Wincre two

Verified Slow Way

Verified by 100.00% of reviewers

There was a lot about this route I liked a lot when I walked it from Winsford to Crewe.

The way out of Winsford was perfectly pleasant, following mostly quieter streets and passing through parks. The stretch along the river was particularly lovely. Next, approaching the canal was a great combination of quiet farm tracks and footpaths, largely easily navigable. Just worth noting that this stretch was a bit muddy when we walked in March.

The canal towpath is, perhaps unsurprisingly, easy to follow and extremely pleasant, with some great views of the surrounding countryside.

The Coach and Horses in Bradfield Green makes for a great pit stop approximately mid-route.

Finally, the approach into Crewe is admirably quiet and green, with just a little bit of the last stretch along major roads.

A really solid Slow Ways route, and one I'd happily recommend. Full marks!.

A group of us followed this Slow Way, leaving Winsford by a pleasant route that passed salt-related sculptures in a park, and a lake. There were some quiet country lanes to follow, and some fields to cross. There was a certain amount of mud, but it was easily managed with boots, and would likely be better in the summer. A very pleasant and easy canal towpath section followed, which made up about 30% of the entire route.
A mix of fields (with an interesting double-stile-narrow-bridge combination) and road verge walking brought us to our lunch stop at the pub in Bradfield Green. As mentioned by others, the road here is busy and not that easy to cross on foot, but it was manageable. The route from here into Crewe started with a lovely quiet road, then some suburban walk/cycle routes away from main roads. It was only the last few hundred metres to the station which were not quite so nice.
Overall, this was a very enjoyable route, with occasional distant views to Beeston and Peckforton Hills and even a hint of North Wales.

I agree with the comments made in the review submitted by David Sanderson. A mix of stiles and gates on the field sections and Chehsire is dairy land so cows are likely. With a limited choice of footpaths in the area this offers the best route available. It was muddy on my visit in March but I've seen much worse. A canal side seat looking towards Church Minshull is closer to half way offering a break in fine weather. A garden centre at Bradfield Green is an alternative for refreshment. The approach to Crewe was a pleasant surprise, a green corridor often much wider than required, making it feel very safe and pleasant. The walk from the town centre to rail station is not the best but essential, something the local authority could improve on. Plenty of interest along the way including the sculpture and river flashes reminding us of former salt workings. The old stable block for the canal horses and impressive Minshull Wharf building along the canal. At Bradfield Green a footpath created for a celebration (let's have more of those) and memories of Crosville buses at Crewe see https://www.crosville.org/crosville-timeline.

Having met in Winsford, a group of us walked this on what started as an overcast Saturday. The route through Winsford is easy to follow, all paved, and uses the park with its Winsford Salt Stacks sculpture. Having crossed the River Weaver there is a pleasant boardwalk beside the water. This leads out on to a short section of lane walking. There is a verge and we did not experience excessive speeds by any cars we encountered. A stile leads to a section of footpaths linked by stiles. It had been raining on previous days and the paths were boggy. Definitely a walk for boots! Beyond Clive House we discovered the right of way to be unused as we were able to follow a path on to the lane. The lane itself was OK for walking with verge and light traffic. A final leg across country then led to the Shropshire Union Canal which has steps down to it. The towpath itself was boggy and as I discovered with my foot, has holes in it! Generally though, this was quite a relaxing section of the walk, with superb views across to the villages on the other side of the River Weaver. We left at Hoolgrave Bridge and crossed fields of sheep til we got to Bradfield Green. Crossing the A530 was tricky, there are traffic lights, but only for the cars! We stopped for a very nice lunch at The Coach and Horses pub in the village and then moved on into Moss Lane. Moss Lane itself was intriguing in that it is a straight but narrow country lane which seems to be very well used by locals on foot and was really pleasant to follow. Moss Lane leads to the edge of Crewe and the route to the meeting place follows green ways through the suburbs and then a fairly direct route by pavement through the town centre, including the bus station. The meeting place is outside the railway station, which suited us all, but the station is not located in the town centre. So in summary, the route is direct, offroad and safe, with a couple of places to take special care. Paths, stiles and markers are well maintained, although maybe some of the paths could have benefitted from duck boards. There is a pub serving food at around 2/3 of the way from Winsford (1/3 from Crewe). We were making improvements as we went, I don't think this route can be bettered! A very pleasant walk!.

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