Wepre Park, Ewloe Castle and Northop Hall.
Almost a waterfall, but in reality, just the outflow from a retaining pool.
Part of the delightful track through Wepre wood.
Ewloe Castle.
A bit more of Ewloe Castle
And more again.
The entrance sign to Broadoak Wood.
A section of the dismantled railway track path through Broadoak Wood.
I hoped this photo would show Autumnal colours are beginning to show, but I'm not sure it does.
Distance: 7.9 miles. Climb: 517'.
Time: 4 hours 30 minutes. On the move walking average: 2.3 m.p.h. Overall walk average: 1.7 m.p.h.
Group: Martyn.
I arrived at Wepre Park quite early, and as yet only a few dog walkers seemed to be around.
I was ready to set off at 09-00, hoping to get to Ewloe Castle before most people. Thankfully I did get the castle to myself, but surrounding trees means that you never seem able to get full picture of the castle.
I decided to head from the casle , north westward, hoping to join up wth the dismantled railway track through Broadoak Wood. I thought it wuld be easy, but the route meant meandering through the housing estate north of Wepre Lane, very unfamiliar ground for me and it took me longer than expectesd even with a GPS and a map! I felt a sense of triumph as I went throgh the gate at the entrance of Broadoak Wood and I was back on familiar territory (although I had never walked along the dismantled railway in this direction before).
I was glad to leave Wepre Park and the myriad of dogs and dog walkers behind.
I arrived at Northop Hall just after 11-00, a bit too early for lunch in the meerial garden opposte St. Mary's Church.
I ended up having lunch, sitting on a stone wall a little ewest of the entrance to Northop Hall Country Hotel (closed at present).
I exected to see a very few people at this spot and only a few locals to be passing in cars. I was wrong on both accounts, and before I could take a sip of my lunchtime soup, a local stopped and ended up talking to me for twenty minutes. At least I found out a new bench had been put in a few hundred yards west of where I was sitting, and heard about other local walks that he had done.
By now I had done nearly six miles, so I decided to return to Wepre Park using Flintshire's Short Wepre Walk 10 from Castle Hill Farm. This involved mainly field paths and tracks, the middiest of whic I had experienced before. It didn't disappoint today, it was just as muddy. The bonus however was seeing a Red admiral butterfly on the wing. After that the route and route description was easy to follow, a little overgrown in places just after crossing a wonky stile and one bit of the sunken track that looked like a potential liquid mud boot filler, but thankfully other walkers had made a slightly higher path around the problem.
It was easy to know you were back in Wepre Park, the quiet of the countryside changed to happy voices and lots of children everywhere (most, but not all had "owners", but it wa good to see teenagers exploring on their own.
I arrived back at the car to find the car par pretty full and people milling everywhere. Saturday is not the best day to exlore Wepre Park if you want a quiet stroll through the woods.
Birds seen or heard today included: Grey wagtail, Wood nuthatch, Black billed magpie, European robin, Eurasian jay (at least 6), Common blackbird, Black headed gull, Common gull, Jackdaw, Carrion crow, Raven, Gerring gull and Dunnock.
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