July’s walk started from Consall Nature Park’s visitor centre and then followed the Cauldon Canal to the Boat Inn in Cheddleton, where we had lunch. Four members and four ladies came on this walk of about 3.5 miles.
It was a short walk down the slopes of the park to the valley bottom where the canal, the River Churnet and the Churnet Valley Railway are adjacent to each other. It was commented on that Staffordshire County Council had done a great job in setting up the counties Country Parks – let’s hope they can maintain them in the future, an issue that is currently under consultation.
The river becomes the canal for part of this stretch, separating again at a weir near the Black Lion Pub. We were passed along the way by a train travelling from Cheddleton to Frogall which run on Wednesdays during the summer. This walk was a linear one and following lunch at the Boat we returned home to Kidsgrove by about 2:30.