Welcome too 2014 :)

Well firstly let "Honey, Me and Hubby makes Three" wish you all a Happy and Healthy 2014 :)

Up-to-now the weather for 2014 has been welcoming mild.Today we decide to explore an area not too far from home as it is quite mild but wet under foot ,so we choose a walk which has plenty of tarmac paths.
We head for a village called Moore which is near Daresbury in Cheshire.In the village centre is a lovely pub called "The Red Lion " and we find on road parking just past the pub.
If you stand in the pub car park ,leave turning to your right.
Follow the path , over the railway bridge , past Moore Village Shop , turning left onto Moore Lane.
We walk down this lane until we walk over a bridge spanning the Manchester Ship Canal.

                 Just over the bridge you enter Moore Nature Reserve, it is a lovely wild life haven.

There are bird hides at points around the reserve where you can observe the wild life , today we see Cormorants , Moor hens and Mandarin Ducks just to name a few.

 We eventually do a circular walk and end up where we started at the Red Lion pub , and just in time to take advantage of the Sunday Brunch which is served 12 noon till 2pm , it was a real plate full of sausage ,bacon ,black pudding ,beans ,tomatoes ,toast , most welcome comfort food after a January winter walk :)
                            Where ever you take your winter walk for the new year enjoy it :)

Styal Mill at Christmas

What a great way to blow away the Christmas festivities , a blustry walk was the answer and Styal Country Park was the destination.
Styal Mill is one of the National Trust properties in Cheshire, with a great working mill and fantastic gardens and woodland ,although the gardens are not open at this time of year as is the case with most National Trust houses.

                                                   The Mill is decorated for Christmas.

                There is a church in the near by styal village which looked lovely in Christmas design.

It was quite muddy away from the footpath through the woods , but eventually we are at the rear of what used to be The Valley Lodge Hotel ,some great party nights had there in the 70`s , it is now part of The
 " Best  Western " hotel chain.
We now follow the perimeter fence of the runway at Manchester Airport and back to Styal.

So it just leaves me to say I wish you all a

                                                                  and a Happy and healthy 2014

Tatton Park

Well we can`t believe it is just ten days till Christmas day , the weather has been so mild for the winter season ,hope i`m not speaking too soon :)
So we are making the most of the mild weather and heading to Tatton Park in Cheshire which is a National Trust property.
We have a lovely walk from the Knutsford entrance to the Stately Hall which was looking magnificent and festive.
There are lots of families and dog walkers taking advantage of a pleasant Sunday afternoon.

                                                              Views across the mere.

The nice thing about walking in the winter is enjoying a mug of hot chocolate to warm yourself :)

The Founders Walk .......Rugby League Cares

Today I lead a group of walkers from Widnes and Warrington Rugby Academy , groups are walking the Trans Pennine Trail raising money for the games heritage,future and welfare of badly injured players.Even though the weather was very "wet" ,plenty of laughs kept us going :)

OH ! Mr Darcy

We have been members of the National Trust for a number of years and enjoy visiting their properties.
Today we decide to visit Lyme Park ,it nestles in the Peak district just on the boundaries with neighbouring Cheshire.
It is a magnificent house with beautiful gardens and adjoining woodland.

In 1995 Lyme Park was used in the television production of Pride and Prejudice , and in celebration of the 200th year since the publication of the book ,we were treated to a very large scale figure of Mr Darcy emerging from the lake :)

We take a leisurely walk through the woodland , the views were magnificent but care had to be taken as it is rutting season for the beautiful deer that have their home on the estate.We were hoping to hear the sounds of roar from the stags as they gather their herd but all was quiet today.

The gates on the perimeter of the woodland are really tall ,we think this will be so the dear cannot jump them , we felt like we were in the Alice in Wonderland book.

 We have had the best of today`s weather and as the clouds roll in we head for the tea room and a lovely mug of hot chocolate and a slice of home made cake ... perfect end to a lovely afternoon :)

Beautiful Barmouth

We woke up to a beautiful morning last Wednesday, and the hubby made a suggestion that he takes the day off work and we head for the seaside to make the most of what could be the last day of summer.
Over the years we have visited the seaside resort of Barmouth in North Wales.It is a beautiful place and not too commercialised, we love it and have happy memories of family holidays there in times gone by.
As we come round the coast road we see the railway which takes you across the estuary to Fairbourne and the small boats moored in the harbour.

It is the first time Honey has been to Barmouth , but we know she will love the beach :)

And true to form she heads straight into the sea and had a splashing time ,and it didn`t take me long to get my shoes and socks off and paddle beside her.

Barmouth has a lovely coast road which hugs the coast line ,it is a dead end road with a car park ,so we park there and enjoy the mile or so walk along the beach back to the resort centre and have a much welcomed refreshment at "Davy Jones Locker " cafe`.
The weather is beautiful and everyone is making the most of the last warmth of summer as we quickly move towards the rich colours of autumn.

                                                  We had a great day and a refreshing walk.

Malham

We haven`t done a walk in the Yorkshire Dales for a while ,so today we are heading for Malham.
There was a large pay and display car park close to the village of Malham where we start our walk.
We walk through the picturesque village and follow the way marker for Malham Cove ,the path is part of the Pennine Way.
                                               The Cove is a sight of grandeur as we approach.

We sit at the flat summit to take in the fabulous view and eat our sandwiches and enjoy a well earned rest for a while after the strenuous climb up a well formed stepped path.

We set off again down hill and after a beautiful walk we proceed along another path way which is taking us to the picturesque Gordale Scare.

We think about heading back to Malham Village, thinking we would need to follow the road (boring ) we are surprised to see a National Trust public footpath which hugs the river back to the village with the added pleasure of seeing a most beautiful waterfall named "Janet's Foss " what a gem of a find.

So we have had a beautiful walk with a fitting end with a mug of coffee in the "Muddy Boots " cafe :)