Wootton / Weaver Hills / Ramshorn / Wootton Lodge U3A 28/05/2019, 09:51:56

About trip

Total Climb = 403.2m, 1323ft

WALK LEADER: Eugene

WALK: Wootton approx 7.2 miles

WALK DETAILS: from Wootton village, around the Weaver Hills, Kevin Quarry, Wootton Park and Wootton Lodge

GETTING TO THE START: From Congleton take your favourite route to Leek. In Leek take the A523 towards Ashbourne. Stay on the A523 past The Green Man at Bottomhouses, then take the right turnoff for Alton & Alton Towers onto Ellastone Road. Go across two junctions (A52 & B5417; both staggered junctions) onto Ribden Road. Stay on this road until just before Wootton village where there is a small car park on the right.

PARKING: Wootton village car park opposite Daltons Dairy, Shawcroft Farm, Wootton, Ashbourne DE6 2GW. Map Ref - SK104453

DETAILS:

Start at the Wootton Village Car Park, (postcode DE6 2GW).

Exit the car park, cross Hall Road and walk towards the village for approx. 20m.   Turn left towards Daltons Dairy.

Walk up the Gidacre Lane, until just after Wootton cricket club on the left.   Go over a stile set in the trees.

Walk across the field and go over  the double stile.   Continue across the field to the far corner and go through the small gate.

Walk along the hedge line on the left and go through a farm gate in the far corner.

Continue along the field boundary on the left across the next field to a stile into a wooded area.

Walk through the woods and turn right onto a grassy track until you see a farm gate on your right and a stile on the right of the gate.   Go over the stile into field with a few trees in.

Continue walking passing a standing stone gate post where the track starts to slowly go down  and round to the right.   You'll eventually see a wall coming down the hillside from the right and turn 90 degrees away from you.   Go over the stepped stile where the wall bends.

Follow the track with North Wood on your left and the Weaver Hills on your right.   Where North Wood ends go through a farm gate and immediately turn right.

Walk up the slight rise following the wall on your right.   Follow the track as it rises and bends slightly to the left and continues upwards.    Go over a stile in a wire fence and a couple of minutes later you meet a gate.   Do not go through this gate but turn 90 degrees to see another gate above you with a "Beware of quarry traffic" on it.

Go through this gate, cross the road and go through the gate on the other side of the road onto a stoned track.

Keep following the track which crosses another road with "Beware of quarry traffic" until you meet a gate with a stile on your left.   Go through the gate, turn 180 degrees  and over the stile.

The track now goes down through an overgrown shrubby area until it levels out where there is a stile into a field.

Over the stile the track rises up through the field to another stile beside a farm gate.   Continue upwards and to the left towards the trees where there is another stile.

Walk across the next field to another stile, go over it and the path turns right onto a grassy lane.

After approx. 250m there is a signpost on your right.   Turn immediately left and walk through some overgrown scrubby land until you see another signpost for the path as it turns sharp right.

Follow the hedge line (on the right hand side) down to a stile at the bottom of the field.   Over the stile turn left and continue across the field to another stile in the hedge row.

Over this stile walk along the hedge line on your right.    Cross another stile (on your right) and go slightly to your left up the slope.   Sycamore Farm will come into sight, pass through the gate.

As you pass the farm buildings the track turns right as you enter a gate on your right.   Go over a step stile over a wall following the track to the road.

Turn left onto the road and walk into Ramshorn village.   At the road junction, turn right at the post box onto Ramshorn Road.

Follow the road until a Y-junction and take the left fork, slightly downwards.

After approx. 30m the track goes through a gate on your left.    Follow the track down past a signpost until you meet a farm gate.

Go through the farm gate onto a tarmac lane which winds its way down in a south-easterly direction, past Parkside cottage on your left.

After approx. 800m there is a signpost on your right.   Go across the grass and follow the metal-bar fence on your right until you meet a stile over the metal fence.

Over the stile, turn left until you meet a tarmac lane.   Turn right onto the lane which goes downhill to a bridge over the lake overflow.

Cross  the bridge and turn left up the tarmac lane until Lower Ground Farm.   In front of the farm is a metal fence with a stile over it.

Go over the stile into a field and follow the track south until you meet another stile in a metal fence into a hillside of trees & shrubs.   Go up through the trees to a fence line in front of you and pass through the gate in the fence.   Continue on the track going across the lane.

After approx. 30m, crossover Wootton Lane.    After 50m turn right at the signpost, heading south and curves away to the south-east.

After approx. 300m, at a cross-roads of paths, turn right through the gap in the metal fence.   Pass a redundant stile crossing a shale track.   After approx 75m cross another shale track into some woods.

The track comes out of the woods onto a tarmac lane with a view of a lake in front.   Aim  towards the derelict house to your left, going across the grass.

After the house the take the track behind the crash barriers, over a narrow wooden bridge (not the tarmac lane bridge).

Follow the track for approx. 75m passing through a squeeze-stile and turning right onto Waste Lane.

After approx. 100m there is a signpost pointing into a gap  wall.   Go through the gap and follow the signs through the grounds of Wootton Lodge, in a generally north-easterly direction.

Pass through a high farm kissing-gate (to keep deer in)  and cross the field towards the left hand edge of the woods in front.

In the far corner of the field, just before the lodge at the estate entrance, pass through a high farm kissing-gate and then a narrow gap in the metal fence onto Hay Lane.   Walk up Hay Lane and take the signed grassy footpath straight ahead in front of the lodge.

Follow the track along side the wall in your left for approx. 75m.

Go over the two-step stile and up the bank to the signpost, bear right and go over another stile.

Walk straight ahead (north) towards a gap in the trees opposite.   Follow the line of the fence on your right to a farm gate onto the main road with the sign for the village of Wootton.

Turn left toward Wootton and follow the road up and round back to the Village Car Park.