Backford walks

The bike ride starts on the canal in central Chester. Some short uncomfortable cobbled sections under canal bridges and can be busy during rush hour and weekends. You have to dismount to go over a pack bridge just after Telford’s pub. Then a short section along a wider towpath towards the Greenway. The Greenway runs along an old railway line and is nicely surfaced. During the week and outside of rush hour, this is a quiet and easy route, but weekends can be very busy. Carry on to the blue bridge across the motorway in Sealand and turn right off the Greenway, through an industrial estate and then through an underpass and onto the bridle path to Shotwick. This section is a grassy track and is passable with an ordinary bike, but when it's wet and during the winter, you’d need a hybrid or mountain bike.

A few paths may be under crops, or muddy after rain. Includes some road walking

Two contrasting villages, one on a hilltop and the other in the lonely valley of the River Gowy. Wet grass and muddy sections, and after prolonged rain some of the low-lying meadows may be impassably flooded.

Stroll through watermeadows and along a hollow way to a ridge-top village, returning via Watling Street

Explore two interesting villages full of historic buildings.

Experience superb views, intriguing industrial relics and a pleasant return through rolling Cheshire countryside.

A rewarding field and woodland walk to a local landmark with a commanding view over the Mersey estuary.

Two hillforts, mixed walking in farmland and woodland, and rocky outcrops with wide views.

A pleasant stroll around the village and surrounding farmland, with wide views in all directions.

Historic buildings and low-lying meadows around The Goshawk.

Fields and wooded stream valleys on the fringes of Delamere Forest.

An easy stroll along quiet lanes and footpaths around The Goshawk.

A pleasant woodland stroll to a nearby war memorial with fine views over the Mersey Estuary to Liverpool.

An interesting, level walk around the bird-rich lagoons and reed-beds of Frodsham Marsh – take your binoculars!

Two hillforts, mixed walking in farmland and woodland, and rocky outcrops with wide views.

A scenic walk featuring wide views over Kelsall and beyond, and a pretty wooded valley.

A short farmland walk featuring a pretty green lane and extensive views to Liverpool and the Clwydian mountains, and an exploration of Kelsall village.

An extended farmland and woodland walk along the Sandstone Trail, with fine views over seven counties!

A short stroll round two villages, one in England and one in Wales.

A pleasant and undemanding walk through the low-lying meadows of the Dee Valley.

A peaceful walk in the low-lying Dee valley using a mix of farm tracks, quiet country lanes and field paths, including a pleasant stretch along the River Alyn.

A pleasant level walk through meadows, with stretches alongside the rivers Dee and Alyn.

Walk through a wooded nature reserve, with good views across the Dee valley on the return journey.

A short level stroll on lanes and footpaths, with a couple of stretches along the pretty River Alyn.