Eaton and Luddington Hill

Skirt the Shire Horse Centre to pretty Eaton, returning via a sunken quarryman’s way.

Technical sheet

15765094
Creation:
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.52 km
  • ◔
    Calculated time: 2h 20 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Return to departure point: Yes
  • ↗
    Vertical gain: + 71 m
  • ↘
    Vertical drop: - 71 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 143 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 67 m

Description

(S/E) From the front of the pub, turn left past the Shire Horse Centre and left again into Eaton Lane. Follow the road for 500 yards.

(1) Shortly after a track on the right leading up to a reservoir, cross a stile on your left. Dropdown a steep bank alongside a high-fenced paddock that may contain a small herd of Red Deer. Go through the gate at the bottom and turn right. Follow the grassy path round a left-hand corner by a pond then turn right over a stile in the overgrown hedge. Walk up the field, parallel to the left-hand edge, to a stile into the road.

(2) Turn right for a short distance, then cross a stile on the left. Pass to the left of a small copse, then turn left into a field. Follow the right-hand edge of the field (which may be boggy underfoot). Cross a stile in the far corner. Walk straight on down the middle of the next field towards a farm. Pass between the farm buildings and exit by the farmhouse into a winding lane.

(3) At a T-junction, turn right then almost immediately right over a stile. The path bears half-left diagonally across the field, but if the line is not obvious you may find it easier to follow the right-hand edges of the field. In the far left-hand corner, cross a stile and drop down a bank. The path continues diagonally, but this time if the line is not obvious follow the left-hand edges of the field. A stile on the left leads out to a lane.

(4) Turn right and follow the road into Eaton, passing the listed Lower House Farm on your right. Beyond the school entrance, turn left into Winterford Lane. At the bottom, turn right and follow Edgewell Lane, firstly through modern housing but latterly past a couple of rewarding half-timbered buildings. Turn right at the end of the road, passing the church to reach the village cross. 

(5) Turn right then immediately left into Lightfoot Lane. Beyond the houses this develops into a hollow way and passes through a small disused stone quarry. At an oak tree bearing a sign for the 9th tee, turn right along the byway through the golf course.

(6) At the top end of the course, turn left through a metal kissing gate and follow the hedge down to the A49.  Turn right along the narrow pavement then, beyond a number of entrances, cross to a footpath sign by a stile on the left-hand side. Go down wooden steps to a second stile and walk down the side of the field beyond. After a stile in the corner, continue to a footbridge on the left. A short but potentially muddy stretch alongside the stream leads to a stile into a field on the other side. Bear right to the bottom of the valley and cross a stile beneath a tree. Turn right and follow an attractive path alongside a narrow millpond. Towards the end of the water, turn right through a couple of gates and cross a footbridge to emerge on a narrow lane. Turn left and walk up the road to a T-junction.

(7) Turn right and walk along Utkinton Lane for about quarter of a mile, passing the thatched Mosley Brook Cottage on your left. Just before a brick-built farm at a road junction, turn right over a stile. Follow a line of mature trees across the field to a gate into the A49. Cross with extreme care and turn right to return to the Alvanley Arms.(S/E)

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 82 m - The Alvanley Arms
  2. 1 : km 0.56 - alt. 84 m - Stile
  3. 2 : km 0.93 - alt. 81 m - Beech Lane
  4. 3 : km 2.05 - alt. 68 m - Dogmore Lane
  5. 4 : km 2.67 - alt. 71 m - Eaton
  6. 5 : km 3.53 - alt. 85 m - Lightfoot Lane
  7. 6 : km 4.66 - alt. 136 m - Golf course
  8. 7 : km 6.66 - alt. 95 m - Utkinton Lane
  9. S/E : km 7.52 - alt. 82 m - The Alvanley Arms

Practical information

Several stiles. Some paths may be muddy, under crops or overgrown. Awkward road crossing at the finish.

In the nearby area

Little Mill Pond, one of several attractive ponds in the area that once supplied a head of water to local watermills.

The Bailiff’s House is a Grade II listed building, which possibly acted as the forest courthouse or as the home of an officer of Delamere Forest.

Little Budworth Common is an SSSI, described as "one of the best surviving examples of lowland heath in Cheshire".

Over 400 years old, the Alvanley Arms is a traditional country pub in the small village of Cotebrook near Tarporley, Cheshire. Warm, welcoming and with a personal touch, the Alvanley Arms is the ideal place to stay for both business and pleasure. Open all year around, this quintessential English inn offers an attractive beer garden overlooking the duck pond and trout lake in summer and, in winter, a cosy bar with a glowing log fire. Set amidst the beautiful Cheshire countryside with scenic views and walks to enjoy, and boasting six luxurious en-suite bedrooms, the Alvanley Arms is the perfect base for visitors looking to explore Cheshire's many tourist attractions such as Oulton Park, Blakemere Craft Centre, Chester or Tatton Park.

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