CHESHIRE’S WINTER CHARMS
Tourists often pass straight through Cheshire, crossing the flat plain across which the M6 and West Coast mainline both surge to a more endearing elsewhere. If the county makes an impression on them, it might only be to remark that the cows’ two-tone hides mirror the county’s half-timbered old manors, and recall that their milk is used to make a pale, crumbly cheese.
Yet there is much to love about Cheshire. Take time to roam one of England’s oldest counties and you will find heathery moors, hidden vales amid rippling hills, atmospheric meres, ancient woodlands, bustling waterways, majestic mansions and parklands, striking peaks, bold ridges, bucolic hamlets and lazy valleys, all laced with enticing paths and byways.
Winter is a marvellous season in which to explore. On crisp, snow-blue days, Cheshire’s countryside is peerless, while in inclement weather its ancient villages, enticing market townsmake fascinating alternatives. There’s no better way to shrug off winter’s chill than with a brisk ramble and there are few better places to do so than this county, where hugely differing landscapes lie within just a few miles of each other.
