Start/parking: Lymm library/market

Distance: 2½ miles

Time: 1-1½hrs

Route features: Wooded valley, waterside paths, and village lanes. Ideal for dogs on leads.

From the car park take the path beside the canal (left) and turn right down the cobbled lane past The Saddlers Arms.

Keep ahead and turn left along Eagle Brow.

Turn right just before the millpond along the narrow ‘The Dingle’, which becomes a surfaced path up this wooded chasm known as Slitten Gorge.

The pond once powered a slitting mill that cut strips of iron used in the manufacture of nails, hoops and horseshoes.

Remain with the path to reach steps up to the A56 road.

Cross directly over, picking up the path for The Bongs.

Follow the path to and past a wooden bench.

In less than 100yds, fork left into the grove of magnificent beeches to find steps and a bridge across a brook.

Cross this and turn immediately left along the path beneath the gnarled roots of a beech.

This brings you to an iron footbridge across a narrow neck of the lake and a wooden one soon afterwards.

Turn left off this along a waterside path that gradually climbs up from the lake.

Keep left at any forks.

Pass by a bench beneath enormous beeches above an arm of the lake, to reach a wide grassy area.

Follow the sandy path across this to reach a car park.

Go through this and bear left to the main road.

Turn left to find St Mary’s Church.

Carefully cross the main road from the church car park, looking for a tarred path from the back of the small triangular green opposite.

Follow this through to an estate road and go along this.

At the corner take the narrow snicket on the left, then turn right along the enclosed path.

At the footpath post take the steps, left, and turn left along the sunken lane.

At the very end turn left along the road that soon becomes cobbled, falling to the village cross and stocks.

Turn right, pass by the Golden Fleece and then take the canal-side path, left, back to the car park.

From Jarrold Short Walks – leisure walks for all ages, by author Neil Coates, is published by Jarrold Publishing, available from local bookshops, Jarrold Publishing, Whitefriars, Norwich, NR3 1TR; e-mail info@totalwalking.co.uk; www.totalwalking.co.uk.

Click on the video below to take a virtual stroll around Lymm.