Tag: Bishop Bennet Way

OK, so the Bishop Bennet Way has redeemed itself a bit with this section.  The route starts at Churton and is mostly on byways and bridleways, there was still road walking to be done but on much quieter stretches.

This was a proper stomp of a walk for me.  Walked between Christmas and New Year, the December days were at their shortest and I wanted to walk off the fug in my head from the disappointment of the new lockdown.  I set off from Churton where I had left the route a few weeks before, quickly the route turned onto a long section of bridleway.  The sun was out and the low light through the trees gave my glum mood a boost with the sun in my face for almost the whole day.  The mud squelched under my boots, often having to leap seemingly deep puddles, putting faith in my guess that the landing was solid. 

This walk wins the prize for the best sign seen enroute: a warning of subsidence on a restricted byway caused by badgers.  Taking my Primus stove with me on these winter walks was definitely a good idea, normally I barely stop on a walk, enough to check the map, dig out a snack from my pack or swap jackets as the weather changes.  But stopping to boil water forces me to sit and just be present in the landscape.

All but the last section of the day was up hill, gradually getting steeper as I climbed up from the plain past a sandstone scar and towards the southern edge of the sandstone ridge that runs through Cheshire.

One more section of the Bishop Bennet Way to go!

Video of the walk HERE

The route is available on the Ordnance Survey website HERE

Cheshire Challenge distance	16.5km
Paths walked	Bishop Bennet Way
Total distance	16.5km
Total ascent	107m
OS map	OS Explorer 257
Date walked	December 2020
Time taken	4 hours
Cake	Carrot cake
Dance pose	Show time!
Total Cheshire Challenge distance completed	206km (1500km in total)

Well, it had to happen at some point in this challenge, a walk I really didn’t enjoy.  To be fair, the Bishop Bennet Way is primarily a horse and cycling route on bridleways, byways and roads; this section had long road sections and for someone who’s preference is remote wild places it didn’t fill me with much joy.

The route starts in the shadow of Beeston Castle and follows a byway before a long trudge along the road past the Ice cream farm.  In non-covid times the prospect of ice cream would have cheered me up but even the drive through seemed closed.   I found a good lunch spot where I could light my stove for a warm drink, eating a lot of cake and watching a flock of hens were highlights, as was the curious machinery graveyard at Calveley Hall.

Pfft.  That was it really.  17km in the bag and glad that’s ticked off: But I guess you can’t have all all the time, can you?

Video of the walk HERE

The route is available on the Ordnance Survey website HERE

Cheshire Challenge distance	17km
Paths walked	Bishop Bennet Way
Total distance	17km
Total ascent	54m
OS map	OS Explorer 257
Date walked	November 2020
Time taken	4.25 hours
Cake	Fruit sponge
Dance pose	None, head down stomping!
Total Cheshire Challenge distance completed	189km (1500km total)