Hills sculpt dramatic feast for walkers’ eyes
Marion Duff
An idyllic village of flower-filled gardens tucked in at the foot of The Berwyn Hills is where we recently began a moderate eight-mile walk led by Jo and Chris Wood.
We parked at the 16th century West Arms, run by a friendly Cheshire couple, and saw a red kite cruising peacefully in the warm air above us before entering a wellestablished woodland with only the gentle sound of birds. At the entrance to the wood we read about the 1923 protest against flooding the valley before continuing through pheasant habitat and ascending to a higher level, where the surrounding views sculpted a feast for our eyes. Here nature had blended the fields, hills, trees and shallow river neatly into a harmonious and beautiful setting. Hills merged as far as we could see in every direction, while in the valley below trees and little glimpses of isolated houses peeped through the tree tops, reminding us that along with many sheep, people also lived here.
The walk then passed along the Upper Ceiriog Way accompanied by the occasional appearance of a gusty wind that played hide and seek with us until we began to descend, with views of the curvaceous Berwyn hills on our right and the bluer Shropshire hills to our left.
Well-rooted in the peaceful fields down below us was a solitary farm, where we stopped for a few minutes to chat with the 77-year-old farmer before making our way back through the nearby hamlet to our cars.
For further information on other idyllic walks by East Cheshire Ramblers, go to the website ramblerseastcheshire. org.uk.