We are the East Cheshire Ramblers. We open the way for everyone in our local community to enjoy the pleasures of walking.
We will meet on Moss Road close to the junction with Canal Road. If you’re coming from Congleton town centre you turn right off Canal Road into Moss Road. We will follow the canal to Ackers Crossing and then ascend to Mow Cop summit which is a moderate steady climb through fields and woodland. At the top we will pass the 'Old Man of Mow' a finger of rock which was left after the quarry was last used. The Old Man used to be a rock climber's paradise, but now is unsafe. From there it’s a short walk to Mow Cop Castle, which is a relatively ‘recent’ addition to the skyline. In 1754 the Squire of Rode Hall decided that the skyline needed enhancing, so the castle was partially built and has never been completed. It gave work to local people and made the view from Rode Hall that bit better.
Mow Cop was also the first meeting place for John Wesley, which led to the formation of the Wesleyan Methodist Church.
After leaving Mow Cop we will walk along the ridge following the Gritstone Trail to Nick I’th Hill where we leave the Gritstone Trail, walking down through fields and back to the start.
The Macclesfield Canal is a canal in east Cheshire, England. There were various proposals for a canal to connect the town of Macclesfield to the national network from 1765 onwards, but it was not until 1824 that a scheme came to fruition. There were already suggestions by that date that a railway would be better, but the committee that had been formed elected for a canal, and the engineer Thomas Telford endorsed the decision. The canal as built was a typical Telford canal, constructed using cut and fill, with numerous cuttings and embankments to enable it to follow as straight a course as possible, although Telford had little to do with its construction, which was managed by William Crosley.
Nick i’ th’ hill is a pronounced dip in the ridge, believed to have been a melt water drainage channel in the last ice age. The ridge, which is result of a red rock fault, forms the Mow Cop trail and Congleton Edge, which is the final part of the Gritstone trail. This ridge extends from the Bosley Cloud to the hill top village of Mow Cop with its famous castle folly.
This is a moderate walk and there are some short stretches which can be very muddy in places. We will stop for a break to have a coffee/tea/ and or snack,
We will meet on Moss Road just off Canal Street, Congleton. There is roadside parking available.
