Woodford Footpaths – 7HGB currently obstructed due to earth works

7HGB from Church Lane to Chester Road
This footpath starts on Church Lane between the sharp bend at Weavers Corner and the junction with Blossoms Lane. A stile leads through the hedge on the south east side of road into a field. In a few yards another stile leads into a field on Hill Top Farm. Keep the hedge on your left and walk up the slope to another stile alongside a gateway. The path is very muddy here in wet weather. At the top of the slope, Woodford Church can be seen across the fields and there are glimpses of Macclesfield Forest and Alderley Edge on a clear day. Bear slightly to the right and follow the fence around farm buildings to a narrow gate in the corner of the field. Pass through the small gate and the path leads to a metal gate leading on to Hill Top Farm drive. Turn right down the drive and fork right on the track leading to Chester Road. A stile leads out on to Chester Road next to the former car show room site. The finger board for the footpath at this point is now missing. This route can be linked with other routes, such as 4HGB, which is nearby.

Please note that sheep graze the fields at times and the grass is sometimes grown for a hay crop during the summer, so walkers should stick to the path, keep dogs under control and avoid trampling long grass or other crops, which are then more difficult to cut.

Dog walkers, please respect other users by collecting dog poo in a bag and taking it home for disposal in the black bin. Bags that are not taken away cause plastic pollution in the countryside.
Please observe the countryside code: Respect - Protect - Enjoy 

 OS map of central Woodford showing footpath 7HGB

The Stockport public rights of way map can be found here.
The Cheshire East interactive footpath map can be found here.

1HGB from Old Hall Lane to the River Dean, leading to Woodford Lane
Old Hall Lane is a narrow lane that runs gently downhill from Woodford Church on Chester Road for 1 kilometre. The public right of way along the lane, 106HGB, ends at a private road to New Hall Farm and the Avro Golf Course club house. On a clear day, fine views of Alderley Edge and the Pennine Hills can be enjoyed from gateways through the hedgerows and the lower part of the lane. Footpath 1HGB starts at a stile from the lane on the right around 100 m after Old Hall Farm.  The stile leads to a track across a field towards the River Dean. You may spot a warren of rabbit burrows in the banks of sandy soil by the track.  The footpath crosses a bridge over the River Dean, which marks the boundary between Woodford in the borough of Stockport and Newton in Cheshire East. The river here meanders in a series of elaborate bends through the low lying fields and is bounded by small willow trees. You may spot the invasive species, Himalayan Balsam, which is spreading along its banks. Looking back along the footpath gives a view of Old Hall Farm, which is currently being renovated. If you turn right after crossing the bridge, you can join footpath Prestbury FP40, which runs parallel to the river. The footpath follows the boundary of the field, turning left in the corner towards a stile on the far side. Here Prestbury FP41 continues around the boundary of the filed, while FP40 crosses over the field boundary via a stile. On the other side of the stile, the footpath is narrow and bounded by tall hedges. This leads past Lumb Farm and out through a gate onto Woodford Lane in Newton, which in turn leads to a cross roads with Lees Lane and Mill Lane.

The footpath provides the opportunity to connect with a variety of footpaths in Cheshire East, as shown on the map below, but beware of high speed traffic on Lees Lane and Bonis Hall Lane, which are narrow and winding and do not have pavements for walkers.

Map of footpaths in south Woodford and Newton

The Stockport public rights of way map can be found here.
The Cheshire East interactive footpath map can be found here.

Dog walkers, please respect other users by collecting dog poo in a bag and taking it home for disposal in the black bin. Bags that are not taken away cause plastic pollution in the countryside.