Weekend Walks: Rawhead

This week, artist Sophie Parr was chosen as the overall winner of Castle Park Arts Centre's 35th Open Exhibition for her painting, 'Gorse Up on the Bank', which depicts scenes from a walk round Rawhead, near Bickerton.

Coincidentally, Frodsham Nub News had also recently been enjoying the beautiful views around this dramatic section of the Sandstone Trail, and we wanted to share the walk with you.

With its sheer sandstone cliff faces, undulating woodland paths and eerie caves, Rawhead is an atmospheric escape from the monotony of lockdown, and well worth travelling a bit further to reach.

Heading to Bickerton on the A41, take the first exit on the Broxton roundabout onto the A534 (Salters Lane) towards the Bickerton Poacher pub.

Just as you reach a turning for Coppermine Lane and the hills rising to Rawhead, you will see a large lay-by on the right-hand side of the road, where you can park.

• Turn left from the lay-by onto Bulkeley Hall Lane, which leads towards the small settlement of Gallantry Bank.

• Look out for a footpath sign on your left. This will take you across four fields and to a stile at the entrance to a sort of miniature dell, where the path sinks between the hedgerows.

• Emerging from this narrow footpath, turn left onto Hitchens Lane, and then right onto the main road.

• Walking through Bulkeley village, turn left onto Mill Lane and follow it to the end.

• You will reach a T-junction, where you should cross over the road to enter Bulkeley Hill Wood.

• Turn left and start climbing up the ridged and rooty path towards the Sandstone Trail.

• When the ground levels and the woods fall away, cross the same flat maize field we covered during our Bulkeley Hill Walk.

• At the end of the field, cross Coppermine Lane to continue towards the northerly end of Bickerton Hill, and Rawhead, which, standing at 227m above sea level, is the highest point of the Sandstone Trail.

• Keep following the Sandstone Trail signs through the forest and towards the hill summit. Periodically, the trees clear, revealing spectacular views of Beeston Castle, Brown Knoll village and the Welsh hills in the distance.

The woods around Rawhead are also home to a collection of ancient caves: a relic of a particularly sinister history.

One large chamber bears the gruesome name of Bloody Bones Cave. In the 1800s, this underground network was commandeered by a band of brigands, who ambushed and robbed unsuspecting forest-goers, as well as plundering local graves.

Seven gang members were eventually captured and executed in the area around 1834.

In a more comical twist to this frightful tale, it turns out that the brigands were also infamous for stealing cheese from the area's dairy farms!

• Having skirted around the rock face and enjoyed its calming panorama of rolling hills and country villages, you will eventually find yourself tracing the edge of a field, before emerging onto a dirt track lane.

• When the lane bends sharply to the right, head straight on to follow a narrow, partially obscured path.

• This will eventually bring you to the edge of the forest and an open field bordering the A534. Here, you might note the unusual chimney sticking up out of the ground.

This chimney dates back to the 19th century, and is a remnant of the copper mine which is known to have been in operation here from 1696 until 1906.

While the sandstone chimney is the only visible trace of this industry, beneath your feet lie a series of underground mineshafts, one of which reaches 156 feet below ground level.

• Having descended the field, cross the A534 to return to your car.

While you can't go for a proper pub lunch after your walk, you can still get takeaway meals from the nearby Bickerton Poacher.