane. |
| 18 | A short distance down the lane, take the paved footpath downhill to the left. This footpath has a wooden handrail on the right, which is useful as it is slippery in places. |
| 19 | The footpath descends past some houses on the left, where it becomes a lane. Continue straight on down past more houses to the main road (Shrigley Road). |
| 20 | Cross straight over the main road, into a short cul-de-sac. At the end of the cul-de-sac, take the footpath that continues straight on down hill. |
| 21 | Follow the footpath across a field, and then up to a road (Ingersley Road). Turn left along the road, to return to the Poachers for a well-deserved drink! |