In late October last year I took advantage of a beautiful sunny day to walk the towpath along the Shropshire Union canal from Waverton towards Chester, which I posted about here.  A couple of days ago the sky was clear and the sun was out, so I grabbed my rucksack and some damp-proof footwear (needed, as it was distinctly soggy underfoot) and headed out to do the section of the canal between Waverton and the wonderfully named Golden Nook Bridge, near the village of Hargrave, to its south, about an hour and a quarter away at a brisk pace stopping to take photos and chat to other walkers.  It was a rewarding walk, even at this time of year when there were very few signs of spring beginning to make its mark.  Because of the season, the light meant that the walk provided two different experiences, there and back, with a silvery, ethereal light on the way out and a much more colourful walk on the return leg.  The birdsong was particularly lovely, and I have added a 36-second video at the end that was done purely to catch something of that sound.

Waverton is just off the A41, so very easy to reach.The car park is quite small, with a capacity for about 20 cars, but at 11am there were only a few other cars parked up.  The What3Words address for the car park is ///fingertip.snored.deals.

To start the walk walk from the car park to the canal, just a few steps away, and turn right, heading south.  During the first couple of minutes the canal passes homes on the other side of the canal.  There is a section where it passes a golf course on the opposite side, but it is soon a very rural route with open fields flanking the canal.  Long Lane suddenly appears to the right as you walk south, the road running parallel to the canal.  Shortly after this, official moorings begin on the other side of the canal, with a line of narrow boats and small cruising boats as far as the eye could see.  I stopped at Golden Nook Bridge and turned back, but the moorings presumably continue all the way to Tattenhall Marina.

In total, there and back, the walk took about 2 1/2 – 3 hours, all on the flat.  Unlike the section towards Chester this part of the towpath is not metalled, and can be very uneven underfoot with tree roots and stones poking through.  It was also quite muddy after several weeks of rainfall.

 

 

36 seconds of birdsong from one of the canal bridges, taken on my smartphone.  There is a little interference from the breeze, but you can hear the birds giving forth wonderfully.