Walk from Higher Hurdsfield to Kerridge and Bollington
The walk starts and ends on Kerridge Road, just off the B5470 Rainow Road at Higher Hurdsfield. As you leave Macclesfield town centre on the B5470 (signposted to Whaley Bridge), you will soon pass over the canal, and the road then rises uphill to Higher Hurdsfield. Look out for the George and Dragon pub (on the right hand side of the road). Shortly after this, Kerridge Road is on the left. For those arriving by car, turn down Kerridge Road and bear right at a junction. The road is wide enough here to allow safe parking.
| Fact File | |
| Distance: | 5 miles (8 km) |
| Terrain: | Lanes, footpaths and bridleways. One steep, but short, climb. |
| Maps: | OS Explorer Map 268 |
| Start: | Higher Hurdsfield. |
Route Guide
The walk is a circular route, beginning and ending on Kerridge Road.
As with any circular route, this walk can be started and finished from any point – for instance in Bollington. This circular walk begins along easy paths and lanes. In Bollington, there is one short climb up a steep lane. Apart from this, the walk is fairly easy. Refreshments are available at the Poachers Inn pub, which you will pass just after halfway round the walk, and at the Bulls Head in Kerridge (which is about three quarters of the way round). Strong shoes or walking boots are essential. Three hours should be allowed.
The walk leads you from Higher Hurdsfield to Kerridge. Kerridge stands above Bollington on the western side of Kerridge Hill which is the local landmark. The walk passes along Higher Lane, along which there is a row of beautiful stone cottages which have wonderful views out over the Cheshire plain. Their gardens are a picture, built amongst stone walls and steps.
After Kerridge, the walk leads down to the towpath of the Macclesfield Canal. This takes you past both of the majestic mill buildings: Adelphi and Clarence. 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.
After leaving the canal, a steep ascent up a lane is followed by a pleasant stroll along bridleways and footpaths, to return you to Kerridge, and then back to the starting point at Higher Hurdsfield.
Route Directions
| 1 | Walk along Kerridge Road, which passes a few houses on the right. Shortly after the houses, take the bridleway which bears left away from the road. |
| 2 | The bridleway eventually reaches Lower Swanscoe Farm. Turn right to pass through a kissing gate just before the farm. |
| 3 | Follow the yellow footpath signs, to cross a field. |
| 4 | The path soon reaches a gate to the right. Pass through the gate, up some steps to another gate, to emerge onto a lane. |
| 5 | Turn left along the lane. Before reaching buildings at the end of the lane, there is a gate on the right. Pass through the gate. |
| 6 | Follow the yellow footpath signs across a field. At the end of the field, pass through a gate to emerge onto a bridleway. |
| 7 | Turn right along the bridleway, which leads to Kerridge. Along the bridleway there is a gate, but you can cross the stile to the right of the gate. |
| 8 | Pass a few houses on the right. Do not follow the bridleway past the houses, but take the footpath to the right which passes between some houses. The footpath emerges onto Higher Lane, where you will pass a row of old cottages on the right. |
| 9 | At the bottom of Higher Lane, turn right along a road, then fairly soon after take the footpath to the left. This is signposted as a Private Road (to Beehive Cottage amongst others). Follow the lane 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 | Opposite Clarence Mill, take a sharp turn to the left to follow a lane downhill to the main road. Turn left along the main road, to pass under the canal bridge. |
| 13 | Keep left after the traffic lights, to continue along Palmerston Street. |
| 14 | After a church on the left, turn left up Beeston Brow. This is a steep 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. |
| 15 | Eventually, Long Lane becomes less steep. Look out for a footpath on the right. Take this footpath, which heads across fields, with fine views across Bollington. |
| 16 | At the end of the footpath, and just past a few buildings on the right, turn right down a lane. |
| 17 | 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. |
| 18 | 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). |
| 19 | 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. |
| 20 | Follow the footpath across a field, and then up to a road (Ingersley Road). Turn left along the road. |
| 21 | Just past the Poachers Inn (well worth a lunch stop), turn right along the bridleway. Follow the bridleway past a few houses on the right, and then leads down to a lane. |
| 22 | Turn left along the lane. After a short distance, turn sharp right up a footpath. |
| 23 | Follow the footpath through a few gates, then across a field up to another gate. After passing through the gate, you will be on Cow Lane. |
| 24 | Walk down Cow Lane. Bear left at the end, along Chancery Lane. At the end of Chancery Lane, bear left along Jackson Lane. Jackson Lane becomes Oak Lane, where the Bulls Head pub is on the left. |
| 25 | Continue along Oak Lane, and turn left up Higher Lane. You now follow the route back to Higher Hurdsfield that you took earlier. Where traffic is prohibited from driving further up Higher Lane, carry straight on through the small gate, and walk along the driveway that passes to the left of the house in front. |
| 26 | Continue along the lane, passing more houses on the left. This lane turns into a bridleway. Where another bridleway merges from the right, continue straight on. |
| 27 | Where the bridleway forks into two bridleways, take the right hand fork, eventually crossing a stile to the left of a gate. |
| 28 | The bridleway now becomes a footpath, between two walls. After the walls diverge away from the footpath, take the footpath to the left. |
| 29 | The footpath crosses a field, with farm buildings over to your right. |
| 30 | At the end of the path, pass through a kissing gate and turn left up a lane. |
| 31 | Go through the second gate on the right, which leads down some steps to another gate. Turn left, to follow a wall (on the left). Bear right to follow the footpath signs (yellow arrows) to a lane. |
| 32 | Turn left along the lane, away from Lower Swanscoe Farm. |
| 33 | Where the lane meets Kerridge Road, bear right to return to the starting point. |