Chekel three

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Walked in reverse, from Kelsall to Chester.

From the centre of Kelsall (local pub, cafe, shops), a tarmac path through a playground brings us to a road, which was in flood at time of writing. Once over the road, a gate onto a farmtrack, before a gate gives us access to a field. It can be muddy in places, but it's not too bad. Around The Commons farm, a few fields with stiles (one missing its steps) until we get to Common Farm, where the path goes around the farm buildings until we hit a good tarmac farm track.

At its end we enter Oscroft, which is paved, until we get to Oscroft Hall. Luckily, we take a footpath not much further. Here the fun began! The field was a little muddy, but downhill, but the stream at the centre was in flood and, once over the footbridge, the next field, uphill, was muddy and had had muck spread!

Luckily, on the other end was the pretty village of Tarvin, which has pubs and cafés in which to stop! The next part moves along its well-paved residential roads before we meet a short wooded footpath. Crossing a busy-at-times bypass, the path ahead is an unpaved road, which only serves the farm we pass. It becomes a footpath, and eventually we come to the lovely site of the packhorse bridges of Hockenhull Platts.

Over the bridges, another footpath, then track, then a short stretch of unpaved, but quiet, road before ducking once more onto fields. Once over the fields, past a couple of houses, a track leading to a road, which we cross and enter one more field. At time of survey, this was very muddy, but passable. Once across, we move along a footpath adjacent to the Shropshire Union Canal. A small field crossing brings us to a residential road, then, once over a bridge, we access the towpath of the canal.

The next phase is a long, but pleasurable canal walk (you can break the journey at the Cheshire Cat pub, which is recommended!), until we reach Chester, where we leave the canal just past the Lock Keeper pub onto Frodsham Street. At the end, along Foregate Street through the tourist trap that is Eastgate, and so to the end at the cross at the crossroads near St Peter's.

A good walk across country, and along canal and roads. Definitely a foot-only route due to terrain, gates and stiles, and probably better to walk in spring and summer, as in winter it was very hard going in with deep mud and floods in places.

This route will probably be lovely in nice, dry weather, but when we walked it in December, after a fair bit of rain, it was absolutely sodden from overflowing streams. My boots were overtopped at one point! There was also very recent muck-spreading that we had to traverse, and worst of all, three strands of new electric fencing entirely surrounding a field that our well-used footpath crossed, probably because of sheep about to lamb. I’ll report that to the local council!
We managed to get through all these problems, and I think normally this would be much easier, although I suspect there may often be some mud present.
There was a delightful section in the middle at Hockenhull Platts with three cute packhorse bridges, which I’m pleased to say had remained fairly dry. Also the last third of the walk into Chester was along the Shopshire Union Canal, and was very pleasant.
There are good pitstops at Tarvin and Christleton, one third and two thirds through the route.
So 2* or 3* after a lot of rain, but 4* or even 5* in good, dry weather.

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